Athletic Women Risk Deficiency Of Body Iron

November 10, 1988|By Pat Croce, Knight-Ridder Newspapers.

More and more women athletes are in action these days, competing with the same intensity as their male counterparts. But biology doesn`t treat all athletes equally.

Unlike male athletes, women who train intensively are at risk of developing two major medical problems: iron deficiency and amenorrhea (or menstrual cessation).

Iron helps physical effort in two ways. It is a principal element of hemoglobin, which carries oxygen throughout the body, and athletes require a greater oxygen-carrying capacity. In addition, iron helps remove lactic acid, a byproduct of exercise that causes fatigue and muscle soreness. An iron deficiency results in greater fatigue.

Women are more vulnerable than men to this deficiency, because their bodies require more iron than men`s; the recommended daily allowance for iron is 18 milligrams for women, but only 10 mg. for men.

How can female athletes guard against iron deficiency? Here are some guidelines:

- Eat plenty of foods containing Vitamin C, because that vitamin enhances iron absorption.

- Meats enhance the absorption of iron that you receive from vegetables, so make sure you combine poultry and lean red meats with your vegetables.

- Coffee and tea interfere with iron absorption, so limit your intake of these beverages.

- Try to eat as many high-iron foods as possible without overdosing on calories. Try adding liver, oysters, dried apricots and prune juice to your diet.

Amenorrhea, the cessation of normal menstrual periods, can result from extremely vigorious training. When a woman`s body fat drops too low, the pituitary gland realizes that the body does not have enough fat to support a pregnancy, and initiates biochemistry that halts menstruation.

Female athletes who experience amenorrhea should ease back on their training or gain some weight.

Amenorrhea is nothing to shrug off, because it also means a decrease in estrogen. This imbalance not only causes calcium loss in the bones, but also reduces the body`s ability to absorb calcium from foods. Both of these factors increase a woman`s risk of eventually developing osteoporosis.