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Table of Contents
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Year : 2018  |  Volume : 1  |  Issue : 1  |  Page : 54-58

Evaluation of nutrition intake of football players


Department of Nutrition and Food Science, National Nutrition Institute, Cairo, Egypt

Date of Web Publication24-Apr-2018

Correspondence Address:
Heba S Abdelhaliem
Fellow of Nutrition, Department of Study and Research, National Nutrition Institute, Cairo
Egypt
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Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None


DOI: 10.4103/JMISR.JMISR_13_18

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  Abstract 


Introduction
Despite football being the most popular sport in Egypt, most players do not know their needed nutritional requirements. The metabolic rate and energy consumption increased dramatically in football players. Thus, nutrition plays a significant role in improving the performance and the quality of life for these players.
Objective
This study aimed to assess the nutritional status of 50 football players aged between 15 and 19 years in Gomhorya Club – Menoufia.
Participants and methods
Dietary intake was evaluated for 7 days by using dietary assessment tools (24-h recall). This data was used to determine energy, macronutrients, micronutrients, and fiber. The weight and height were measured.
Results
The results have shown that the football players had a high intake of energy and macronutrients. The protein intake was between 15 and 25%, fat 25 and 30%, and carbohydrate was between 60 and 65% of daily energy intake, and showed that they had a lower intake of vitamin D, calcium, and zinc.
Conclusion
The football players need to correct their food habits by using group nutrition education, and this will improve their health and performance.

Keywords: Adolescents, football, performance, sports nutrition


How to cite this article:
El Gezrey HM, Abdelhaliem HS. Evaluation of nutrition intake of football players. J Med Sci Res 2018;1:54-8

How to cite this URL:
El Gezrey HM, Abdelhaliem HS. Evaluation of nutrition intake of football players. J Med Sci Res [serial online] 2018 [cited 2024 Mar 28];1:54-8. Available from: http://www.jmsr.eg.net/text.asp?2018/1/1/54/230980




  Introduction Top


A planned exercise program may lead to improvement of one's health. Many organizations have recommended exercise as a vital factor to enhance physical fitness and health in general. Proper nutrition and exercise are essential components for a healthy lifestyle, and health authorities recommend that[1].

Sports nutrition is a relatively new area of research that involves the application of nutritional principles to enhance sports performance. It is only recently that extensive research has been undertaken regarding specific recommendations to athletes[2].

Mang and Truswell[3] found that dietary practices during and before the competition can help to avoid energy depletion, dehydration, and electrolytes imbalance; on the other hand, they enhance recovery after the competition. The primary consideration for athletic nutritional requirements depends on body size, age, type of sport, training volume intensity, and frequency.

The nutritional plan for any football player should provide not only sufficient carbohydrates to fuel the training and competition, but also other nutritional requirements to achieve the changes in lean body mass, body fat, or growth. Therefore, players may need 5–7 g of carbohydrate per kg body mass during periods of moderate training and up to about 10 g/kg during intense training or match play[4]. Both carbohydrate and protein consumption are vital during the first hour after training to promote the recovery process (Metg and Bath, 2016)[18].

The variability in players sweating responses affects the player's hydration, so the monitoring result decides the nutritional strategy. The widespread of dietary supplements with no discrimination is strongly disapproved; therefore, supplements should only be advised by qualified sports nutrition professional[5]. Proper nutrition has much to offer players and match officials, including improved performance, better health, and enjoyment of a wide range of foods.


  Aim Top


The aim of the study was to assess the nutritional dietary intake of some football players in Gomhorya Club – Menoufia.


  Participants and Methods Top


Sample

The sample included 50 adolescent football male players aged between 15 and 19 years.

Anthropometric measurements

Height was measured using the Raven monometer, with direct reading of height. Then, the following categories of height status were determined according to the World Health Organization (WHO) height for age (5–19 years old) Z-score growth chart reference by WHO[6].

Weight was recorded using the platform scale. The scale was standardized by known weight before the survey in each studied site and corrected according to the test[6].

Assessment of BMI for age: from 5 to 19 years old, the Z-score BMI was used for men. The following categories of weight status were determined according to the Z-score BMI released by WHO[6]:

  1. Overweight more than +1 SD.
  2. Obesity more than +2 SD.
  3. Thinness less than −2 SD.
  4. Severe thinness less than −3 SD.


Dietary assessment

Data on nutritional status had been collected using 24 h recall[7]. The energy and nutrient content of the 24 h was computed through the compiled food composition tables of the National Nutrition Institute of Egypt[8].

