Disordered Eating in Female Collegiate Athletes: Differences by Sport Type

Background/Purpose

Over the past several decades there has been a significant increase in attention to the eating related beliefs and behaviors of female college athletes, particularly whether certain subgroups of athletes are at greater risk than others. Although evidence exists to suggest that lean sport athletes may be at greater risk for the development of eating disorders than non-lean sport athletes, it remains unclear if differences exist between different types of lean sport athletes. Specifically, the eating beliefs and behaviors of athletes involved in lean sports in which low body weight is deemed central to performance for aesthetic purposes (aesthetic lean sports: e.g., figure skating) may differ in some fundamental ways from athletes involved in lean sports in which low body weight is deemed central for performance purposes (non-aesthetic lean sports: e.g., cross-county running). While athletes in both sport types are under pressure to maintain a low body weight, aesthetic lean sports have unique elements in that they tend to involve subjective judgment of others to determine athletic success and tend to require tight fitting, feminine attire.

The purpose of this study is to examine the differences in eating disorder symptomology in aesthetic lean, non-aesthetic lean and non-lean sport athletes.

Method

178 female collegiate athletes participated from three sport groups: aesthetic lean (i.e., figure skating, gymnastics), non-aesthetic lean (i.e., cross-country, cycling), and non-lean (i.e., soccer, field hockey). Participants completed the ATHLETE Questionnaire(Hinton & Kubas, 2005) and a demographic questionnaire approximately two months into their athletic season.

Analysis/Results

Results revealed that athlete specific eating disorder symptoms were significantly different between sport types, F(2, 175) = 6.82, p = .001, partial η² = .07. Bonferroni's post hoc analysis revealed that non-aesthetic lean sport athletes have significantly less athlete specific eating disorder symptoms than aesthetic lean sport and non-lean sport athletes. Aesthetic lean sport athletes are not significantly different than non-lean athletes with regards to athlete specific eating disorder symptoms.

Conclusions

The finding that non-aesthetic lean sport athletes report fewer eating disorder symptoms than do athletes in aesthetic lean or non-lean sports was unexpected. This may be due to the specific energy demands of endurance sports and those athletes having less concern with caloric restriction in-season. While non-aesthetic lean sport athletes may be just as concerned with caloric intake, they may not limit calories while competing. Understanding which type of athletes are at greatest risk for eating disorders has significant implications for treatment and prevention in athletes.