Disorders of the female athlete triad among collegiate athletes.

This study examined the prevalence of and relationship between the disorders of the female athlete triad in collegiate athletes participating in aesthetic, endurance, or team/anaerobic sports. Participants were 425 female collegiate athletes from 7 universities across the United States. Disordered eating, menstrual dysfunction, and musculoskeletal injuries were assessed by a health/medical, dieting and menstrual history questionnaire, the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), and the Eating Disorder Inventory Body Dissatisfaction Subscale (EDI-BD). The percentage of athletes reporting a clinical diagnosis of anorexia and bulimia nervosa was 3.3% and 2.3%, respectively; mean ( SD) EAT and EDI-BD scores were 10.6 9.6 and 9.8 7.6, respectively. The percentage of athletes with scores indicating "at-risk" behavior for an eating disorder were 15.2% using the EAT-26 and 32.4% using the EDI-BD. A similar percentage of athletes in aesthetic, endurance, and team/anaerobic sports reported a clinical diagnosis of anorexia or bulimia. However, athletes in aesthetic sports scored higher on the EAT-26 (13.5 10.9) than athletes in endurance (10.0 9.3) or team/anaerobic sports (9.9 9.0, p <.02); and more athletes in aesthetic versus endurance or team/anaerobic sports scored above the EAT-26 cut-off score of 20 (p <.01). Menstrual irregularity was reported by 31% of the athletes not using oral contraceptives, and there were no group differences in the prevalence of self-reported menstrual irregularity. Muscle and bone injuries sustained during the collegiate career were reported by 65.9% and 34.3% of athletes, respectively, and more athletes in aesthetic versus endurance and team/anaerobic sports reported muscle (p =.005) and/or bone injuries (p <.001). Athletes "at risk" for eating disorders more frequently reported menstrual irregularity (p =.004) and sustained more bone injuries (p =.003) during their collegiate career. These data indicate that while the prevalence of clinical eating disorders is low in female collegiate athletes, many are "at risk" for an eating disorder, which places them at increased risk for menstrual irregularity and bone injuries.

[1]  D. Rust.  The Female Athlete Triad: Disordered Eating, Amenorrhea, and Osteoporosis , 2002 .

[2]  M. Warren,et al.  The effects of intense exercise on the female reproductive system. , 2001, The Journal of endocrinology.

[3]  G. Beckvid Henriksson,et al.  Women Endurance Runners with Menstrual Dysfunction Have Prolonged Interruption of Training due to Injury , 2000, Gynecologic and Obstetric Investigation.

[4]  Anderson Jm.  The female athlete triad: disordered eating, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis. , 1999 .

[5]  P. Powers,et al.  Athletes and eating disorders: the National Collegiate Athletic Association study. , 1999, The International journal of eating disorders.

[6]  V. Harber,et al.  Body dissatisfaction and drive for thinness in high performance field hockey athletes. , 1996, International journal of sports medicine.

[7]  B. Drinkwater,et al.  The female athlete triad. The inter-relatedness of disordered eating, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis. , 1994, Clinics in sports medicine.

[8]  T. Petrie.  Disordered Eating in Female Collegiate Gymnasts: Prevalence and Personality/Attitudinal Correlates , 1993 .

[9]  K. Brownell,et al.  Eating, weight, and dieting disturbances in male and female lightweight and heavyweight rowers. , 1993, The International journal of eating disorders.

[10]  J. Sundgot-Borgen.  Prevalence of eating disorders in elite female athletes. , 1993, International journal of sport nutrition.

[11]  K. Brownell,et al.  Eating, Body Weight, and Performance in Athletes: Disorders of Modern Society , 1993 .

[12]  J H Wilmore,et al.  Eating and weight disorders in the female athlete. , 1991, International journal of sport nutrition.

[13]  D. O. Hough,et al.  Pathogenic Weight-Control Behaviors of Female College Gymnasts. , 1988, The Physician and sportsmedicine.

[14]  D. Black,et al.  Behaviors and attitudes associated with eating disorders: perceptions of college athletes about food and weight , 1988 .

[15]  W. Wagner,et al.  Athletic amenorrhea: lack of association with body fat. , 1987, Medicine and science in sports and exercise.

[16]  J. Brooks-Gunn,et al.  The relation of eating problems and amenorrhea in ballet dancers. , 1987, Medicine and science in sports and exercise.

[17]  J. Polivy,et al.  Development and validation of a multidimensional eating disorder inventory for anorexia nervosa and bulimia. , 1983 .

[18]  D. Garner,et al.  The Eating Attitudes Test: psychometric features and clinical correlates , 1982, Psychological Medicine.

[19]  M. Shangold,et al.  The effect of marathon training upon menstrual function. , 1982, American journal of obstetrics and gynecology.

[20]  S. Abraham,et al.  Body weight, exercise and menstrual status among ballet dancers in training , 1982, British journal of obstetrics and gynaecology.

[21]  J. Anderson.  The female athlete triad: disordered eating, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis. , 1999, Connecticut medicine.

[22]  J. Wilmore,et al.  American College of Sports Medicine position stand. The Female Athlete Triad. , 1997, Medicine and science in sports and exercise.

[23]  K. Brownell,et al.  Prevalence of eating disorders in athletes. , 1992 .

[24]  Erika Nyman-Carlsson,et al.  Eating Disorder Inventory-2 , 1991 .

[25]  J. Yager,et al.  Eating disorders among selected female student populations at UCLA. , 1989, Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

[26]  L. Brander.  Pathogenic weight-control behavior in female athletes: , 1987 .