Unique health issues for female athletes Need-to-Know: the Female Athlete Triad

Amenorrhea, Osteoporosis, and Other Serious Issues as a Result of Sustained Low Energy Availability

Female athletes have been achieving outstanding successes in recent years. Many girls are looking up to the top athletes making brilliant showings at the Olympics and other sporting events or are discovering how fun sports can be through after-school club activities , inspiring them to train on a daily basis themselves.

While this is to be celebrated, we must also recognize that there is a growing number of young athletes whose health is suffering as a result of sports—something that should be healthy.

The concept of the Female Athlete Triad, a unique health issue for women, was first presented by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) in 1997. The Triad refers to a set of three conditions.

While the ACSM first sounded the alarm on the basis of a Triad that comprised an eating disorder, amenorrhea , and osteoporosis, it later became apparent that female athletes were at higher risk of amenorrhea and osteoporosis even without an eating disorder. The Triad was therefore redefined in 2007 as comprising (1) low energy availability, (2) hypothalamic amenorrhea, and (3) osteoporosis.

Triad Awareness Needed for Athletes and Coaches Alike

The components of the Triad occur not in parallel but as interlinked conditions that impact one another and have a transformative effect on the body over time, from healthy to requiring treatment.

The syndrome starts with low energy availability. This condition causes worsening hypothalamic amenorrhea and osteoporosis. Once the syndrome has progressed to this stage, a lengthy recovery process and reduced athletic performance are not the only potential consequences: sufferers may even lose their sporting careers.

Identifying athletes showing Triad warning signs and improving the situation before they become ill or injured are both matters of urgency. Yet the reality is that even female athletes and their coaches assume that missed periods are not a problem.

For active women, their health is an indispensable ally on the road to becoming truly powerful athletes.

Source: Sunaga, Mikako. Textbook for Female Athletes. SHUFUNOTOMO Co., Ltd.