Triggers of Eating Disorders in Athletes

Thirty years ago a Norwegian publication explored what athletes with eating disorders have experienced as the causes to their condition. Early specialization and sports cultures with early introduction to weighing and weight adjustment, high training volume, and traumatic experiences (body comments, loss of an important coach, family events) were highlighted as key self-perceived causes. This study and findings have been regularly cited and upheld as facts in professional and research literature but have not been further explored or replicated and confirmed since. This may be part of the reason why the sports world has not fully recognized its responsibility for measures despite the prevalence of eating disorders remaining unchanged over these decades. There is a need to continue exploring why some athletes develop eating disorders while others from the same conditions do not. This can be done by building on previous research and knowledge, examining specific personal or situational factors that may constitute an additional vulnerability, and also by considering self-experiences. There is also a need to understand what athletes believe can help reduce body dissatisfaction and eating disorders. This is especially relevant when considering how both the sports world and society have changed over these 30 years. Early specialization in sports, the desire to be a talent at a young age, and the massive influence of social media are factors that may be particularly challenging risk factors. Better knowledge can be used to develop supportive guidelines for sports teams and cultures, necessary rule changes, and in the education, training, and awareness of sports coaches and support staff. Such knowledge is also crucial when the sports world itself is to design the content of a national action plan to prevent body dissatisfaction and eating disorders in sports.