The knowledge, attitudes and use of performance enhancing substances and supplements among male high school first- and second team athletes in the central metropolitan area of Cape Town, South Africa

Abstract

Title: The knowledge, attitudes and use of performance enhancing substances and supplements among male High-school first and second team athletes in the metropolitan area of Cape Town, South Africa. Objective: Pressure to perform and to achieve success is to many high school athletes the overbearing goal and reality. Many are willing to use substances to achieve their goals even at the expense of their health and wellbeing. Four objectives emanated from this research: To determine the most frequently used sport performance enhancing substances and supplements (PESS) by male high school athletes; to evaluate the prevalence and use of PESS; to determine the main sources of information on PESS to determine the knowledge and lastly to determine the perceptions and attitudes of male high school athletes on PESS usage. Design: This study used a prospective cross sectional survey design. A self-administered questionnaire was employed to assess the participant’s knowledge, perceptions, attitude toward and use of PESS. The selected sample was male athletes in high schools in the central metropolitan area in Cape Town that were involved in competitive sports at the first and second team level. Results: One hundred and twenty two male athletes from four schools in the central metropolitan area of Cape Town participated. No serious PESS use was found. The main first choice of reported sources of information regarding PESS was pharmacists (21.3%), biokineticists (16.4%) and the internet (16.4%). The participants’ knowledge, perception and attitude toward the use of PESS was found to be poor. Conclusion: Most athletes reported to gather information from pharmacists (21.3%) and biokineticists which is encouraging since it is expected of these professionals to provide sound advice. It is suggested to create awareness among such professionals regarding use of PESS by this population and to incorporate organizations such as SAIDS and WADA as part of this dissemination of knowledge. The knowledge, perceptions and attitude toward PESS use by male high school athletes appears to be lacking thus indicating the need for more education on PESS.