SynthesisThe International journal of eating disorders2022
Eating-disorder psychopathology in female athletes and non-athletes: A meta-analysis.
Synthesis in The International journal of eating disorders, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 49 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
49 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 89 citations in OpenAlex.
- 2025 Update to the Female Athlete Triad Coalition Consensus Statement Part 2: Clinical Guidelines for Screening, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Return to Play for Adolescents and Adults.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Guideline
- Associations between anthropometry, body composition, and body image in athletes: a systematic review.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Pooled it
- Athletes' relationships to training: Validation of an assessment tool across female and male athletes.Eating behaviors · 2026Article
- Eating disorders and associated mental symptoms in Swedish elite athletes and a comparison group.Discover mental health · 2026Article
- Disordered Eating and Exercise Addiction Among Former Student-Athletes: Contribution of Athletic Experience and Personality.Nutrients · 2026Article
- Between Aesthetics and Health: Disordered Eating, Exercise Addiction, and Body Image in Competitive Bodybuilders.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Article
- Disordered eating predicts mindful eating regardless of sex and disability status: a cross-sectional study.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Article
- Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance Across Gender of the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire-Short Form in Italian Workers.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2026Article
- Managing Exercise in Eating Disorder Treatment and Adapting Treatment for Athletes.The Psychiatric clinics of North America · 2026Review
- Moral emotions in motion: a cross-sectional study of shame, guilt, and disordered eating in UK university athletes.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Article
- 2025 Update to the Female Athlete Triad Coalition Consensus Statement Part 1: State of the Science and Introduction of a New Adolescent Model.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Review
- Article
- Protecting women's health in sport: the role of low energy availability in the Female Athlete Triad and RED-S.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Review
- Physical activity enjoyment and attitudes toward healthy nutrition in women: associations and demographic differences.Frontiers in global women's health · 2026Article
- Prevalence of physically active females at risk for the female athlete triad in Spain.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2025Article
- Lower Prevalence of Disordered Eating Behaviours Among Norwegian Female Athletes Compared to Non-Athletes: A Cross-Sectional Survey Using the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire.European journal of sport science · 2025Article
- Eating Disorders in the Workplace.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Physical Activity and Psychonutritional Correlates of Eating Disorder Risk in Female Health Science Students.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Next Steps in Use of the Eating Disorder Examination and Related Eating Disorder Assessments: A Call for Consensus.The International journal of eating disorders · 2025Article
- Evaluating the prevalence of eating disorder risk and low energy availability risk in collegiate athletes.Journal of eating disorders · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveThere is ongoing discussion about whether sports participation is a risk or protective factor for eating disorders (EDs). Research is mixed, with some studies suggesting that athletes have higher mean levels of ED psychopathology compared to nonathletes, while other studies suggest the opposite effect or no differences. The purpose of the current meta-analysis was to identify whether female athletes reported higher mean levels of ED psychopathology compared to nonathletes.
methodFollowing PRISMA guidelines, we identified 56 studies that reported ED psychopathology for female athletes and nonathletes. A three-level random-effects model of between- and within-study variance was completed for the following outcome variables: overall ED psychopathology, body dissatisfaction, drive for thinness, restricting, and loss-of-control eating.
resultsAthletes reported lower levels of body dissatisfaction compared to nonathletes (g = -.21, p < .0001). Athletes and nonathletes reported similar levels of overall ED psychopathology, drive for thinness, restricting, and loss-of-control eating on average. Sport type significantly moderated standardized mean difference effect sizes of ED psychopathology in athletes versus nonathletes. Effect sizes comparing levels of drive for thinness, restricting, and loss-of-control eating in athletes versus nonathletes were larger for studies with athletes participating in aesthetic/lean sports compared to nonaesthetic/nonlean sports. DISCUSSION: Findings from this meta-analysis could inform future ED prevention and treatment in female athletes by providing further evidence that athletes in aesthetic/lean sports may report higher levels of ED psychopathology. Participating in nonaesthetic/nonlean sports may be a protective factor for experiencing less body dissatisfaction. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: The current meta-analysis summarized findings from 56 studies that assessed levels of disordered eating, body dissatisfaction, dietary restricting, and loss-of-control eating in female athletes and nonathletes. Athletes reported lower levels of body dissatisfaction compared to nonathletes, highlighting that participation in sport could have some protective factors. Athletes participating in sports that require weight categories (e.g., judo) and sports that emphasize thinness/leanness (e.g., gymnastics and distance running) had higher levels of disordered eating relative to athletes participating in other types of sports that do not emphasize thinness/leanness (e.g., volleyball and basketball).
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.