One piece of information we should know

Supplements (protein powder, vitamins etc.) are seen as a quick fix, but we need to do the basics well first. If you are sleeping less than seven hours nightly, you’re three times more likely to contract a cold. Eating healthily and recovering well between training sessions, all give a much bigger improvement.

Supplements may add a final one to two per cent, once everything else is in place and this is true for pretty much all supplements that are intended to improve health and performance. Many have little scientific evidence that they have any meaningful effect in healthy individuals, unless they are suffering from a specific deficiency. There is no magic bullet!

Vitamin D deficiency is directly linked to colds and upper respiratory infections and it’s the one supplement recommended to everyone to maintain a good immune system in the winter, says the British Journal of Sports medicine.