Dietary intakes of 24 female athletes in various sports were compared inseason and postseason to those reported by 24 nonathletes during the same time period. Diets were analyzed for energy, carbohydrate, fat, protein, vitamins A and C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folacin, calcium, and iron. During the study, the athletes' and nonathletes' diets were similar. Their energy intakes were lower than recommended while their iron and calcium intakes were marginal (less than 70% of the recommended dietary allowance). Although few dietary changes were observed, the nonathletes' diets changed more than those of the athletes during the study. Both groups reduced their energy intakes but only the nonathletes' reduction was significant. Initially many subjects were dieting. More subjects reported dieting during the second recording period. These results suggest that the desire to be thin may influence dietary intakes of female athletes more than changes in exercise training.
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Seasonal Changes in Female Athletes' Diets
June Nutter
Hormonal Contraceptive Use, Menstrual Dysfunctions, and Self-Reported Side Effects in Elite Athletes in Denmark
Mikkel Oxfeldt, Line B. Dalgaard, Astrid A. Jørgensen, and Mette Hansen
, improved knowledge within this field will benefit the female athlete. Menstrual disturbances (MD) are common; yet, the reported prevalence varies markedly between studies. 5 MD includes primary (absence of first menstruation when >15 y of age) and secondary amenorrhea (absence of menstruation after
ACL Injuries in the Female Athlete
Mary Lloyd Ireland, Michael Gaudette, and Scott Crook
The high rate of noncontact ACL injuries in female athletes has become a prominent and controversial subject. This article attempts to provide insight into this trend in athletic injuries. Anatomic, physiological, and biomechanical differences are discussed as possible causative factors. Epidemiological data regarding ACL injuries are reviewed, comparing the genders. The discussion also includes anecdotal findings that support current research. This review is intended to raise awareness of the problem and promote screening for risk factors and implementation of more thorough and aggressive preventive programs.
Sports Supplements and Female Athletes: Reality, Risks and Recommendations
Mike A. Perko, Ronald D. Williams Jr., and Marion W. Evans
Sports supplements use is reality in the 21st century and the global sports world is enmeshed daily in media coverage and debate. Traditionally much of the focus has been on male athletes but the tide is shifting toward the rapidly evolving culture of the female athlete. Little is known about the use rates, reasons, and effects of sports performance supplements among females. This article examines female athletes and sports supplements with emphasis on historical influence, realities for the female athlete, risks involved in performance enhancement, and future recommendations.
The Female Athlete Triad: Is the Triad a Problem Among Division I Female Athletes?
Justine J. Reel, Sonya SooHoo, Holly Doetsch, Jennifer E. Carter, and Trent A. Petrie
The purpose of the study was to determine prevalence rates of the female athlete triad (Triad), differences by sport category (aesthetic, endurance, and team/anaerobic), and the relationship between each of the components of the Triad. Female athletes (N= 451) from three Division I universities with an average age of 20 years completed the Menstrual History Questionnaire, Injury Assessment Questionnaire, and the Questionnaire for Eating Disorder Diagnoses (Q-EDD; Mintz, O’Halloran, Mulholland, & Schneider, 1997). Almost 7% of female athletes reported clinical eating disorders, and 19.2% reported subclinical disordered eating. Disordered eating was prevalent in all three sport categories with no significant differences between groups. Muscle injuries were more prevalent in team/anaerobic sports (77.4%) than the aesthetic (68.1%) and endurance groups (58.1%). Furthermore, those athletes with menstrual dysfunction more frequently reported clinical eating disorders (1.4%) and sustained more skeletal injuries (51%) during their athletic career than athletes with regular menstrual function. Clinical implications and further research directions are addressed.
