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The purpose of the current study was to examine the perceived improvement on fitness, self-confidence, and mood among participants in a sport-based therapeutic recreation program. The program was administered by [...]

This is a novel descriptive study to characterize oft-season, preseason, and postseason bone and body composition measures in women collegiate athletes. From 2006 through 2008, 67 women collegiate athletes from 5 sports, softball (n = 17), basketball (n = 10), volleyball (n = 7), swimming (n = 16), and track jumpers and sprinters (n = 17) were scanned using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) at 3 seasonal periods: (a) oft-season = before preseason training, (b) preseason = after preseason training, and (c) postseason = after competitive season. Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry scans were analyzed for total body mass, lean mass (LM), fat mass (FM), percent body fat (%BF), bone mineral content, bone mineral density (BMD), arm BMD, leg BMD, pelvis BMD, and spine BMD. Data were analyzed between sports using analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Tukey post hoc follow-ups, and within each sport using repeated-measures ANOVA and LSD; [alpha] < 0.05. Significant oft-season to preseason or postseason changes in %BF, LM, and BMD within each sport were as follows, respectively: softball, - 7, +4, +1%; basketball, -11, +4, +1%; volleyball, unchanged, unchanged, +2%; swimming, unchanged, +2.5%, unchanged; track jumpers and sprinters, -7, +3.5, +1%. Comparisons among athletes in each sport showed bone measurements of swimmers averaged 4-19% lower than that of athletes in any other sport, whereas for track jumpers and sprinters, %BF and FM averaged 36 and 43% lower compared with other sports at all seasonal periods. Values for athletes playing basketball and volleyball were most similar, whereas softball athletes' values fell between all other athletes. These data serve as sport-specific reference values for comparisons at in-season and oft-season training periods among women collegiate athletes in various sports. KEY WORDS DXA, division I, season, female, morphology

Sport&apos;s place in the development of adolescent morality is an issue that has cycled through the halls of academia for years without clear agreement. Informing a theoretical base with positive youth development and achievement goal theory, the purpose of this research was to expand the debate through examination of the relationship between ability level, achievement motivation orientations, and the morality-based outcomes of character and caring in the context of a competitive team sport. Participants in the research were 230 male adolescents attending an intercollegiate skills camp for American football at a large southeastern university in the United States. Subjects completed a web-based questionnaire at camp registration. Significant findings included a relationship between participants who self-reported high ability level exhibiting a higher degree of character than participants with lower ability level. Further, an interaction effect was found between ability level and certain orthogonal achievement goal orientations on the measure of character Limitations of the study are discussed in light of improving future research on the subject area. This examination of the relationship between an emerging theoretical framework in positive youth development and achievement goal theory provides an important step towards development of an applied and conceptual model for positive youth development through organized sport., The study of sport participation as a mechanism for positive development of youth and adolescents has centered upon the age-old debate over whether sport builds or reveals character. Examinations of [...]

Byline: Tonya Dodge (1), Sharon F. Lambert (2) Keywords: Adolescent sports participation; Physical activity; Subjective health; Self-beliefs Abstract: The present study examined the relationship between participation in sports during adolescence and physical activity and subjective health in young adulthood. A sample of 8,152 (males = 50.8%, females = 49.2%) adolescents from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used. Results of the study showed that participating in an organized sport during adolescence was associated with higher levels of physical activity and better subjective health during young adulthood after controlling for participation in general physical activities (e.g., jogging, biking, skateboarding) during adolescence. Participation in sports during adolescence was associated with more positive self-beliefs 1 year later that, in turn, were associated with higher levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity and better subjective health 6 years later. Results suggest that positive self-beliefs partially mediate the relationship between adolescents' participation in sports and two health outcomes in young adulthood: moderate to vigorous physical activity and subjective health. Findings highlight the utility of youths' participation in organized sports for promoting healthy outcomes. Implications for policy and practice are discussed. Author Affiliation: (1) Department of Psychology, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, USA (2) Department of Psychology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA Article History: Registration Date: 10/11/2008 Received Date: 06/01/2008 Accepted Date: 10/11/2008 Online Date: 09/12/2008