The dietary intakes of players were calculated as follows:

  1. Energy requirements were calculated according to the Food and Nutrition Board guidelines[9].
  2. Protein requirements were calculated as 1.7 g/kg body weight (BW), carbohydrate as 60% of total energy required, and fat by difference[10].
  3. Vitamins and minerals calculated according to the Recommended nutrients intakes (RNI) Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA)[10].


Statistical analysis

Data were analyzed using the SPSS program (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA). Descriptive statistics were done by mean, SD, and by cross tabulation[11].


  Results Top


Anthropometric measurement for normal and overweight players

The data have shown that the sample was divided into normal and overweight according to the BMI for age. It could be noticed that 40 (80%) players were of average weight and 10 (20%) players were overweight. The mean weight of normal weight players was 65.42 ± 4.04 kg, and the mean weight of overweight players was 85.029 ± 7.04 kg. The mean height of normal and overweight players was 173.54 ± 3.97 and 175.81 ± 5.87 cm, respectively. Therefore, the mean of BMI of normal and overweight players was 21.084 ± 3.94 and 27.45 ± 2.65 receptively.

Energy and macronutrients

[Table 1] represents player's energy and macronutrients intake: this included protein (animal and plant), fat (animal and plant), carbohydrates, fiber, ash and cholesterol per week, day and percentage from RDA. [Table 2] shows the frequency distribution of nutrients intake percentage as compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight player samples.
Table 1: Macronutrients intake for players

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Table 2: The intake of macronutrients as a percentage compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight players' sample

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Mineral

Data were tabulated as in [Table 3] which shows the minerals content in player's diet per week, day, and percentage from RDA. Minerals included calcium, phosphorus, iron (animal and plant), sodium, potassium, zinc, and magnesium. [Table 4] shows the frequency distribution of nutrients intake percentage as compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight players sample.
Table 3: Mineral intake for players

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Table 4: The intake of mineral as a percentage compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight players' sample

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Fat-soluble vitamins

[Table 5] represents fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, and E) intake for players. [Table 6] shows the frequency distribution of nutrients intake percentage as compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight players' sample.
Table 5: The fat-soluble vitamins intake for players

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Table 6: The intake of fat-solublevitamins as a percentage compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight players' sample

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Water-soluble vitamins

[Table 7] represents the water-soluble vitamins (C and B complex) for players. [Table 8] shows the frequency distribution of nutrients intake percentage as compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight players' sample.
Table 7: Water-soluble vitamins intake for players

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Table 8: The intake of water soluble vitamins as a percent compared with the standard RDA, 2010, among normal and overweight players sample

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  Discussion Top


According to BMI for age, the data showed that the sample was divided into normal and overweight and these results agree with Bjelica et al.[12], who studied height, BW, and BMI of Montenegrin football players.

Results show that the consumed protein, fat, and cholesterol were higher than nonsports. These results agree with Conejos et al.[13], who found that the amount of total protein per day recorded 103% of RDA of protein (1.57 g/kg BW) for normal football players. For fat, the animal fat recorded the highest amount which was consumed by the player's group and the total fat recorded 100% of RDA of fat (1.53 g/kg BW). The amount of intake of carbohydrates and fiber for players were lower than for a normal man. These results disagree with Brukes's study[14]. This study showed that the proposed 3–7 g/kg of BW per day as a reasonable target range for CHO intake for moderate training and competitive demands, increasing to 7–10 g/kg BW per day for intensive training or maximal glycogen refueling. However, the likelihood that the total CHO intake is sufficient to optimize glycogen synthesis and utilization is normal due to their higher energy intake. All the studies of male players have reported CHO intakes greater than 3 g/kg BW, and similar CHO intakes have been reported for tested sample players, ranging from 3.2 g/kg BW[15]. Very few studies have specifically evaluated the protein requirements of football players. The energy intake of players was higher than the normal RDA. This result agrees with Rosenbloom et al.[16] who found that the total energy per day recorded more than 120% of RDA in the same age for runners.

Data showed that the calcium intake of players was lower than normal, and phosphorus recorded 130% of RDA. These results agree with Conejos et al.[13] who found that the mean of phosphorus was higher than the calcium content; this led to malabsorption of calcium in bones and muscles of the players. The mean amount of zinc was low, and the major iron was plant iron. The tested diet contained a high amount of iron, sodium, and potassium. The obtained results showed that the players who played in this club might face many nutritional disorders such as hypertension, low immunity, and kidney function failure and reduced bone structure according to Rosenbloom et al.[16].

