Abstract
Nutrition is a cornerstone of athletic performance, yet many athletes at the collegiate level lack sufficient knowledge about how to properly fuel their bodies for optimal performance. While athletes generally recognize that nutrition is important for health and performance, many fail to fully understand the specific nutritional needs that support their intense physical demands. This gap in nutritional knowledge can hinder not only their performance, but also their recovery and long-term health. Given the complex role that nutrition plays in athletes’ training, competition, and recovery, addressing this knowledge gap is essential for ensuring athletes can reach their full athletic potential. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the nutritional knowledge of NCAA Division 1 athletes in relation to their gender, major, or sport. METHODS: This study was conducted via survey of NCAA Division 1 athletes utilizing the A- NSKQ survey, which asks questions on general nutrition knowledge and sports nutrition knowledge. RESULTS: Once all the surveys were completed, an analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to determine whether there were significant differences in Nutritional Knowledge questions by Gender. The ANOVA was examined based on an alpha value of .002. The results of the ANOVA were not significant, F(1, 14) = 3.10, p = .100, indicating the differences in Nutritional Knowledge among Genders were all similar. There were also no significant relationships between Nutritional Knowledge and sport or major. Frequencies and percentages were calculated for the survey question “Should Vitamin C always be taken by athletes?” All responses were incorrect. Additionally, when given a multiple-choice question about drinking water, no respondents could correctly identify that drinking water was important to keep blood plasma volume stable. Finally, when asked in a multiple-choice format, no respondents could correctly identify how many grams of protein an athlete should consume after a workout. Overall, it was found that NCAA Division 1 athletes lack the nutritional knowledge they may need to further enhance their athletic performance. This study determined that athletes have better knowledge on general nutrition than sports nutrition. CONCLUSION: Division 1 athletes tend to have poor sports nutritional knowledge which can hinder their athletic performance and recovery. Therefore, providing educational programs on nutrition for athletes can improve athlete’s nutritional knowledge and overall enhance their athletic performance and recovery since athlete will be aware of what foods are better for their body and when to consume them.
Recommended Citation
Lecadre-Grey, Malachi and Castillo, Emily
(2025)
"A Comparative Analysis of Nutritional Knowledge among Division 1 College Athletes,"
International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings: Vol. 2:
Iss.
17, Article 148.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijesab/vol2/iss17/148
Included in
Health and Physical Education Commons, Medical Education Commons, Sports Sciences Commons