Derval O'Rourke: Everything you need to know about food supplements

Plus a quick and easy recipe for booster bars

A group of pills on a spoon

Food supplements are products designed to supplement your diet. People often turn to supplements to fill nutritional gaps, support specific health goals, or address deficiencies.

The supplement industry is estimated to be worth $149bn (€138bn) globally, but it is an industry that comes with scrutiny around quality control.

This week, I am sharing my experience with supplements and, recipe-wise, it is booster bars — a great snack that will help you power through the day!

I first started taking supplements over 20 years ago.

At the time, I was in my late teens/early 20s and I was advised to take them by various coaches. Back then the reasons were for recovery from training sessions and overall health.

As I progressed through my athletics career, supplements were an area I maintained a big interest in and one that I regularly sought advice on.

In the past 10 years, I’ve been very hit and miss with supplements. There is no magic wand for good health, but I do think supplements have their place.

The first consideration around supplements is what place do they have in your day-to-day life?

I’m fortunate to have spent time with a lot of different experts on nutrition, the topic of supplements has always come back to a key consideration.

Are you doing the basics first?

There is no supplement that will replace a good diet, rest/recovery, and a solid exercise plan. If you are overly focused on supplements and not paying too much attention to the actual food you are consuming, then it’s fairly pointless.

Performance nutritionist Daniel Dave makes this point really well: “Supplements reside at the top of the performance nutrition pyramid. I like to call them ‘the minors’, whilst energy (kcal), protein, macros, food quality, and timing are the majors.”

Being overly focused on supplementation at the outset can be termed: “Majoring in the minors.”

The next consideration is your individual goal.

In my previous career as an athlete, the main goal of supplementation was supporting training at a high level and recovering from training. Some of the supplements I used were caffeine, protein powder, carbohydrate drinks, a multivitamin, fish oils etc.

A key point here is the purity of supplements. Research has shown that between 20-30% of off-the-shelf supplements can have substances that are banned for athletes who are drug-tested for enhancers.

There is an brilliant online resource called Informed Sport. Their globally recognised testing laboratory, LGC, is a world-renowned sports doping control and research supplement testing lab, with over 55 years of experience of regulatory analysis.

The next point is about knowing what to buy.

You could walk into a health shop, go to a supermarket, or search online and find thousands of products offering you the health benefits you are searching for. Your job as a consumer is to learn about the product and cut through the noise. Consider the people who are qualified in healthcare and start to gather information. Ask your doctor their thoughts on a certain product/supplement. Chat to your local pharmacist, or talk to a dietitian about a product you are thinking about purchasing.

I take far less supplements now than when I was a competitive athlete, but it’s an area that I still consider important for me. I’m busy with small kids and finding supplements that I genuinely find beneficial is helpful in the overall picture of my wellbeing. But, like I said at the beginning, there is no supplement that is a magic wand; consume with caution, and search for an expert opinion.

Wellness Tip: Consider the overall picture of your health and what you can do to support the ‘major’ areas like diet, exercise, sleep and mental health Fitness Tip: Whey protein is a high quality protein supplement that can be handy to use if you struggle with hitting your protein requirements. It shouldn’t be relied on and ask an expert for advice before using it.

Booster bars

recipe by:Derval O'Rourke

A great snack that will help you power through the day.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 25 mins

Course

 Baking

Ingredients

• 6 ripe bananas, mashed

• 120ml honey

• 2 tbsp coconut oil

• 240g porridge oats

• 100g dried fruit (dates and apricots

• work well)

• 60g ground flaxseed

• 60g hazelnuts, chopped

• 60g pecans, chopped

• 60g pumpkin seeds

• 60g sunflower seeds

•  

Method

1. Line a 33cm by 23cm metal baking tin with parchment paper so that the paper overlaps the sides.

2. Heat the oven to 180˚C/gas 4. Place the bananas, honey andcoconut oil in a food processor and blitz until you have a smooth purée.

3. Combine the remaining ingredients in a large bowl.

4. Add the purée to the dry ingredients and mix well.

5. Scrape the mixture into the prepared baking tin and spread out evenly, pressing down with the back of a spoon.

6. Bake for 20 minutes, until the top is golden brown and firm. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for about 30 minutes.

7. To remove from the tin, take hold of the parchment paper and simply lift out the slab.

8. Cut the slab into bars and store in the fridge or freezer.