Elaine Thompson / AP file

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck doesn't mind being the latest face of the sometimes ugly sports supplement industry. The Seahawks Pro Bowl quarterback says that's because he is pitching the only supplements approved for player use through the NFL's heralded, two-year-old certification program.

Hasselbeck said meeting fit, everyday people there who don’t get access to a place like Athletes’ Performance reminded him that moderate workouts and proper nutrition — not being what he called “an ultimate psycho” in the weight room — is the key to effective body conditioning.

For Hasselbeck, who has employed both a personal chef and a nutritionist, some of that nutrition includes protein-packed supplements. But only from one source, he says.

“When I hear in baseball that five minor leaguers tested positive for banned supplements or whatever, they all say, ’I didn’t know.’ And I can understand it.

“I don’t know what’s in something at Jamba Juice. I trust it’s OK. The people working there all seem pretty nice. But I don’t know what’s in those smoothies.”

That lack of knowledge led in 2004 to the NFL and its players’ union approving its supplement certification program — the first of its kind in major professional team sports.

Birch would not confirm if other companies are currently going through the product-testing phase of the league’s certification program. That testing is done by independent agency NSF International in Ann Arbor, Mich.

NSF runs toxicology tests to ensure that banned substances have not been introduced into a company’s manufacturing system.

A company applying for certification must agree to pay into an NFL research fund. Birch said that requirement is “not particularly onerous” for legitimate, responsible companies.

Other professional sports leagues have contacted the NFL about possibly starting similar programs.

EAS says over 1,200 NFL players use supplements. Birch said the NFL doesn’t track how many of its players use them.

“It is a significant number, players on every team,” Birch said.

And so far, if they have been using them with league approval, they have been using EAS products. That unique niche has been a boon for the company, pushing it to the top of what Abbott Laboratories calls “the healthy living category” of the nutrition market.

“We are now the market leader, with approximately one-third of the market’s sales. And we are 50 percent ahead of our nearest competitor,” said Chris Scoggins, a vice president for marketing for Abbott.

Scoggins said that is because “the everyday consumer” has adopted the same trust in EAS’ products as the NFL has.

But what about players who don’t use the certified products? Birch said the league recognizes the uncontrolled supplement industry can be a dangerous business for those players.

“We’re concerned about supplements given the current state of government regulations,” Birch said. “They are not subject to testing or required to have government approval, as would over-the-counter drugs.

“We are concerned there are unscrupulous manufacturers.”

So Hasselbeck will keep munching on his protein bars and gulping post-workout shakes.

He has a bet with a Seahawks rookie offensive teammate — whom he wouldn’t name, in case he loses — that Hasselbeck will report to training camp with one-half the body fat of the rookie. He also has a side bet with defensive end Grant Wistrom on the matter.

Hasselbeck said he is currently 6-foot-4, 235 pounds. His goal is to report with 9½ percent body fat.

“The number one question I get from parents at my football camps about involves ’my kid’s too skinny,”’ Hasselbeck said. “I was 6-4, 175 pounds as a junior in high school. Being skinny is certainly not an excuse for quitting football.

“With these products, I can say to kids, ’Take this. You’re fine.”’

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