Performance, Athletes, and Disordered Eating

This week we will explore  one of the common misconceptions about eating disorders and athletics.

The Misconception

When we work with athletes engaging in or struggling with disordered eating behaviors, we sometimes hear that their athletic performance improved with the onset of their disordered eating behaviors. This causes confusion, understandably; How can performance improve when an athlete is undernourished? Surprisingly, athletic performance may initially improve with insufficient energy intake. This does not mean that all people who engage in disordered eating will have improved athletic performance; however, it does happen for some. Improved performance in this manner comes with many costs, some of which we will note later in this post. Some physiological changes that may take place to increase athletic ability are:

1. The up-regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) cortex
2. An increase in cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine
3. And relative VO2 Max may increase as well

We will not describe these further in this blog post; however, these all affect athletic performance.

Why we Feel this Misconception Needs to be Corrected

Many feel that shedding light on this misconception may increase the frequency of eating disorders: if athletes know their performance will improve, won't that make disordered eating more attractive?

We do not believe so and this is why: we have never had a client or heard of anyone who has recovered from an eating disorder who wishes to return to their disordered eating behaviors. It is not worth it to them. Performance may have initially improved and that is sometimes an additional initial motivator to continue disordered eating behaviors; however this  improved performance fades and additionally, the athlete begins to center their entire world around burning calories and losing weight. What was once an intention to improve performance, quickly evolves into total obsession with food and weight loss.

We also do not believe the misconception is helpful. If athletes do not know that performance will initially improve and then they see this improvement, they may want to continue their behaviors and may not see anything wrong. Additionally, if we are able to clearly present facts, we are also able to educate athletes of the slippery slope and dangers of engaging in disordered eating patterns. Education will unveil the truly harmful consequences eating disorders can have on not only athletic performance, but the athlete's life in general.

Liz Natale, who battled with anorexia and was a member of the Texas team that won the 1986 NCAA cross-country title, stated it well: eating disorders are "like (anabolic) steroids for men. You'll get results, but you'll pay for it."  The one change we would make to this statement is that men and women are affected by steroids and the same is true for eating disorders. Can anabolic steroids  help athletic performance through physiological changes? Yes. Can they be harmful? Absolutely. Can eating disorders help athletic performance through physiological changes? Yes maybe, initially. Can they be harmful? There is no "can"; eating disorders are always harmful.

For more information regarding anabolic steroids, please see the following links: 

• http://teens.drugabuse.gov/facts/facts_ster1.php

• http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/news/20050316/why-steroids-are-bad-for-you

For more information regarding athletes and eating disorders, please visit:

• http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/nedaDir/files/documents/handouts/Athletes.pdf
• http://www.bu.edu/today/2009/athletes-and-eating-disorders/ (a male athlete's battle with an eating disorder)