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1.3 Eating disorders among athletes. Eating Disorders. “ Eating disorders are characterised by an abnormal attitude towards food that causes someone to change their eating habits and behaviour.”
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Eating Disorders “Eating disorders are characterised by an abnormal attitude towards food that causes someone to change their eating habits and behaviour.” A person with an eating disorder may focus excessively on their weight and shape, leading them to make unhealthy choices about food with damaging results to their health.
Why do people have eating disorders? • Often blamed on the social pressure to be thin as people feel they should look a certain way, but it may be more complex • When criticised about their body shape and weight • Being overly concerned with being thin • Obsessive personality, low self esteem, anxiety • Difficult relationships • Stress • But, there may be some biological influence
Athletes and Eating Disorders • Some sports empathise appearance such as weight requirements or muscularity • Individual focused sports instead of an entire team • Endurance sports • The belief that lower body weight will improve performance • Training since a child • Coaches who primarily focus on success and performance rather than the person
Aim • To establish whether athletes were at greater risk of developing eating disorders (anorexia and bulimia) than the general public • To look at whether gender is an additional risk factor
Method Looked into 3 groups of athletes • Athletes who have strict weight limitations • Athletes who need to be thin or small • Athletes who need to be thin for aesthetic reasons
Method Drive for thinness was assessed as • A key behaviour common in both anorexia and bulimia • DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders)
Method • Covered 58 different sports grouped into six categories • Aesthetic • Endurance • Ball games • Weight-dependent • Power • Technical
Method Difference in groups was calculated by effect size (ES) The change in an outcome after experimental intervention
Results Males • The ES in males showed higher levels in athletic males than the control • Highest reported bulimia measures were in aesthetic, weight dependent and endurance sports
Results Females • The ES in females did not show any difference between athletes and the control • Female athletes reported greater levels of anorexia and bulimia than the control • Athletes who competed at high-school had higher levels of bulimic measures than athletes competing at college level
Conclusions • Both male and female athletes have a higher level of eating disorder symptoms than non-athletes • Which may be due to additional demands placed on them by sport
Usefulness • Positive person-orientated coaching style • Social influence and support • Healthy attitudes towards size and shape
Question… Can you explain how the issue of cause and effect might be relevant to this study?