How can we better engage female athletes? A novel approach to health and performance education in adolescent athletes

Abstract

Objectives To evaluate the impact of a video series versus online pamphlets/blog posts on Female Athlete Triad (Triad) and Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs) knowledge in high school female runners. Methods Runners from 10 US schools were cluster-randomised into groups to either watch videos or read pamphlets on Triad/REDs, nutrition, menstrual cycle, bone health and mental health. Changes in knowledge and interest were assessed using generalised estimating equations. Results Forty-five runners were in the video intervention group (mean age=16.0) and 39 in the control (mean age=15.7). Both groups showed knowledge gains for all topics, except for mental health, where knowledge was already high. The intervention group’s knowledge increase (means=75.7 and 93.3) was not significantly higher than the control’s (means=77.9 and 93.6) (p=0.149). However, the intervention group had stronger scores on behavioural impact, information novelty and interest (means=3.77, 3.93 and 4.14) compared with the control’s (means=3.36, 3.48 and 3.52) (p≤0.05, p≤0.05 and p≤0.001). Conclusion Both videos and pamphlets improved knowledge of Triad/REDs and female athlete science, however videos had a greater influence on athletes’ engagement and behavioural intentions. All data relevant to the study are included in the article or uploaded as supplementary information.