Nicholas Joanna, Grafenauer Sara
Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Edith Cowan University, Mount Lawley, WA, Australia.
School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New South Wales, Randwick, NSW, Australia.
Front Nutr. 2023 Dec 7;10:1271362. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2023.1271362. eCollection 2023.
Dance is a highly demanding physical pursuit coupled with pressure to conform to aesthetic ideals. Assessment of health status and preventative health knowledge of pre-professional dancers may help inform educational strategies promoting dancers' health and career longevity. The aim of this research was to establish a baseline understanding of dance students at a single pre-professional institution based on metrics focused on current health, nutrition, lifestyle, and wellbeing while also gauging knowledge of longer-term health implications.
Adopting a cross-sectional study design, the Dance-Specific Energy Availability Questionnaire was tailored for Australian participants and administered online.
The response rate was 59.5% (69/116 eligible students) and the survey was completed in full by 63 students. Mean BMI was 20 kg/m, although among females, 47% had a BMI < 20 (range 16 to 25 kg/m), and at their lowest reported weight BMI was 14 to 25 kg/m. Over a third had either experienced (31%) or were currently experiencing (3.4%) secondary amenorrhea (period absence ≥ 3 consecutive months). Most dancers did not exclude food groups, however, 24% had been advised to exclude particular foods in the past, mostly by dance teachers. A large percentage used nutritional supplements (68%) with 60% supplementing with iron and more than half (53%) taking two or more supplements. Only 25% had ever utilised a qualified dietitian, although 16% reported a history of eating disorders and 25% reported vegetarian or vegan eating patterns. REDs risk scores ranged from -16 to +16 points with negative scores indicating LEA and higher risk of REDs. The mean score for males was 5.2 (SD = 3.9) and 2.1 (SD = 5.9) for females, with 33.3% producing a negative score.
Results provide insight to health knowledge and particular issues pertinent for dancers and highlights the need for specific education strategies to promote a preventative health focus for those entering a pre-professional programme. This study also highlights the need for improved awareness of LEA and REDs among all practitioners working with dancers along with cultural and structural changes within the broader dance community to help protect and promote the wellbeing of dancers.
舞蹈是一项对身体要求极高的活动，同时还面临着符合审美理想的压力。对职业前舞者的健康状况和预防性健康知识进行评估，可能有助于为促进舞者健康和延长职业生涯的教育策略提供信息。本研究的目的是基于关注当前健康、营养、生活方式和幸福感的指标，同时衡量对长期健康影响的认识，建立对一所职业前院校舞蹈学生的基线了解。
采用横断面研究设计，针对澳大利亚参与者定制了特定舞蹈能量可利用性问卷，并通过在线方式进行发放。
回复率为59.5%（69/116名符合条件的学生），63名学生完整完成了调查。平均体重指数为20kg/m²，不过在女性中，47%的人体重指数<20（范围为16至25kg/m²），她们报告的最低体重时的体重指数为14至25kg/m²。超过三分之一的人曾经历过（31%）或目前正经历（3.4%）继发性闭经（停经≥连续3个月）。大多数舞者没有排除食物类别，然而，24%的人过去曾被建议排除特定食物，大多是由舞蹈教师建议的。很大一部分人使用营养补充剂（68%），其中60%补充铁，超过一半（53%）服用两种或更多种补充剂。只有25%的人曾咨询过合格的营养师，尽管16%的人报告有饮食失调史，25%的人报告有素食或纯素食饮食模式。相对能量缺乏症（REDs）风险评分范围为-16至+16分，负分表明能量可利用性低和REDs风险较高。男性的平均评分为5.2（标准差=3.9），女性为2.1（标准差=5.9），33.3%的人得分为负。
研究结果为舞者相关的健康知识和特定问题提供了见解，并强调需要制定特定的教育策略，以便对进入职业前课程的学生加强预防性健康关注。本研究还强调，所有与舞者合作的从业者都需要提高对能量可利用性低和REDs的认识，同时更广泛的舞蹈界需要进行文化和结构变革，以帮助保护和促进舞者的健康。
