Sport specialisation and performance-enhancing substance use by young athletes

Area of Science:

• Sports Medicine
• Adolescent Health
• Performance Enhancement

Background:

• Performance-enhancing substance (PES) use is a concern in young athletes.
• Understanding factors associated with PES use, including sports specialization, is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between sports specialization and reported legal PES use.
• To examine the relationship between sports specialization and consideration of banned PES use in young athletes.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study of 946 young athletes (mean age 14) from an injury prevention program (2013-2020).
• Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the independent association between sports specialization and PES use, adjusting for covariates.
• Data collected included legal PES use and consideration of banned PES use.

Main Results:

• 14% of athletes reported legal PES use; 3% considered banned PES use.
• No significant association was found between sports specialization and legal PES use (OR=1.4; p=0.23) or consideration of banned PES use (OR=3.2; p=0.1).
• Legal PES use was more common in male, older athletes, those using weight training, and those with less sleep. Banned PES consideration was higher in male and older athletes.

Conclusions:

• Sports specialization is not an independent predictor of PES use in young athletes.
• Athlete sex, age, training regimens, and sleep patterns are significant factors influencing PES use and consideration.
• These findings highlight the need to consider a broader range of factors beyond specialization when addressing PES use in youth sports.