About the AIS Sports Supplement Framework
The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) mission is to lead and enable a united high performance (HP) system that supports Australian athletes/teams to achieve podium success.
What is the AIS Sports Supplement Framework
The AIS Sports Supplement Framework provides the expertise and resources developed during the implementation of the AIS Sports Supplement Program (2000-2013) to allow National Sporting Organisations (NSOs), the National Institute Network and other system partners to develop their own Sports Supplement Guidelines and Programs. These resources are shared via open access to help athletes, coaches and scientists to make evidence-based decisions about their use of supplements and sports foods.
AIS Position Statement: Supplements and Sports Foods in High Performance Sport (August 2022)
The Supplement Framework is underpinned by the ABCD Classification system
The ABCD Classification system ranks sports foods and supplement ingredients into four groups according to scientific evidence and other practical considerations that determine whether a product is safe, permitted and effective in improving sports performance.
The current classification of supplements and sports foods was made via the consensus of the AIS Sports Supplement Framework working team, and will constantly evolve according to new knowledge plus the informed direction of our key stakeholders.
- The ABCD Classification system focuses on sports foods and individual ingredients rather than specific supplement products and brands.
- Multi-ingredient supplements (e.g. pre-workouts) raise specific concerns. These products contain a large list of individual ingredients and, in some cases, the doses of these ingredients are not stated on the label with the excuse that it is a “proprietary blend” over which the manufacturer has special ownership. Concerns about these products include the lack of an effective dose (e.g. inadequate amounts or poor timing of intake relative to exercise) of some active ingredients, potential for harmful interactions between ingredients, and the increased risk of inadvertent contamination due to the sourcing of ingredients from various locations.