Investigating the Prevalence of Triple Complications Among Female University Athletes

Abstract

Background: At the professional and semi-professional levels, female athletes are confused about choosing the right diet and providing calories, and this causes some physical and hormonal disorders such as triple complications in them. Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of triple complications among female athletes of Isfahan University. Methods: For this purpose, 141 Female athletes with an age range of 19 - 25 years in six different sports fields were selected as available samples. Anthropometric indices were measured using a height meter and a scale. To determine eating disorders from the questionnaire (EAT-26) and the general menstrual status questionnaire was used to evaluate the menstrual status and disorder. Results: The results showed that 91.48% of the participants had regular menstrual cycle and 8.52% had irregular menstrual cycle. In the current research, there were no people whose score was higher than 20 or equal to it. Also, female athletes did not have eating disorder or taking diuretic drugs to control and lose severe weight. To analyze the data, independent t-tests, one-way analysis of variance, and Tukey's post hoc test were used. Conclusions: Despite the studies, it seems that due to the increase in the level of awareness among female university students, the prevalence of triple complications is less. Therefore, it is suggested that in future studies, different levels of athletes should be investigated in terms of the prevalence of triple complications.