Elite Female Athletes with Eating Disorders: A Study of Psychopathological Characteristics

2001 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 245-253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caroline Davis ◽  
Shaelyn Strachan

Some have claimed that the similarities between athletes with eating problems and women with eating disorders (ED) include only symptoms such as dieting and fear of weight gain, and do not extend to the psychopathological characteristics associated with these disorders. However, studies used to support this viewpoint have relied on comparisons between “eating-disturbed” athletes and clinically diagnosed ED patients, a method that confounds diagnostic classification with athlete status. The present study held ED classification constant by comparing ED patients who had been involved in high-level competitive athletics with nonathlete ED. No significant differences were found between the groups on any measures of psychopathology or eating-related symptoms; this suggests that if an athlete develops an eating disorder, her psychological profile is no different from others with this disorder.

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobuyuki Sudo

AbstractAnorexia nervosa (AN), an eating disorder, is characterized by extreme weight loss and fear of weight gain. Psychosocial factors are thought to play important roles in the development and progression of AN; however, biological factors also presumably contribute to eating disorders. Recent evidence has shown that the gut microbiota plays an important role in pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric disorders including AN. In this article, we describe the possible role of the gut microbiota in the development and persistence of AN, based on the latest research works, including those of our group.


2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 395-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alyssa J. Wagner ◽  
Casey D. Erickson ◽  
Dayna K. Tierney ◽  
Megan N. Houston ◽  
Cailee E. Welch Bacon

Clinical Scenario:Eating disorders in female athletes are a commonly underdiagnosed condition. Better screening tools for eating disorders in athletic females could help increase diagnosis and help athletes get the treatment they need.Focused Clinical Question:Should screening tools be used to detect eating disorders in female athletes?Summary of Key Findings:The literature was searched for studies that included information regarding the sensitivity and specificity of screening tools for eating disorders in female athletes. The search returned 5 possible articles related to the clinical question; 3 studies met the inclusion criteria (2 cross-sectional studies, 1 cohort study) and were included. All 3 studies reported sensitivity and specificity for the Athletic Milieu Direct Questionnaire version 2, the Brief Eating Disorder in Athletes Questionnaire version 2, and the Physiologic Screening Test to Detect Eating Disorders Among Female Athletes. All 3 studies found that the respective screening tool was able to accurately identify female athletes with eating disorders; however, the screening tools varied in sensitivity and specificity values.Clinical Bottom Line:There is strong evidence to support the use of screening tools to detect eating disorders in female athletes. Screening tools with higher sensitivity and specificity have demonstrated a successful outcome of determining athletes with eating disorders or at risk for developing an eating disorder.Strength of Recommendation:There is grade A evidence available to demonstrate that screening tools accurately detect female athletes at risk for eating disorders.


2002 ◽  
Vol 113 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 173-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rénate Eiber ◽  
Ivan Berlin ◽  
Benoı̂t de Brettes ◽  
Christine Foulon ◽  
Julien Daniel Guelfi

2009 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zafra Cooper ◽  
Christopher G. Fairburn

SummaryBinge eating occurs across the entire range of eating disorders. It is required for a diagnosis of bulimia nervosa but it is also seen in some cases of anorexia nervosa and in many cases of eating disorder not otherwise specified (usually referred to as eating disorder NOS or atypical eating disorder). This article focuses on the management of those eating disorders in which binge eating is a prominent feature.


2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 417-436
Author(s):  
Paolo Marino Cattorini

L’anoressia nervosa rischia di venir fraintesa, etichettandola come mero disturbo neurobiologico e affrontandola con tattiche assistenziali, che mirano semplicemente alla rapida correzione del peso. Un approccio fenomenologico coglie invece nel disturbo alimentare una strategia di liberazione, per quanto rischiosa e piena di contraddizioni. Nel presente articolo abbiamo indicato tre dimensioni etiche ed estetiche di questa pericolosa trasformazione di sé. L’anoressica scolpisce il corpo in forme dissonanti, al modo di una body artist; ella scrive nella carne la propria storia alla luce di un mito affettivo, che la guida come un racconto esemplare di formazione; infine l’anoressica prova per il cibo il disgusto che ella vive nei confronti di relazioni mancate di cui ha ancora disperata fame. La persona che soffre tenta di dirigere perfezionisticamente, attraverso la malattia, una trasformazione individuale, imbattendosi in un mondo di oggetti trasfigurati (fra cui i cibi, le sostanze alimentari), un mondo simile a quello istituito dall’arte contemporanea. Per questi motivi, il lavoro medico-psicologico condotto sui disturbi alimentari è più efficace quando si posseggono competenze in ambito umanistico, particolarmente di ordine etico ed estetico. ---------- Anorexia nervosa risks being misunderstood by labelling it merely as a neurobiological disorder or by tackling it only with behavioral advice, in order to rapidly achieve some weight gain. On the contrary, a phenomenological approach recognizes in an eating disorder also an ethical strategy of liberation, although it may well be risky and full of contradictions. This article indicates three ethical and aesthetic dimensions of this dangerous transformation of self-image. Anorexia sculpts the body in dissonant forms, in the way of a body artist; it writes in the flesh a suffering story in the light of an affective myth, which guides the patient towards an ideal of mature development. Finally, sick people feel the same disgust for food that they experience with regard to missed or damaged relationships of which they still desperately hunger for. Through the illness, an attempt is made to manage in a perfectionist way the bodily transformation, but the result is that they come upon a disquieting world of transfigured objects, a world similar to that established by some contemporary art movements. For these reasons, the medical-psychological work carried out on eating disorders requires competence in the field of medical humanities and particularly in the sphere of ethical and aesthetic education.


