The Association between Dietary Intake and Psychological Status in Japanese High School Athletes

Objective

Athletes that undertake strenuous training have markedly higher energy consumption than the average non-training person.Therefore, nutrient intake has a greater impact on body condition, and this point is particularly important in younger athletes who are still in their growth phase. The present study involved conducting a lecture on nutrition twice a year over two years for the top athletes of Yamagata Prefecture. At the same time, we examined the dietary intake and psychological status of these high school athletes.

Methods

Eighteen high school athletes (9 males and 9 females) participated in this study. In the first year, we conducted once dietary intake survey and twice nutrition lectures. In the second year, we conducted once dietary intake survey and psychological assessment using the Profile of Mood States (POMS), and twice nutrition lectures.The anthropometry data were analyzed using a paired t-test, while the proper quantities and actual amounts of food intake per subject were compared using Student's t-test. The relationship between nutrient intake and psychological status was examined by correlation analysis. Comparisons between group and non-group based on whether they met the Japanese criteria of macronutrient intake from dietary reference intakes (DRIs) were performed using the Mann-Whitney test.

Results

The subjects showed physical growth throughout the study period; however, vitamin intake was insufficient. Additionally, the imbalance in percentages of protein (P), fat (F) and carbohydrates (C) ratios (PFC ratio) was associated with the fatigue score. The vigor scores were higher in the group that met the criteria of macronutrient intake.

Conclusion

The present findings show that there is clearly a relationship between nutritional intake and the psychological condition of high school athletes.