A pilot project to investigate the nutritional attitude of athletes.

Abstract

Nutrition plays a critical role in athletic performance but many athletes do not follow a diet that helps them reach their full potential (Kleiner, 1997). Elite athletes utilise dietary knowledge as a critical and integral component of their training. In many studies dietary intervention has been shown to have a positive effect on athletic performance (Grandjean, 1997). It is not suggested that athletes need a diet which is substantially different from that recommended to the general population (American Dietetic Association et al, 2000). However, at the same time, different demands on speed or endurance do require a specific dietary regime pre, post and during an athletic event. Eating adequately from a variety of foods will satisfy the need for macronutrients and micronutrients (Kleiner, 1997). Generally speaking, athletes do not necessarily need vitamin and mineral supplements if intake of a wide variety of foods provides adequate energy to maintain body weight (ADA et al, 2000). Dietary choices are therefore a key to getting the best out of an athlete's performance for a given training regime, history and genetic makeup. It has been shown that knowledge of the right dietary practice is one of the main determinants of the diet adopted. For example in a study by Variyam et a/ (1998), higher education was found to promote more healthful food choices as a result of better access and use of health information. The eating choices people make are based on a wide variety of factors: economic, ethnic, religious, convenience, family, time, taste, health implications and many others. From these and other factors Thomas (1991 ), singles out knowledge of nutrition and beliefs about foods and health as the most amenable to modification and hence the quickest way to change dietary decisions. This study reports on a pilot project whose aim is to get an insight on the dietary practices of athletes and to see how their nutritional knowledge affects these dietary practices. The primary source of field data has been via questionnaires distributed to active athletes in four disciplines: volleyball, basketball, track and field athletics and football refereeing. Questions were designed to capture demographic and biometrical data, indication of commitment to sport, diet and eating habits. A food frequency questionnaire was also distributed to gain further insight on their dietary practices. The combination of this data allowed the author to extract their level of dietary knowledge and compare that to the nutritional practice followed. 200 questionnaires were distributed with an overall response rate of 29% With a distribution a cross sports disciplines as follows: 44% from football referees, 34% from track and field athletes, 28% from volleyball players and 12% from basketball players. The study found that dietary practice and nutritional knowledge do not vary significantly between genders or across sports discipline or by age. It has also been concluded that there is a significant positive correlation between nutritional knowledge and the diet adopted by local athletes.