Lack of calories, irregular periods and weak bones: 3 problems for female athletes

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The nature of athletes' work, hectic training, and busy schedules make it easy for them to miss nutritious meals, good sleep, time to relax, rest and regular health checkups. These are partly considered to be the causes of calorie deficit, irregular menstruation and weak bones in female athletes.

1. Causes of calorie deficit, menstrual disorders, weak bones of female athletes

These three health conditions are interrelated and frequently occur in female athletes. Causes of this condition are:
1.1 Calorie deficiency Female athletes do not absorb enough calories to make up for what was burned during exercise, resulting in an energy deficit. This condition, if it goes on for a day or two, is not harmful to health. But persistently for a long time will lead to lack of energy and affect the normal development of the body.
Habits such as: skipping meals, forgetting meals... can unintentionally cause female athletes to suffer from this condition. Some other female athletes have a strict diet to have a desired body or people with eating disorders are at risk of being in a calorie deficit. This is also a precursor to two other health conditions such as menstrual disorders and weak bones.
1.2 Menstrual disorders When a woman's body lacks energy, it will affect general health in general and reproductive health in particular. Suppressed hormone production leads to delayed menstruation, irregular periods, or amenorrhea. A lack of hormones like estrogen can contribute to loss of bone density, even infertility.

1.3 Weak bones Adolescence is the most important time for the accumulation of bone mass. Deficiencies in calories, including nutrients important for bone health, can disrupt bone formation at this critical time. The physical and mental stress of intense exercise also causes changes in the production of estrogen, growth hormone, and cortisol. These disruptions correlate with decreased bone mass. Weak bones make young female athletes more susceptible to stress fractures and other sports injuries. If female athletes do not gain adequate bone mass over the years, they are more at risk of developing weak bones, osteoporosis, and fractures in the future.

2. Who is susceptible to the above health conditions?

Not all young female athletes have these three health conditions. Many athletes have suffered from one or two of these three health conditions, and each will have varying degrees of severity and development patterns over time. For example, the prevalence of eating disorders in female athletes with an energy deficit can range from 1% to 62%, depending on the type of sport. The rate of eating disorders will appear higher in female athletes with requirements for slim and aesthetic appearance such as dancing, figure skating.
Some signs indicate that young female athletes are at risk for one of the three health conditions above, such as:
Eating disorders such as bulimia or anorexia Obsessed with appearance Fractures due to stress Frequent dieting Irregular periods Exercising too much

3. Food is the key to preventing these 3 health conditions

A nutritious diet combined with a balanced exercise regimen are two important factors that help female athletes maintain their health in top shape. Food is the necessary fuel for the growth of the body and helps you to achieve high performance in competition.
To do this, parents or coaches play an important role in making girls aware of the problem. Parents may be looking for a mental health or nutrition professional to support young female athletes.
Besides, one of the other important factors to create a healthy body is regular health check-ups. Currently, Vinmec International General Hospital has implemented a general health checkup package for all subjects and different ages. With the above package, customers will be checked their health through blood tests, liver function, kidney function, urine, blood pressure measurement, scan... The check-up process is done by a team of doctors who have qualified doctors. High expertise combined with modern equipment and machinery. Therefore, customers can completely trust the quality of examination at Vinmec.
In short, female athletes should be more concerned with their health, well-being and role in life than athletic performance. This not only makes you feel healthy and happy, but also limits many diseases in life.
Reference source: mayoclinic.org