Exploratory study of the dietary supplementation consumption of Hungarian athletes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15170/MM.2026.60.01.05Keywords:
sports nutrition, dietary supplement, consumer preferences, consumer decision-making, dietary supplement marketAbstract
THE AIM OF THE PAPER
The study aims to map the dietary supplement preferences of athletes: we involved athletes of different
levels and from different sports in our research, thus ensuring its complexity. No research has been
conducted in Hungary before that features representatives of 31 different sports in this topic. We asked 30 different respondents to share their experiences, consumer behavior, preferences, and purchasing decisions.We used mystery shopping to refine consumer preferences. Another goal of our exploratory research was to lay the groundwork for a later large-scale quantitative study.
METHODOLOGY
In our study, we present our series of in-depth interviews with 30 respondents, mystery shopping, and our international literature analysis research conducted using the PRISMA method, which provide a suitable basis for subsequent large-scale quantitative research. The generalizability of the results has been ensured by the heterogeneous respondent profile and the reliability analysis.
MOST IMPORTANT RESULTS
Based on the research covering 31 different sports, it can be said that the use of various dietary
supplements is mainly characteristic of individual athletes and those who train partly or entirely in gyms. It has also been proven that beginners are keen to consume dietary supplements in parallel with the start of their physical activity.
Higher-level and long-time athletes are the most conscious in their choice of dietary supplements.
For consumers, price, quality, and composition are the main considerations when purchasing dietary
supplements. Hypothetically, we were able to identify four customer groups based on customer awareness and dietary supplement consumption, which are as follows: conscious athletes, rational curious, impressionable changers, and trend followers.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Market players should focus on the beginners’ consumer group and, in order to attract new customers, they may also find it beneficial to open up to team sports, as team sports enthusiasts are less open to the use of nutritional supplements. Consumers of dietary supplements – whether they exercise at an amateur or professional level – are exposed to a multitude of impulses encouraging consumption, so it is important that they treat the use of individual products with caution and purchase them from
reliable sources. The findings of our study can also help manufacturers and distributors in developing direct marketing and strategies. Our study highlights four consumer groups that can be identified by their dietary supplement preferences. Based on our research results, it can be said that it is still
worthwhile for the supply side of the market to target lifestyle changers, and that emphasis should also
be placed on dietary supplements that are professional, have real added value, come from controlled sources, and contain active ingredients that are suitable for the human body, due to professional and elite athletes.
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