# Supplement Use Among Athletes: Insights from Gyms in Sarajevo
## 4 Discussion  
This study aimed to examine the FS habits of a sample of gym-goers in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our findings indicated that food supplementation is a prevalent practice (40.4%), particularly among older males engaging in regular physical activity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study conducted in Bosnia and Herzegovina to examine food supplementation habits among gym-goers. These results are noteworthy, as despite a wealth of research on supplement use among athletes [24], there is a notable lack of information regarding the supplement consumption habits of individuals who go to gyms for personal, non-competitive reasons. In this study, 40.4% of gym-goers reported using FS, reflecting a higher rate of supplementation compared to similar research, where adherence ranged from 29.2% to \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c c c c} \hline \hline  & & & & & & & & & & \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{**Question**} & \multirow{3}{*}{**Option**} & \multirow{3}{*}{**Supplements**} & **18-25** & **26-35** & **36-45** & \multirow{3}{*}{**P-Value**} & \multirow{3}{*}{**Males**} & \multirow{3}{*}{**Females**} & \multirow{3}{*}{**\(p\)-Value**} \\  & & & **Consensus** & & & & & & & \\  & & **(n = 248)** & **(n = 96)** & **(n = 72)** & **(n = 80)** & & & & \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{
\begin{tabular}{c} Physical activity--period \\ \end{tabular} } & Less than 1 month & 5.6\% (14) & 2.1\% (2) & 0.0\% (0) & 15.0\% (12) & & 0.0\% (0) & 19.4\% (14) & \\  & 1-6 months & 11.3\% (28) & 8.3\% (11.1\% (8) & 15.0\% (12) & & 5.7\% (10) & 25.0\% (18) & \\  & 7-12 months & 2.4\% (6) & 2.1\% (2) & 0.0\% (0) & 5.0\% (4) & & 2.3\% (4) & 2.8\% (29) & \textless{}0.001 * \\  & More than 1 year & 80.6\% (200) & 87.5\% (84) & 88.9\% (64) & 65.0\% (52) & & 92.0\% (162) & 52.8\% (8) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Less than 3 times & 21.8\% (54) & 6.3\% (36) & 33.3\% (24) & 30.0\% (24) & & & 13.6\% (24) & 41.7\% (30) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & week—times & 3-5 times a week & 48.4\% (120) & 58.3\% (56) & 27.8\% (20) & 55.0\% (44) & \textless{}0.001 * & 53.4\% (94) & 36.1\% (26) & \textless{}0.001 * \\  & More than 5 times & 29.8\% (74) & 35.4\% (34) & 38.9\% (28) & 15.0\% (12) & & 33.0\% (58) & 22.2\% (16) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Less than 1 h per day & 19.4\% (48) & 12.5\% (12) & 22.2\% (16) & 25.0\% (20) & & 11.4\% (20) & 38.9\% (28) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & day—hours & 1-2 h per day & 65.3\% (162) & 64.6\% (62) & 61.1\% (40) & 70.0\% (56) & 0.008 * & 68.2\% (120) & 58.3\% (42) & \textless{}0.001 * \\ \cline{2-10}  & More than 2 h per day & 15.3\% (82) & 22.9\% (12) & 16.7\% (12) & 5.0\% (4) & & 20.5\% (26) & 2.8\% (29) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Physical activity—typology & Strength training & 85.5\% (121) & 95.8\% (92) & 94.4\% (68) & 65.0\% (52) & \textless{}0.001 * & 88.6\% (150) & 77.8\% (56) & 0.028 * \\  & cardio-fitness & 14.5\% (36) & 4.2\% (4) & 5.6\% (4) & 35.0\% (28) & & 11.4\% (20) & 22.2\% (16) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Special diet—occurrence & Yes & 30.0\% (76) & 29.2\% (28) & 89.8\% (28) & 25.0\% (20) & 0.169 & 30.7\% (54) & 30.6\% (22) & \\  & No & 69.4\% (172) & 70.8\% (68) & 61.1 (44) & 75.0\% (60) & & 69.3\% (122) & 69.4\% (50) & 0.984 \\ \cline{2-10}  & Gym trainer & 21.8\% (54) & 26.0\% (26) & 16.7\% (12) & 20.\% (16) & & 21.6\% (38) & 22.2\% (16) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Nutritionist & 5.6\% (14) & 6.3\% (6) & 5.6\% (4) & 5.0\% (4) & & 5.7\% (10) & 5.6\% (4) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Friend & 5.5\% (14) & 14.6\% (14) & 0.0\% (0) & 0.0\% (0) & 6.8\% (12) & 2.8\% (2) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Internet & 15.3\% (38) & 6.3\% (6) & 33.3\% (24) & 10.0\% (8) & 17.0\% (30) & 11.1\% (8) & \textless{}0.001 * \\ \cline{2-10}  & Self-prescribed & 40.3\% (10) & 33.3\% (32) & 33.3\% (24) & 55.0\% (44) & & 45.5\% (80) & 27.8\% (20) & \\ \cline{2-10}  & Medical doctor & 11.3\% (28) & 12.5\% (12) & 11.1\% (8) & 10.0\% (8) & & 3.4\% (6) & 30.6\% (22) & \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} \(p\)-values (\(p\leq 0.05\)) for group comparisons were assessed by * Chi-squared.  
\end{table}