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. 2021 Mar;26(2):491-498.
doi: 10.1007/s40519-020-00872-0. Epub 2020 Feb 27.

The prevalence of disordered eating in elite male and female soccer players

Will Abbott  1 , Adam Brett  1 , Thomas E Brownlee  2 , Kelly M Hammond  2 , Liam D Harper  3 , Robert J Naughton  3 , Liam Anderson  4 , Edward H Munson  5 , Jack V Sharkey  6 , Rebecca K Randell  7   8 , Tom Clifford  9   10
Affiliations

The prevalence of disordered eating in elite male and female soccer players

Will Abbott et al. Eat Weight Disord. 2021 Mar.

Abstract

Purpose: To examine the prevalence of disordered eating (DE) in elite male and female soccer players and the influence of perfectionism.

Methods: Using a cross-sectional design, elite male (n = 137) and female (n = 70) soccer players and non-athlete controls (n = 179) completed the clinical perfectionism questionnaire (CPQ-12) and the eating attitudes test (EAT-26) to assess perfectionism and DE risk, respectively.

Results: Male soccer players had higher EAT-26 scores than controls (10.4 ± 9.9 vs. 6.8 ± 6.7; P = 0.001), but there were no differences in the prevalence of clinical levels of DE (EAT-26 score ≥ 20) (15 vs. 5%, respectively; X2 = 0.079) The proportion of females with DE risk was higher in controls [EAT-26: 13.9 ± 11.6 (25% of population)] than female players [EAT-26: 10.0 ± 9.0% (11% of population)] (X2 = 0.001). With linear regression, perfectionism explained 20% of the variation in DE risk in males (P = 0.001); in females, athletic status (player vs. control) and perfectionism were significant predictors of DE risk, explaining 21% of the variation (P = 0.001). Male reserve team players had higher EAT-26 (+ 3.5) and perfectionism (+ 2.7) scores than first-team players (P < 0.05). There were no differences in the prevalence of DE risk between the male and female soccer players (X2 = 0.595).

Conclusions: The prevalence of DE risk was not different in elite male and female soccer players; in fact, the prevalence was greatest in non-athlete female controls. Perfectionism is a significant predictor of DE risk in males and females.

Level of evidence: III, case-control study.

Keywords: Eating disorders; Football; Mental health; Nutrition; Sports psychology.

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Conflict of interest statement

Author Rebecca K. Randell is employed by the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, a division of PepsiCo, Inc. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of PepsiCo, Inc. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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