Players had a very high intake of vitamin A and deficient intake of vitamin D according to the National Academy of Science, Food, and Nutrition[17]. It has been discussed that lack of vitamin D for a long time may affect calcium absorption. Fat-soluble vitamins, when increased for an extended period, led to adverse side effects on the liver, muscle, and nerve functions which are known as hypervitaminosis[5].

Water-soluble vitamin intake for players was higher than normal. These results agree with Conejos et al.[13], who showed that the high amounts of these vitamins are safe and effective for swimmers.


  Conclusion Top


The football players need to correct their food habits by using the nutrition education program, and this will improve their health and performance.

Financial support and sponsorship

Nil.

Conflicts of interest

There are no conflicts of interest.



 
  References Top

1.
Frisancho AR. New norms of upper limb fat and muscle areas for assessment of nutritional status. Am J Clin Nutr 2005; 34:2540–2545.  Back to cited text no. 1
    
2.
Will DS. Nutritional aspects of human physical and athletic performance. 2nd ed. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas; 2008. 110–166.  Back to cited text no. 2
    
3.
Mang J, Truswell AS. Essentials of human nutrition. New York, NY: Oxford New York Inc.; 2010.  Back to cited text no. 3
    
4.
Law SG, Kirby ET. Nutrition and sports requirement. J Clin Gastroenterol 2014; 30:209–216.  Back to cited text no. 4
    
5.
Maug HY. Role of micronutrients in sport and physical activity. Br Med Bull 2017; 50:623–633.  Back to cited text no. 5
    
6.
De Onis M, Onyango AW, Borghi E, Siyam A, Nishida C, Siekmann J. Development of a WHO growth reference for school-age children. Bull World Health Organ 2007; 85:660–667.  Back to cited text no. 6
    
7.
Rasanen L. Nutrition survey of Finnish rural children. VI methodological study is comparing the 24-hour recall and the dietary history interview. Am J Clin Nutr 1979; 32:2560–2567.  Back to cited text no. 7
    
8.
NNI: National Nutrition institute. Food Composition Table for Egypt, 2nd ed. Cairo, A.R.E, 2006.  Back to cited text no. 8
    
9.
Food and Nutrition Board (FNB). Recommended dietary allowances. 10th ed. Washington, DC: National Research Council; 1989.  Back to cited text no. 9
    
10.
RNI. Recommended nutrients intakes for Canadian. Ottawa, Canada: Bureau of Nutritional Sciences; 1990.  Back to cited text no. 10
    
11.
SPSS. Statistical package for social science, computer software, IBM, SPSS Ver. 16.0 in 2008. London, UK: SPSS Company; 2008.  Back to cited text no. 11
    
12.
Bjelica D, Gardasevic J, Vasiljevic I, Popovic S. Body mass index of athletes participating in football premier league in Montenegro. International Scientific conference. Split 2017; 2017:25–27.  Back to cited text no. 12
    
13.
Conejos C, Giner A, Mañes J, Soriano JM. Energy and nutritional intakes in training days of soccer players according to their playing positions. Arch Med Deporte 2011; 28:29–35.  Back to cited text no. 13
    
14.
Burke LM, Hawley JA, Wong SH. Carbohydrates for training and competition. J Sports Sci 2011; 29:S17–S27.  Back to cited text no. 14
    
15.
Martin L, Lambeth A, Scott D. Nutritional practices of national female soccer players: analysis and recommendations. J Sports Sci Med 2006; 5:130–137.  Back to cited text no. 15
    
16.
Rosenbloom CA, Loucks AB, Ekblom B. Special populations: the female player and the youth player. J Sports Sci 2006; 24:783–793.  Back to cited text no. 16
    
17.
Calbet JA, Dor L, Herrer P, Rodríguez L. High femoral bone mineral content and density in male football (soccer) players. Med Sci Sports 2017;31:1482-87.  Back to cited text no. 17
    
18.
Metg HK, Bath OP. Metabolic consequences of a high dietary-protein intake in adolescence: Assessment of the available evidence. J Nutr 2016;129:806-14.  Back to cited text no. 18
    



 
 
    Tables

  [Table 1], [Table 2], [Table 3], [Table 4], [Table 5], [Table 6], [Table 7], [Table 8]


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Abstract
Introduction
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Participants and...
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