Does oral contraceptive use influence nutrition practices in athletes?🩸
It's not a one-size-fits-all approach.
Hormonal contraceptive use, menstrual cycle characteristics and training/nutrition related profiles of elite, sub-elite and amateur athletes and exercisers: One size is unlikely to fit all
Study Details
This new study recruited 51 elite, 118 sub-elite and 392 amateur female athletes to examine the effects of…
💊 Hormonal contraceptive (HC) use
🩸 Menstrual cycle characteristics
…on training/nutrition related profiles 📊
Here is what they found ⬇️
Key Findings
HC use was similar across elite, sub-elite and amateurs 💊
Training profiles were not different based on contraceptive status…
…but were across competitive groups 🏆
Daily meal/snack intakes were not different between contraceptive status…
…but elite and sub-elite groups reported a higher daily meal 🍽️
40% of all respondents skipped meals, attributed to lack of time, schedule and alterations in appetite ⏰
Alterations in appetite included…
🍬 Increased preference for sweet foods (60%)
🍫 Cravings for chocolate and other confectionary (25%)
…during pre-menses and menses.
Prevalence of dietary supplement use was not influenced by contraceptive status…
…but elites used more supplements than amateurs🥤
Conclusion
These data demonstrate that in female athletes and exercisers, competitive level appears to affect simple markers of training and nutrition practice, yet contraceptive status does not ❌
A ‘one size fits all’ approaches for female athletes is unlikely to work‼️
Tailored strategies needed for training & nutrition in athletes across competitive levels and hormonal profiles ✅
Reference
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17479541231163088
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