Relative Energy Deficiency In Sport

4 articles published between October 24, 2025 and August 27, 2026.

WHAT THE STUDY ACTUALLY SAYS

In 43% of energy-availability studies, menstrual status is reported too vaguely to grade

The same audit found high-performance female athletes well represented in the field — and that the studies generating prevalence figures lean on self-reported food records and MET lookup tables.

4 min read

WHAT THE STUDY ACTUALLY SAYS

Carbohydrate, not just calories, drove the hormone drop of underfuelling in 16 adults

A tightly controlled crossover trial separated low energy availability from low carbohydrate availability for four days. One hormone moved clearly; most did not, and performance did not move at all.

4 min read

WHAT THE STUDY ACTUALLY SAYS

A DXA body-fat Z-score flagged twice as many athletes with absent periods as BMI did

In 388 female athletes, a per cent fat Z-score below −1.0 more than doubled sensitivity for amenorrhoea against standard BMI thresholds. It gave up specificity to do it.

4 min read

WHAT THE STUDY ACTUALLY SAYS

A review of low energy availability in team sport found prevalence between 0% and 80%

Fourteen studies covering 265 elite athletes used six different methods to identify relative energy deficiency. The spread in the answers is mostly a spread in the definitions.

4 min read

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