Question

Gymnastics, as with any sport, is practiced by some athletes who have eating disorders. The prevalence of eating disorders is higher for female athletes.

True

False

Answer 1

Hello,

When the pressures of athletic competition are added to an existing cultural emphasis on thinness, the risks increase for athletes to develop disordered eating. In a study of Division 1 NCAA athletes, over one-third of female athletes reported attitudes and symptoms placing them at risk for anorexia nervosa Though most athletes with eating disorders are female, male athletes are also at risk—especially those competing in sports that tend to place an emphasis on the athlete’s diet, appearance, size, and weight requirements, such as wrestling, bodybuilding, crew, and running.

Three risk factors are thought to particularly contribute to a female athlete’s vulnerability to developing an eating disorder: social influences emphasizing thinness, performance anxiety and negative self-appraisal of athletic achievement. A fourth factor is identity solely based on participation in athletics.

::Important::
While any female athlete can develop the triad, adolescent girls are most at risk because of the active biological changes and growth spurts, peer and social pressures, and rapidly changing life circumstances that go along with the teenage years.
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Citations:

"Athletes and Eating Disorders | National Eating Disorders Association." Athletes and Eating Disorders | National Eating Disorders Association. NEDA, n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2014.



- Compassionate