Evaluation of eating attitudes and body image perception of rhythmic gymnastics athletes

Resumo

Introduction: In rhythmic gymnastics, the demand for a body pattern is high, requiring weight and food control, in the search for the intended body aesthetics, which can cause adverse effects on the health of athletes. Objective: To evaluate eating attitudes and body image perception of rhythmic gymnastics athletes. Materials and Methods: The study was a quantitative approach, observational and cross sectional. The study sample consisted of 36 athletes from Parana in the juvenile and adult categories. Data collection took place via Google Forms, using the following instruments: Sociodemographic Questionnaire; Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26) and Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ). Results: The obtained results showed that in the EAT-26 questionnaire, 61.5% of adult gymnasts and 73.9% of the juveniles no presented risks for developing eating disorders. Regarding body image, the majority of the athletes of adult category (46.2%) indicated a slight dissatisfaction with body image, while in the juvenile category, most gymnasts (73.9%) were not dissatisfied with their bodies. Regarding the correlations of the applied questionnaires, there was a positive correlation of the questionnaire on the image body with the eating attitudes test (r=0.6925; p=<0.0001), both in the adult and juvenile categories. Conclusion: Therefore, dissatisfaction with body image related to the risks of developing eating disorders is visible, since the search for a thin, strong and long body is the ideal envisioned by athletes for better performance. In this way, the psychological preparation of the athlete is of extreme importance, being essential evaluations and orientations, both nutritional and psychological, with the athletes.