Assessment of nutrient intake, nutrition knowledge, and dietary habits by sports type among adolescent athletes at a physical education high school: a cross-sectional study

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Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to compare the nutrient intake, nutrition knowledge, and dietary habits of track-and-field (TF) and weight-class (WC) adolescent varsity athletes.Methods: This cross-sectional study included 144 adolescent athletes (TF group, 76; WC group, 68) aged 15 to 18 years at a physical education high school in Seoul, South Korea. Their nutrient intake, dietary quality, nutrition knowledge, dietary habits, and weight control behaviors were assessed using food records and questionnaires.Results: Regarding nutrient intake, the consumption of carbohydrates, including energy, was substantially lower than the sports nutrition recommendations in both groups. However, the overall diet quality, including the mean adequacy ratio and nutrient adequacy ratio for key micronutrients, was significantly higher in the WC group than in the TF group, with female WC athletes consuming significantly more energy than female TF athletes (P<0.05). For nutrition knowledge, both groups lacked overall sports nutrition understanding; however, the WC group scored significantly higher in dietary fat knowledge (P<0.05). As for dietary habits, despite having better meal quality, harmful weight control behaviors, including skipping breakfast (P<0.001) and fasting (P<0.05), were significantly more common in the WC group than in the TF group.Conclusion: The WC group, while showing better meal quality, practiced unhealthier dietary behaviors and weight control methods more often than the TF group. Additionally, both groups exhibited insufficient energy intake and lacked overall nutrition knowledge. Therefore, tailored sports nutrition education is urgently needed among South Korean adolescent athletes.

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