Comprehensive Report on the Female Athlete Triad: Issues

This report examines the Female Athlete Triad, a critical health concern affecting female athletes. The triad comprises disordered eating, amenorrhea (irregular menstruation), and osteoporosis (weakening of bones). The report explores the causes, including rigorous training, pressure to maintain low body weight, and inadequate energy intake, leading to relative energy deficiency in sport (RED-S). It highlights the psychological impacts of competition, such as low self-esteem and perfectionism. The report also discusses the physiological consequences, including hormonal imbalances and reproductive issues. The analysis emphasizes the importance of education, early detection, and interventions, including nutritional adjustments and psychological support, to prevent and manage the triad's adverse effects on female athletes' physical and mental well-being. The report references key studies and concludes with a call for increased awareness and preventative measures.

Running head: FEMALE ATHLETE TRIAD
FEMALE ATHLETE TRIAD
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

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Introduction
The issue of female athlete triad is associated with the female athletes who develop the problems
of disordered eating, amenorrhea and osteoporosis (De Souza et al., 2018). Sports and exercise
are something necessary for keeping the body healthy and free form the risk of diseases.
However, it cannot be denied that women who are under the extreme pressure of rigorous
training are under threat the three issue of health discussed above (Kelly et al., 2016). This is
known as the female athlete triad, which is associated with the women athletes.
Discussion
Factor 1: This is known as the problem of disorder eating. Under these issues, it has been
observed that the urge to reduce weight to keep the body fit is what leads to this particular
problem, this is associated with decreases in stamina leading to underperformance in athletics
(Matzkin et al., 2015). It is also to be noted that meeting the energy demand of the body is one of
the crucial aspects of the female athletes and due opt the less eating, such problem is prevalent
among the female athlete. In addition to this, it is also interesting to note that particular food that
is rich in energy content is considered to be " bad” by these athletes lack in their diet which is
why they tend to suffer from an issue like bulimia or anorexia.
The second important factor in this list is the issue of amenorrhea: this problem is associated
with the problem of irregular menstruation due to the lowered hormone level. It is to be noted
that due to lower intake of energy-rich foods, the female athletes tend to have a lower hormonal
level which is one of the most critical factors in regulating the hormonal level in the body
(Matzkin et al., 2015). This issue is associated with the problem of a missed period or the subject

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of irregular period among the female athletes. The author also argued that the issue of
amenorrhea is also associated with some women never getting their period due to the excessive
training they undergo.
The last factor under this issue is osteoporosis: this problem is associated with the first two
issues. Due to the reasons of low estrogen in the body, women should intake number of energy
content food, this along with the higher intake of calcium and proper nutrition can reduce the risk
of osteoporosis among the female athletes (Tenforde et al.,2016). It is also essential to consider
the fact that there are higher chances of such an issue for women who already have lower
calcium level.
The consciousness with the body in the age of high competition leads to the problem of female
triad since they are always in need of meeting the ambitious goals, they tend to overlook these
crucial aspects of healthy body formation (Savard et al., 2018). Moreover, it is to be noted that
the issue of maintaining good body and shape does not necessarily have to the process of lower
weight and inefficient nutrients in the body, neither lower pressure would ensure higher
performance in games. Hence it is to be noted that the issue of lower self-esteem among the
female athletes is another spectrum of this issue since they aspire towards perfectionism and fall
victim to the family pressure, this leads them to the process of disorder eating more frequently
than the rest of the issue.
This has been argued that the psychological impact of this high competition is the key to such
issues emerging among the female athletes and it is nothing but education that can create higher
consciousness among the female athletes that it is crucial to undertake the snacks and meal since
it Is vital for the body to develop the energy on its own (Kelly et al., 2016). It has also argued by

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the author, that unawareness of the relationship between exercise and healthy body is not well
developed among the young female athletes, which are one the reasons for the development of a
female triad. This has been related to the issue of “relative energy deficiency” of sports activities
that are impacting the outcome. In addition to this, it is to be highlighted that such triad for this
women at the younger age leads to the process of serious health issue at the older generation
(Savard et al., 2018). One of the reasons for the high level of depression and psychological effect
associated with the women athletes can be contributed to the problem of lower energy intake of
these female. It is also important to note that these women tend to feel more depressed with a
higher level of anxiety and lower self-esteem irrespective of being part of the sports are more
fundamental that they understand, it is hidden in their eating habit which’s guiding their growth
and development at the older age (Kelly et al., 2016). In the race of competition, they lag due to
the development of such issues at a younger generation. Moreover, such problem is likely to
impact the reproductive system of women due to the menstrual dysfunctions and underdeveloped
follicular ovaries. It has been observed that the issue of female athlete triad is medical condition
which requires better understanding of the energy availability in body that is responsible for
maintain order in body. This is primarily responsible for the purpose of energy imbalance which
is likely to impact the overall functionality of it. According to estimation, it can be said that the it
ranger form 15 top 62 % which refers to the fact that large number of female athletes are in
under the risk of osteoporosis and menstrual dysfunction (De Souza et al., 2018).
In conclusion, it is to be mentioned that there are certain underlying psychological aspects that is
likely to affect the female health for the longer run. Some of the signs of this triad are : poor
performance in athletes, mood swings , weight loss and increased number of fractures (De
Souza et al., 2018). Moreover these psychological aspects are likely to impact the overall

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performance of the female athletes, since it is not only limiting to the development of the
physical growth, it is also limiting the overall performance of the female players. Hence it is
important at this juncture to consider the fact that there is a need to develop further
consciousness on this issue of development.
Conclusion
One of the aspects of female athlete triad is the development of low bone density among these
women. What is interesting to note is that lower energy availability among players has been one
of the most persistent problems of the female athletes for long. However what is crucial here to
note is the fact that there are number of triad prevention and early recognition of the same
which require further analysis and understanding in order to take care of the issue of female
athlete triad. Since it has been observe that the issue of female athlete triad is a serious medical
condition, there are number of efforts to physically detect their early syndromes. Hence it can be
concluded that the issue of female athlete triad is one the key aspects of spreading awareness
since it has one of the health issues affecting number of female athletes.

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Reference
De Souza, M. J., Koltun, K. J., Southmayd, E. A., & Aurigemma, N. C. (2018). The female
athlete triad. In The Exercising Female (pp. 66-84). Routledge.
Kelly, A. K. W., & Hecht, S. (2016). The female athlete triad. Pediatrics, 138(2), e20160922.
Matzkin, E., Curry, E. J., & Whitlock, K. (2015). Female athlete triad: past, present, and
future. JAAOS-Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 23(7), 424-
432.
Savard, K., Theriault, C., Weinstein, P., & Zerpa Calderon, M. (2018). Female Athlete Triad:
Presentation.
Tenforde, A. S., Barrack, M. T., Nattiv, A., & Fredericson, M. (2016). Parallels with the female
athlete triad in male athletes. Sports Medicine, 46(2), 171-182.