Body dissatisfaction and eating disorders in gymnasts: a systematic review

Abstract

Introduction: In gymnastic sports, certain morphological measures such as weight, body mass index (BMI) and low-fat percentage are important for sporting success. Excessive preoccupation with these factors, or altered Body Image (BI), can lead to eating disorders (ED) in gymnasts. Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyse ED and CI in gymnastics athletes through a systematic review. Material and methods: Following the «PRISMA» checklist, five electronic databases (WOS, PubMed, Sports Discuss, Scopus and Google Scholar) were searched for cross-sectional studies in English, Spanish and Portuguese published from January 2000 to December 2020 Selection was performed by three investigators in two stages (screening and application of eligibility criteria).Age, sex, sample size, methodological quality, variables, instrument and results were recorded in 16 articles that met the inclusion criteria. Results: 56.25% of the studies highlight body dissatisfaction, as well as the risk of suffering from ED in gymnasts at a higher competitive level, with body dissatisfaction and environmental pressure being the main causal factors, especially in the adolescent period.The most commonly used instrument was the Eating Attitude Test 26 (EAT-26) (75%). Conclusion:The results obtained indicate that gymnasts are at high risk of suffering from BAD, with a high incidence in the higher categories, one of the main causes being distortion and dissatisfaction with the CI.