The European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance (ESSNA) has launched a free new booklet setting out the 10 crucial steps to buying protein, intended to educate consumers on how to purchase the best quality protein-based sports nutrition products that are right for their health and goals.
The booklet, available to download on the ESSNA website, outlines the different sources of protein, provides guidance on dosages, explains how to read a label and poses several important questions for individuals to answer before purchasing a sports nutrition product.
The guide, which has been developed with input from ESSNA’s 50+ member companies, is part of a new campaign educating the public on all things sports nutrition to ensure consumer safety and good health. The booklet is the first of many dedicated resources ESSNA intends to launch on how best to use the multitude of different sports nutrition ingredients
This follows the launch of ESSNA’s dedicated kitemark to help the public identify products belonging to its members, a new online resource that the public can refer to for more information on everything sports nutrition related, and a Facebook page to encourage consumers to report products they come across on the social media platform, which sees a high number of sales of sports nutrition products every day.
“There is a lack of education in our industry which means that many individuals are purchasing the wrong products, using them incorrectly and therefore not getting the full benefit of products”
Dr Adam Carey, Chair of ESSNA, said: “We’ve worked extremely hard, with all our members, to produce this guide and make sure we’re giving the consumer the most useful information in the clearest possible way. Protein accounts for over 70% of sports nutrition products in Western Europe and sales are booming, but the reality is that many people still aren’t using the products in the best way possible. There is a lack of education in our industry which means that many individuals are purchasing the wrong products, using them incorrectly and therefore not getting the full benefit of products that, used properly, are proven to help people improve recovery, muscular repair and exercise performance. We’re working to address this and ensure that our consumers are getting the best out of their sports nutrition. This booklet is the first step of many, and we very much hope that sports nutrition users across Europe make use of these invaluable resources moving forward.”