2007 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 340-357 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trent A. Petrie ◽  
Christy Greenleaf ◽  
Jennifer E. Carter ◽  
Justine J. Reel

Few studies have been conducted examining male athletes and eating disorders, even though the sport environment may increase their risk. Thus, little information exists regarding the relationship of putative risk factors to eating disorders in this group. To address this issue, we examined the relationship of eating disorder classification to the risk factors of body image concerns (including drive for muscularity), negative affect, weight pressures, and disordered eating behaviors. Male college athletes (N= 199) from three different NCAA Division I universities participated. Only two athletes were classified with an eating disorder, though 33 (16.6%) and 164 (82.4%), respectively, were categorized as symptomatic and asymptomatic. Multivariate analyses revealed that eating disorder classification was unrelated to the majority of the risk factors, although the eating disorder group (i.e., clinical and symptomatic) did report greater fear of becoming fat, more weight pressures from TV and from magazines, and higher levels of stress than the asymptomatic athletes. In addition, the eating disorder group had higher scores on the Bulimia Test-Revised (Thelen, Mintz, & Vander Wal, 1996), which validated the Questionnaire for Eating Disorder Diagnosis (Mintz, O’Halloran, Mulholland, & Schneider, 1997) as a measure of eating disorders with male athletes. These findings suggest that variables that have been supported as risk factors among women in general, and female athletes in particular, may not apply as strongly, or at all, to male athletes.


2000 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 128-143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine A. Beals ◽  
Melinda M. Manore

The purpose of this study was to delineate and further define the behavioral, psychological, and physical characteristics of female athletes with subclinical eating disorders. Subjects consisted of 24 athletes with subclinical eating disorders (SCED) and 24 control athletes. Group classification was determined by scores on the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI), the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ), and a symptom checklist for eating disorders (EDI-SC). Characteristics representative of the female athletes with subclinical eating disorders were derived from an extensive health and dieting history questionnaire and an in-depth interview (the Eating Disorder Examination). Energy intake and expenditure (kcal/d) were estimated using 7-day weighed food records and activity logs. The characteristics most common in the female athletes with subclinical eating disorders included: (a) preoccupation with food, energy intake, and body weight; (b) distorted body image and body weight dissatisfaction; (c) undue influence of body weight on self-evaluation; (d) intense fear of gaining weight even though at or slightly below (-5%) normal weight; (e) attempts to lose weight using one or more pathogenic weight control methods; (g) food intake governed by strict dietary rules, accompanied by extreme feelings of guilt and self-hatred upon breaking a rule; (h) absence of medical disorder to explain energy restriction, weight loss, or maintenance of low body weight; and (i) menstrual dysfunction. Awareness of these characteristics may aid in more timely identification and treatment of female athletes with disordered eating patterns and, perhaps, prevent the development of more serious, clinical eating disorders.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-129
Author(s):  
L. A. Proskuryakova

The research examined eating disorders and the risk of their development in students according to the level of personal anxiety  from a gender perspective. An analysis showed a connection  between the level of personal anxiety and compulsive and external  types of eating behavior in female students. The sample group  consisted of 70 people, of whom 52,9 % had a high level of personal anxiety (the proportion of girls was 83,8 %). 95,7 % of students had either compulsive (64,2 %) or external (21,4 %) eating disorder. At  this age, an eating disorder does not affect body weight. However, if  the level of personal anxiety increases, it escalates the risk of  developing at least three types of eating disorders by 11,5 times. With an increase in the level of personal anxiety, the risk of  developing external overeating increases by 12,5 times and the risk  of developing a compulsive type of eating behavior increases by 1,5  times. The research revealed some gender features of eating  disorders development: girls with a high level of personal anxiety  proved to have a 5,68 times higher risk of developing various eating  disorders. However, a study in the ability to cope with stress in  students with different levels of personal anxiety with regard to  gender did not show any statistically significant differences in the  study groups. The research demonstrated that there is a need in  psycho-preventive measures that would shape rational nutrition  stereotypes in students. 


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuannuo Chen ◽  
Yu Sun

The inspiration for the creation of this app stemmed from the deeply rooted history of eating disorders in sports, particularly in sports that emphasize appearance and muscularity which often includes gymnastics, figure skating, dance, and diving [1]. All three sports require rapid rotation in the air which automatically results in the necessity of a more stringent weight requirement. Eating disorders can also be aggravated by sports who focus on individual performances rather than team-oriented like basketball or soccer [5]. According to research, up to thirteen percent of all athletes have, or are currently suffering from a form of eating disorder such as anorexia [2] and bulimia [3]. In the National Collegiate Athletic Association, it is estimated that up to sixteen percent of male athletes and forty-five percent of female athletes have been diagnosed with an eating disorder.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document