Abstract
Eating disorders are associated with short and long-term consequences that can affect sports performance. The purposes of this study were to investigate whether female athletes, particularly gymnasts and footballers, exhibit more eating problems compared to female non-athletes, and to identify individual personality characteristics including anxiety, self-esteem, and perfectionism as possible contributors to eating disorder risk. In a sample of 120 participants, 80 adolescent female athletes were compared to a control condition of 40 non-athletes (mean age 17.2 ± 2.82). Participants responded to a questionnaire package to investigate the presence of disordered eating (SCOFF) and psychological variables in relation to disordered eating symptoms or eating disorder status. Subsequently, anthropometric measures were obtained individually by trained staff. There were statistically significant differences between conditions. One of the most important results was the score in SCOFF (Mann–Whitney = 604, p < 0.05; Cohen’s d = 0.52, r = 0.25), being higher in control than in the gymnast condition. These results suggest that non-athlete female adolescents show more disturbed eating behaviours and thoughts than female adolescents from aesthetic sport modalities and, therefore, may have an enhanced risk of developing clinical eating disorders.
Highlights
Eating disorders (EDs) are common and potentially serious conditions that have devastating effects on physical/emotional health, sports performance, and overall quality of life, carrying an increased risk of morbidity and mortality [1,2]
The entire research population was divided into three groups of 40 subjects each: athletes competing in rhythmic gymnastics, athletes competing in football and the control group which consisted of students with a sedentary life style
The group of gymnasts consisted of five elites competing internationally and 35 gymnasts competing at the national level of competition; the elites spent 20–35 h on training and competition per week and the gymnasts who competed in national tournaments spent 12–20 h on gymnastics and other sport-activities together
Summary
Eating disorders (EDs) are common and potentially serious conditions that have devastating effects on physical/emotional health, sports performance, and overall quality of life, carrying an increased risk of morbidity and mortality [1,2]. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). Categorizes EDs into several specific types, including: Anorexia Nervosa (AN), Bulimia Nervosa (BN), Binge Eating Disorder (BED) Pica, Rumination Disorder, Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED), Other Specified Feeding or Eating. Disorder (OSFED), and Unspecified Feeding or Eating Disorder (UFED) [3]. There is often an ideal body image that suggests improved performance, and this may be one of the reasons why athletes are at increased risk of disordered. Public Health 2020, 17, 6754; doi:10.3390/ijerph17186754 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph
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