Supplements for Football Players: What Is Tested, What Is Risky

Supplements for football players at a glance

How does NCAA drug testing work for football?

The NCAA tests in three settings: year round, at NCAA championships, and at postseason football games. Postseason football games are the only one of those settings named after a sport. Every athlete at a postseason football game can be tested, picked from the official travel party roster or other approved lists.

Picks are not always random. At postseason games and in year round testing, the NCAA can pick by position, playing time, ranking or athletic scholarship status. Athletes in Division I and II sports can be tested year round, including summer.

What the lab looks for depends on the setting:

• Year round: mostly anabolic agents (muscle building substances), hormone and metabolic modulators, diuretics and masking agents, and peptide hormones.
• Postseason football games: all of that, plus stimulants, narcotics and beta 2 agonists (some asthma medicines).

The NCAA can still test for any banned substance at any time. Our guide to how NCAA drug testing works covers the testing room step by step.

A first positive test in Division I is costly. You sit out the equivalent of one full season of regular season games. You are also ineligible for 365 days from the test, and until you test negative.

Is protein powder safe for football players?

Protein powder is allowed. Protein supplements are one of six kinds of supplements a Division I school may provide, as long as they contain no NCAA banned substance.

The risk is what else is in the product. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) notes that protein supplements may contain other ingredients that can raise the risk of contamination. Contamination means a substance in the product that is not on the label.

Our guide to protein powder and the NCAA covers what to look for.

Is creatine allowed for football players?

Yes. Creatine is not on the NCAA banned list. It is one of the few supplements the IOC says has good evidence behind it.

The IOC says creatine can help sports with repeated short, hard efforts, like team sports. It can also add to strength, power and lean mass gains from training. The IOC notes a possible weight gain of about 1 to 2 kilograms, mostly from water.

One catch for college players: creatine is not one of the six kinds a Division I school may hand out. Our creatine guide explains that rule.

What are "muscle builders," and why are they risky?

"Muscle builders" are products sold to add size and strength fast. Some are just protein or creatine. Others are labeled with steroid or steroid like ingredients, and that is where the trouble starts.

The FDA says many of these bodybuilding products contain SARMs. SARMs (selective androgen receptor modulators) are chemicals that mimic testosterone and anabolic steroids. The FDA's warning is direct:

• They are often sold as dietary supplements, but they are not. They are unapproved drugs.
• Life threatening reactions, including liver injuries that needed a hospital stay, have happened in people taking them.
• They may raise the risk of heart attack or stroke.
• Some are labeled "for research purposes" or "not for human consumption," yet sold with dosing instructions.

The FDA also warns about social media posts that target teens and young adults and pitch SARMs as a quick way to gain muscle.

For a tested player, the rulebook is just as clear. The NCAA lists SARMs, including ligandrol, ostarine, RAD140 and S-23, as banned anabolic agents. It also bans DHEA and androstenedione as anabolic agents, and ibutamoren (MK-677) as a peptide hormone.

Can a muscle builder contain steroids not on the label?

Yes. The IOC reports that one early study found about 15 percent of more than 600 products bought around the world contained undeclared prohormones. A prohormone is a substance the body turns into a hormone, like testosterone.

The IOC also says some product types are more at risk of contamination than others. It says most reports of harm from supplements have focused on liver problems.

The NCAA warns that supplements may contain banned substances not listed on the label. Athletes have tested positive and lost eligibility this way.

What should football players know about pre-workout?

Pre-workout products often stack several stimulants. A stimulant is a substance that speeds up your body, like caffeine. The NCAA bans many that show up on labels:

• Caffeine and its sources, like guarana, green tea extract and yerba mate. A test counts as positive at 15 micrograms per milliliter of urine or more.
• DMAA, DMHA and DMBA, stimulants banned at any amount.
• Synephrine (bitter orange), hordenine, octopamine and phenethylamine (PEA).
• Higenamine, banned as a beta 2 agonist.

Timing matters in football. Stimulants are part of testing at postseason football games. Our guide to pre-workout and the NCAA goes through these ingredients one by one.

Why do heat and stimulants mix badly in football?

Heat is a real danger in football. The National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) says exertional heat stroke is one of the leading causes of sudden death in sport. Exertional heat stroke is a dangerous rise in body temperature brought on by hard exercise.

NATA names several risks that apply to football players:

• Gear. Athletic gear and uniforms are on its list of heat stroke risk factors. An example heat guideline in the statement limits football practice gear to helmet, shoulder pads and shorts on very hot days.
• Stimulants. It lists stimulants among medicines suggested to hurt how the body controls temperature.
• Supplements. It discourages supplements that dehydrate you, speed up metabolism, or affect body temperature, because they may raise heat illness risk.
• Preseason. Dehydration builds over several days and is often seen in the first few days of preseason practice.

NATA also cites a 2000 survey in which about one third of high school football players used supplements, most to build muscle. It says athletes who take these substances are at higher risk, so staff should watch them closely in the heat.

So think twice about a stimulant heavy pre-workout before a hot practice in pads. Talk with your athletic trainer before you use one.

What about high school football players?

The NCAA does not govern high school sport. Your state association and school set the rules. This article gives no doses for anyone, and that matters most for high school players.

The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) warns that anabolic steroid use during adolescence can close the bones' growth plates early, which can lower adult height. It also says some stimulants can make an athlete more prone to heat illness.

For caffeine, creatine and protein powder, the NFHS says to talk about use with a knowledgeable health care provider. If you are a high school player, start there, and bring a parent.

Football supplement risk table

Checklist before a football player takes a supplement

1. Scan it in Varsity Stack first. Check the barcode or label against our certification database before you buy.
2. Ask your athletics staff. The NCAA makes checking your responsibility.
3. Walk away from muscle builders with SARMs or steroid like ingredients. The FDA says SARM products are not dietary supplements, and the NCAA bans SARMs.
4. Read every stimulant on a pre-workout. Look past "caffeine" to guarana, DMAA, DMHA, synephrine and higenamine.
5. Think about the heat. Talk to your athletic trainer before you use a stimulant around hot practices.
6. Choose certified, then check the lot. A lot (or batch) is one production run. Look up the exact lot number on the certifier's own site.
7. Keep a record. Add the product to your stack in Varsity Stack, so you and your staff know what you take. Keep a photo of the lot number too.

For every banned class, see our guide to NCAA banned substances.

Check your football supplements with Varsity Stack

The easiest way to check a product is the free Varsity Stack app. Scan the barcode or take a photo of the label to see if it is certified. Then add it to your stack so you and your staff know what you take. You also get personalized recommendations by sport, position and goals.

Download the App

For coaches, sports dietitians and athletic trainers: the team dashboard shows every athlete's stack and whether each product is certified. Athletes scan what they buy, and staff approve or reject it for the roster.

Request access for your program

Varsity Stack does not laboratory test supplements, and certification lowers risk without removing it.