Byline: Jens Bucksch (1), Uwe Helmert (2) Keywords: Leisure time sports activity; All-cause mortality; Germany Abstract: Background Current data and available studies suggest that regular physical activity decreases overall mortality. In Germany corresponding findings are scarce. The aim of this data analysis was to clarify this issue for a German sample in men and women. Methods A total of 3,742 males and 3,445 females aged 30--69, who participated in a baseline questionnaire in 1984--1986, were followed-up to the year 1998. Results During the follow-up period, 300 women and 643 men died. The multivariate rate ratios (RR) for accumulated hours of leisure time sports activities (LTSA) per week and with an LTSA-index based on METs per week with the reference of sedentary lifestyle, showed a clearly protective impact in a dose-response relationship (p for trend &lt 0.05). Similar trends were observed in women and men. More than 2 hours of LTSA per week produced a RR of 0.70 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.54--0.91) in men and 0.57 (95% CI: 0.35--0.94) in women. In the group with the highest LTSA-index, the RR was 0.61 (95% CI: 0.44--0.84) in men and 0.46 (95% CI: 0.25--0.85) in women. Conclusion LTSA is inversely associated with all-cause mortality in females and males. Author Affiliation: (1) Centre for Public Health, University of Bremen, PO Box 330440, 28334, Bremen, Germany (2) Centre of Social Policy Research, University of Bremen Article History: Registration Date: 07/09/2004 Received Date: 19/04/2004 Accepted Date: 31/08/2004 Online Date: 28/10/2004

Byline: J. Morel (1), B. Combe (1), J. Francisco (2), J. Bernard (2) Keywords: Key words:Adaptive response -- Bone mineral density -- Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry -- Physical activity -- Sport amateurs Abstract: The aim of the study was to analyze the relation between sports and bone mass. Seven hundred and four men with no history of chronic disease were questioned on their adolescent and adult sporting activities. Their total body (TB) and regional (head, spine, arms and legs) bone mineral density (BMD) were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. BMD measurements and ratios of regional BMD to TB BMD were compared using a multiple regression analysis. Probands (mean age 30 years) were engaged in 14 sports activities: rugby, soccer, other team sports, endurance running, fighting sports, bodybuilding, multiple weightbearing activities, swimming, swimming with flippers, biking, rowing, climbing, triathlon and multiple mixed activities. They stated that they were practising a physical activity at the amateur level: 7.1 h/week between the ages of 11 and 18 years and 9 h/week between age 18 years and the day of the interview (no significant difference between physical activities). Rowers and swimmers had low TB BMD (1.22 and 1.17 g/cm.sup.2) and low leg BMD (1.37 and 1.31 g/cm.sup.2). Participants in rugby, soccer, other team sports and fighting sports had a high TB BMD (1.27--1.35 g/cm.sup.2) and high leg BMD (1.41--1.5 g/cm.sup.2). For head BMD, there was no stastistical difference among the different groups. Constructed ratios pointed out the site-specific adaptation of the skeleton: soccer player and runners had a higher leg ratio bodybuilders, fighters, climbers and swimmers had a higher arm ratio rugby players had a higher spine ratio. Head ratio was higher in non-weightbearing sports (rowing, swimming) than in weightbearing sports (rugby, team sports, soccer, fighting sports and bodybuilding). Thus the BMD and ratio differences among the 14 disciplines seem to be site-specific and related to the supposedly high and unusual strains created at certain sites during sport training by muscle stress and gravitational forces. Head ratio is closely related to the type of practice its value could predict whether sport participants have developed the maximal peak bone mass they could achieve. Author Affiliation: (1) Federation de rhumatologie, Montpellier , FR (2) CHA Larrey, Toulouse, France, FR Article note: Received: November 1999 / Accepted: 12 September 2000

Objective: To describe food habits and dietary intakes of athletic and non-athletic adolescents in Switzerland. Setting: College, high schools and professional centers in the Swiss canton of Vaud. Method: A total of 3540 subjects aged 9-19y answered a self-reported anonymous questionnaire to assess lifestyles, physical plus sports activity and food habits. Within this sample, a subgroup of 246 subjects aged 11-15 also participated in an in-depth ancillary study including a 3 day dietary record completed by an interview with a dietician. Results: More boys than girls reported engaging in regular sports activities (P Conclusions: Athletic adolescents display healthier food habits than non-athletic adolescents: this result supports the idea that healthy behavior tends to cluster and suggests that prevention programs among this age group should target simultaneously both sports activity and food habits. Sponsorship: Service of Sports and Physical Education of the Swiss canton of Vaud, Federal Sports School of Macolin (Switzerland). Descriptors: adolescence; physical activity; sports activity; food habits, Introduction Energy needs are high during adolescence and include three major components: the energetic cost of basal metabolic rate, the cost of daily growth and the cost of physical activity, [...]

Creatine is an amino acid that provides energy for muscular activity. It was first identified in 1835 in meat extracts, and its effects on human subjects were studied in the early 1900s. It has become a popular ergogenic aid for elite and professional athletes. Safety issues associated with long-term use have not been satisfactorily addressed.