Says who?
Many of them not only take them but they consume them in HUGE quantities, the cost of which would drive most of us into bankruptcy.
I remember the “Probing the Pros” section of MuscleMag International. Each month, 12 pro bodybuilders (technically, it was 11 pros and one top amateur) would answer a question fielded by a reader, picked by Robert Kennedy.
When it came to protein consumption, many of the pros there consumed MET-Rx, the most popular MRP at that time. However, unlike the recommendation on the box, these guys were taking at least 8 packets of MET-Rx a day, IN ADDITION TO their regular meals.
Last time I checked, 8 packets of MET-Rx contained just under 300 grams of protein.
A couple of FLEX issues ago, there was an article on Eddie Abbew, who claims to have a small appetite for food. So, he actually blends his meat up and mixes it with water, in order to drink his calories. Abbew claims that his blender, "smells like @$$"; in fact, after getting a whiff of the blender in which Abbew prepares lunch, fellow pro, Darrem Charles, nearly lost his.
As for Bigbob's comment, there are a handful of posters whom MidniteRambo described as a “whole food-ist” cult, folk who think they’re more “hardcore” because they don’t use supplements at all, or at the very least, they don’t use such from certain companies (i.e. MuscleTech).
I would add to this that other posters here seem to use the steroids excuse as to why they won't implement certain often-discussed, tried-and-true nutritional strategies to help them get bigger.
Let them tell it, consuming high protein levels (say 300-400 g per day) only works for steroid users; using intra-workout drinks (with high carbs, creatine, aminos, etc) only works for steroids users, etc., etc.
Suggest that they up their protein intake, and they'll sail the seven seas, looking for examples of people with muscular people, who don't eat as much protein as some have recommended. That may indeed work for those individuals. But, if it ain't effective for those particular posters, citing such people is utterly pointless.
Many of us are quite familiar with Ronnie Coleman's mantra, "Everybody want to be a bodybuilder; but don't nobody want to lift no heavy-@$$ weight". I'd say a similar thing applies, when it comes to nutrition. Some folks don't want to eat no "heavy-@$$" food, namely the quality and QUANTITY of carbs, fat, and especially PROTEIN that they need to grow (whether they use steroids or go/stay "natty").