Comparison of Female Athlete Triad Coalition and RED-S risk assessment tools

ABSTRACT

The Female Athlete Triad Coalition (Triad Coalition) and Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) consensus statements each include risk assessment tools to guide athlete eligibility decisions. This study examined how these tools categorized the same set of individuals to an overall risk factor score and qualitatively compared athlete eligibility decisions resulting from each tool. Exercising women (n = 166) with complete screening/baseline datasets from multiple previously conducted studies were assessed. Data used for risk assessment included: anthropometric measurements, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans, exercise and health status surveys, and two disordered eating questionnaires (Three Factor Eating Questionnaire and Eating Disorder Inventory). Individuals were scored on each tool and subsequently categorized as either fully cleared, provisionally cleared, or restricted from play. Based on the Triad Coalition tool, 25.3% of subjects were classified as fully cleared, 62.0% as provisionally cleared, and 12.7% as restricted from play. Based on the RED-S tool, 71.7% of subjects were classified as fully cleared, 18.7% as provisionally cleared, and 9.6% as restricted from play. The Triad Coalition and RED-S tools resulted in different clearance decisions (p < 0.001), with the Triad Coalition tool recommending increased surveillance of a greater number of athletes.     

Effect of water ingestion on endurance capacity during prolonged running

This study examined the influence of water ingestion on endurance capacity during submaximal treadmill running. Four men and four women with a mean (± S.E.) age of 21.4 ± 0.7 years, height of 169 + 2 cm, body mass of 63.1 ± 2.9 kg and VO ₂ max of 51.1 ± 1.8 ml kg^?1 min^?1, performed two randomly assigned treadmill runs at 70% VO ₂ max to exhaustion. No fluid was ingested during one trial (NF‐trial), whereas a single water bolus of 3.0 ml kg^?1 body mass was ingested immediately pre‐exercise and serial feedings of 2.0 ml kg^?1 body mass were ingested every 15 min during exercise in a fluid replacement trial (FR‐trial). Run time for the NF‐trial was 77.7 ± 7.7 min, compared to 103 ± 12.4 min for the FR‐trial (P<0.01). Body mass (corrected for water ingestion) decreased by 2.0 ± 0.2% in the NF‐trial and 2.7 ± 0.2% in the FR‐trial (P<0.01), while plasma volume decreased by 1.1 ± 1.1% and 3.5 ± 1.1% in the two trials respectively (N.S.). However, these apparent differences in circulatory volume were not associated with differences in rectal temperature. Respiratory exchange ratios indicated increased carbohydrate metabolism (73% vs 64% of total energy expenditure) and suppressed fat metabolism after 75 min of exercise in the NF‐trial compared with the FR‐trial (NF‐trial, 0.90 ± 0.01; FR‐trial, 0.86 ± 0.03; P<0.01). Blood glucose concentrations were similar in both trials, while blood lactate concentrations were higher in the NF‐trial at the end of exercise (4.83 ± 0.34 vs 4.18 ± 0.38 mM; P<0.05). In summary, water ingestion during prolonged running improved endurance capacity.     

Eco‐Webbing: A Teaching Strategy to Facilitate Critical Consciousness and Agency

Eco‐webbing is a teaching strategy that can be used to help counselor educators integrate a social justice focus into their courses. Preliminary data indicated increased critical consciousness and social justice agency as a result of using eco‐webbing with counseling students (N = 17). The authors provide implications for counselor educators and future research.     

The role of deliberate practice and play in career progression in sport: the early engagement hypothesis

Experts acquire domain‐specific skills as a result of the activities in which they participate throughout their development. We examine the domain‐specific activities in which two groups of elite youth soccer players participated between six and 12 years of age. Our goal was to examine early participation differences between those who progressed to professional status at 16 years of age and those who did not. Data were contrasted to a control group of recreational‐level players and examined in the context of the Developmental Model of Sport Participation, which supports the importance of late specialization and early diversity between six and 12 years of age. The elite players who went on to attain professional status accumulated more hours per year in soccer play activities, but not in soccer practice, competition or other sports, between six and 12 years of age, compared with those who did not progress. The two elite groups averaged more hours per year in soccer practice compared with recreational‐level players, but not soccer play, competition or other sports. We propose the “early engagement hypothesis” to explain our results. Accordingly, practice and play in the primary sport between six and 12 years of age contributes to the development of expert performance in English soccer.     

Use of multi-modal media and tools in an online information literacy course: College students' attitudes and perceptions

This project studies the use of multi-modal media objects in an online information literacy class. One hundred sixty-two undergraduate students answered seven surveys. Significant relationships are found among computer skills, teaching materials, communication tools and learning experience. Multi-modal media objects and communication tools are needed to strengthen course interactions and student engagement.     

Political instability, pro-business market reforms and their impacts on national systems of innovation

We investigate the impacts of political instability and pro-business market reforms on national systems of innovation (NSI) across a range of developing and developed countries. Evidence suggests that national systems of innovation are most likely to flourish in developed, politically stable countries and less likely to prosper in historically unstable countries. While research has shown that pro-business market reforms can be a valuable policy instrument to boost economic development in less developed countries, the extent to which these reforms affect a country's innovativeness has been neglected in the literature. In particular, the degree to which pro-business market reforms may compensate for political instability when it comes to fostering national systems of innovation remains under-researched. Our findings support established arguments concerning the strong influence of political instability on inputs to national innovation systems. We find, however, mixed effects for pro-business market reforms. While results indicate a negative direct influence on NSI, they consistently show a strong moderating effect that counterbalances the negative impact of political instability, especially in those developing country environments where science and technology are lagging. These results provide important implications for policymakers as well as for our understanding of emerging and transition economies and national technological capability.