Effective nutrition interventions are needed to improve dietary intakes and eating habits of female college athletes.

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The number of females participating in college sports in the U.S. has increased in last two decades. While female college athletes might be at a high risk, research examining disordered eating in this population is limited and difficult to summarize due to differences in methodologies. Factors contributing to disordered eating in female college athletes are not well established, but emotional regulation may be a potential correlate. The main purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of disordered eating and explore potential differences between weight-sensitive and less weight-sensitive sports in a sample of female college athletes. The second purpose was to examine emotional regulation, body dissatisfaction, sport type, a family history of eating disorder, and BMI as potential predictors of disordered eating. The Eating Attitudes Test-26 and the Minnesota Eating Behavior Survey were used to estimate disordered eating prevalence in a sample of 151 athletes. Emotion regulation was assessed by the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale. The prevalence of disordered eating was 6.6% and 10.6%, respectively, with no differences by sport type. The multiple regression model explained 11% of the EAT-26 variance, F(5, 150) = 3.74, p < .01. Greater emotional regulation difficulties (β = .174, t = 2.191, p = .03) and body dissatisfaction (β = .276, t = 2.878, p = .005) were significant predictors of disordered eating. Further examination of emotional regulation and body dissatisfaction in relation to disordered eating in female college athletes is warranted.

Objectives 1) To determine the nutrient intake and diet quality of wildland firefighters (WLFF); 2) to determine the relationship between diet quality and mental health indices (e.g., anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, suicidality) among WLFF. Methods This cross-sectional study involved a convenience sample of 37 WLFF recruited via social media from across the US. Dietary intake was assessed via 24-hour recall entered into nutrient analysis software and scored using the Healthy Eating Index 2015 (HEI) for diet quality. Mental health was assessed using several indices for suicidality, anxiety, depression, hopelessness, and alcohol use. Nutrient intake and HEI scores were compared to current US adult intake patterns from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Relationships between HEI scores and mental health indices were determined using Pearson correlation coefficients. Results Mean (± standard deviation) age was 40.0 ± 11.7 years and 87.1% of participants were Caucasian with body mass index of 28.1 ± 4.5 kg/m2. Mean HEI score was 52.5 ± 14.8 out of 100, 10.6% lower than the US adult population. Added sugar, refined grains, and total protein all had scores between 81–100/100, indicating adequate intake. Total HEI, saturated fat, total vegetable, and sodium scores were between 51–80/100, indicating need for improvement. Seafood/plant protein, dairy, whole grains, and total fruit scores were between 0–50/100, indicating poor intake. Relationships between HEI scores and mental health indices were significant, moderate, and inverse (beneficial) for total HEI, dark greens and legumes, and fatty acid ratio scores with Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test, Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item, and Patient Health Questionnaire. Conclusions Diet quality for the diets of WLFF is lower than the US adult population, in significant need of improvement, and potentially impacting mental health status. Funding Sources Not applicable.