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Abstract
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OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between disordered eating (DE) and significant sport injury in adolescent athletes.
METHOD: Responses to one item of the Disordered Eating Screen for Athletes and the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) items, administered to n = 308 adolescent athletes, were analyzed with data on injury. Nonparametric statistics and multiple regression analysis were used to examine differences in DE rates amongst known injured adolescent athletes.
RESULTS: The EAT-26 scores of injured females, median score of 9, were significantly higher than all other groupings with H(3) = 17.26 p < .001, η(2) = .047. Using regression analyses, injury significantly predicted a rise in EAT-26 score by five points in females, p = .01, R(2) = .052.
DISCUSSION: This evidence suggests a relationship between adolescent female sport injury and DE, but no relationship between adolescent male sport injury and DE. These results demonstrate a need to screen for DE in athletes. Given a positive screen, athletes should be educated on the risks associated with relative energy deficiency and potentially referred to a practitioner with knowledge of the associated complications.
Language: en |