Rethinking Community: Introducing the “Whatever” Female Athlete
Michelle T. Helstein
Community is a powerful construct in the discourses of both feminism and sport, and so it is not surprising that it is a preeminent virtue in attempts to speak about, to, or for female athletes. In its popular conceptions, community is desired and celebrated as individuals coming together based on a solidarity, harmony, or agreement around an essence. In sport scholarship, the specific meanings, implications, contradictions, and effects that govern this particular understanding of community have remained unexplored. Thus, the aim of this article is to use the work of poststructural theorist Jacques Derrida to deconstruct this notion of community in an attempt to open up the concept of community to new theorizations and political uses. It will involve the introduction of Giorgio Agamben’s concept of the Whatever singularity, or in this case the Whatever athlete and its place in new possibilities for community in feminist sport contexts.
Intersecting Selves: African American Female Athletes’ Experiences of Sport
Jenny Lind Withycombe
Stereotypes have the power to dynamically structure African American female athletes’ oppression (Buysse & Embser-Herbert, 2004; Kane, 1996), for example, by trivializing their athletic efforts (Douglas, 2002). The purpose of this paper was to examine how African American women athletes experience such stereotypes. Drawing from Collins (1990) and Crenshaw’s (1991) work on intersectionality, data were gathered from eight African American female athletes regarding their sport experiences. Qualitative analyses revealed two major themes: Gendered Stereotypes and Racial Stereotypes. Findings suggested that complex intersections of these stereotypes significantly impacted African American female athletes’ sport experiences. It is concluded that future research should explore in greater depth the sexist, racist, and classist incidences of African American female athletes’ experiences at all levels of sport participation.
Gender Role Orientation in Turkish Female Athletes and Non-Athletes
Canan Koca and F. Hulya Asci
The purpose of this study was to compare gender role orientation and classification of elite female athletes aged between 18 to 30 years with age-matched female non-athletes in Turkey. Additionally, gender role differences with regard to types of sport in elite female athletes were examined. In this study 306 elite female athletes (Mage = 22.17 ± 2.51) and 264 female non-athletes (Mage = 21.34 ± 3.14) were participants of this study. Female athletes were selected from feminine sports; ballet dancing, aerobic dance, swimming, ice skating, tennis, volleyball (n = 70), from masculine sports; basketball, handball, soccer, wrestling, weight lifting, taekwando, karate, judo (n = 127), and from gender-neutral sports; track and field, shot putting and javelin throwing (n = 109). The Bern Sex Role Inventory was administered to assess the gender role orientations of participants. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) showed that there were significant differences in gender role orientation between elite female athletes from different types of sport and female non-athletes (Hotelling’s T2 = 0.145; F(6,112) = 13.63; p<.01). In a follow-up univariate analysis, a significant difference in masculinity (F(3,569) = 26.07; p<.01) scores between female athletes from different types of sport and female non-athletes were observed. In addition, a chi square analysis showed a significant difference in gender role classifications between elite female athletes from different types of sport and female non-athletes (X2 = 68.22; p<. 01). Based on these findings it was concluded that there were significant differences in gender role orientations between Turkish elite female athletes and nonathletes.
Does Neuromuscular Training Reduce the Risk of Lower-Extremity Musculoskeletal Injury in High School Female Athletes With a History of Sport-Related Concussion?
April L. McPherson, Taylor M. Zuleger, Kim D. Barber Foss, Shayla M. Warren, Jennifer A. Hogg, Jed A. Diekfuss, and Gregory D. Myer
ligament injury risk factors. Adolescent female athletes (12–18 y old) were recruited from local area middle and high school athletic teams (basketball, soccer, and volleyball) prior to the start of the competitive season (Figure 1 ). Participants were physically able to participate in their sport and
The Acute Effect of Various Feedback Approaches on Sprint Performance, Motivation, and Affective Mood States in Highly Trained Female Athletes: A Randomized Crossover Trial
Larissa Di Bella, Kenji Doma, Wade Heath Sinclair, and Jonathan Douglas Connor
either included male participants 2 , 4 , 5 , 14 or a combination of males and females, 7 , 15 , 16 with even fewer studies on the effectiveness of KR in females athletes from team sports. Given the biological and sociocultural differences between male and female athletes, 17 feedback approaches may
