Department of Sport Science, Leopold-Franzens University of Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria.
Department of Subject Didactics and Educational Research and Development, University College of Teacher Education Tyrol, 6010 Innsbruck, Austria.
Nutrients. 2022 Jun 22;14(13):2590. doi: 10.3390/nu14132590.
Sex has been recognized to be an important indicator of physiological, psychological, and nutritional characteristics among endurance athletes. However, there are limited data addressing sex-based differences in dietary behaviors of distance runners. The aim of the present study is to explore the sex-specific differences in dietary intake of female and male distance runners competing at >10-km distances. From the initial number of 317 participants, 211 endurance runners (121 females and 90 males) were selected as the final sample after a multi-level data clearance. Participants were classified to race distance (10-km, half-marathon, marathon/ultra-marathon) and type of diet (omnivorous, vegetarian, vegan) subgroups. An online survey was conducted to collect data on sociodemographic information and dietary intake (using a comprehensive food frequency questionnaire with 53 food groups categorized in 14 basic and three umbrella food clusters). Compared to male runners, female runners had a significantly greater intake in four food clusters, including “beans and seeds”, “fruit and vegetables”, “dairy alternatives”, and “water”. Males reported higher intakes of seven food clusters, including “meat”, “fish”, “eggs”, “oils”, “grains”, “alcohol”, and “processed foods”. Generally, it can be suggested that female runners have a tendency to consume healthier foods than males. The predominance of females with healthy dietary behavior can be potentially linked to the well-known differences between females and males in health attitudes and lifestyle patterns.
性别的差异已被认为是耐力运动员生理、心理和营养特征的一个重要指标。然而，关于长距离跑步运动员饮食行为的性别差异，目前的数据有限。本研究旨在探讨女性和男性长距离跑步运动员在 10 公里以上距离比赛中饮食摄入的性别特异性差异。在最初的 317 名参与者中，经过多级数据清理后，选择了 211 名耐力跑步者（121 名女性和 90 名男性）作为最终样本。参与者按比赛距离（10 公里、半程马拉松、马拉松/超级马拉松）和饮食类型（杂食、素食、纯素）分组。通过在线调查收集了社会人口统计学信息和饮食摄入数据（使用包含 53 种食物的综合食物频率问卷，这些食物分为 14 个基本类和 3 个伞状食物群）。与男性跑步者相比，女性跑步者在四个食物群中的摄入量明显更高，包括“豆类和种子”、“水果和蔬菜”、“奶制品替代品”和“水”。男性报告了七个食物群的更高摄入量，包括“肉”、“鱼”、“蛋”、“油”、“谷物”、“酒精”和“加工食品”。总的来说，可以认为女性跑步者比男性更倾向于食用更健康的食物。女性饮食行为更健康的优势可能与女性和男性在健康态度和生活方式模式方面的差异有关。
