Dear Canadian Athletes,
We’re reaching out to see if you would possibly considering being part of an online questionnaire/study (20-30 min), assessing potential signs and symptoms of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) in athletes (female and male, recreational to high performance, able bodied and para-athletes, ages >15 years old)?
This study is a large rolling entry study over the next many months. This international athlete survey part of the study will be open for that time period as well, but we will do a few concerted efforts for people to hopefully participate.
Thank you so much, and appreciate any help/support we can get.
Trent & Ida (on behalf of entire senior research team outlined below, plus many more collaborators in Canada).
Background:
Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) – a concept identified and supported by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) – characterizes a range of negative health (impaired endocrine function, bone health, illness and injury, potentially elevated protein requirements) and performance (endurance and strength) outcomes that result from chronic (>weeks to months) low energy availability (EA). Despite wide recognition of its significance for athlete health and performance, our ability to correctly assess and diagnose RED-S remains poor. Furthermore, awareness of RED-S among elite athletes, coaches and physicians remains poor.
In order to enhance our understanding on various RED-S risk factors and to improve our ability to screen athletes for RED-S, we are distributing a questionnaire (20-30 min) that asks athletes questions around potential RED-S signs and symptoms.
Target:
With the questionnaire we are targeting athletes, female and male, recreational to high performance, able bodied and para-athletes, ages >15 years old.
Survey Link in 4 languages:
English: https://www.surveymonkey.ca/r/REDS-Global
French: https://www.surveymonkey.ca/r/REDS-Global?lang=fr
Japanese: https://www.surveymonkey.ca/r/REDS-Global?lang=ja
Spanish: https://www.surveymonkey.ca/r/REDS-Global?lang=es
What is in it for athletes?
RED-S concerns high performance junior and senior athletes around the world, where effects are seen beyond the degree of success at major championships, including the cost of health care and long-term consequences for athletes diagnosed with RED-S. The results of these studies will: 1) inform us of the best parameters to use in the early diagnosis, and management of RED-S; 2) provide information of the prevalence and severity of the problem across sports, and in females and males, at various athlete levels as well as produce global prevalence data on RED-S; 3) provide further information and education on the risks of long-term RED-S and of the ways in which the athlete can avoid developing RED-S. We hope these outcomes will inform improved RED-S diagnoses and ultimately the health and performance of athletes in the future.
Please let us know if you have extra questions,
The Research Team,
Research team:
Principal Investigator:
Trent Stellingwerff, Ph.D., FACSM
Director of Performance Solutions, Innovation & Research
Canadian Sport Institute Pacific (CSI Pacific) / University of Victoria (UVIC) / University of British Columbia
Co-Investigator:
Ida Heikura, Ph.D.
Post-doctoral research fellow
UVIC / CSI Pacific
Collaborators:
Margo Mountjoy, MD PhD, CCFP (sem) FCFP FACSM Dip Sport Med, IOC Medical Commission-Games group, FINA Sports Medicine, McMaster University, Ontario, Canada
Paddy McCluskey, MD, Chief Medical Officer, CSI Pacific, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Kathryn Ackerman, MD, MPH, FACSM, Medical Director, Female Athlete Program, Division of Sports Medicine Boston Children’s Hospital; Associate Director, Sports Endocrine Research Lab, Neuroendocrine Unit Massachusetts General Hospital; Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School; Team Physician, USA Rowing, USA
Louise Burke, OAM PhD APD, Chair of Sports Nutrition, Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research, Exercise and Nutrition Research Program, Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, Australia
To contact us, please email at: redsstudy@csipacific.ca