Tuesday Jul 04, 2023

75. Managing Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) | Dr. Aubrey Armento

Key Takeaways:

• When the body does not have enough energy to support daily physiological functions, this can trigger RED-S

• RED-S causes health complications like hormone suppression, bone stress injuries, and digestive issues

• RED-S is most commonly seen in female athletes, but is believed to be underreported in males. It is often made worse by disordered eating and is seen most in athletes engaging in endurance sports like running, antigravity sports like rock climbing, weight training, and sports that require a lean physique

You are likely familiar with the stress that athletes put their bodies under in order to excel at their sport. But what you may not know is that many athletes are at risk of developing low energy availability due to the activities involved and a culture that encourages disordered eating. In this episode, find out all about RED-S, Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport, from a true expert, Dr. Aubrey Armento, MD, a primary care sports medicine physician at Children’s Hospital Colorado.

When the body doesn’t have enough energy to function, it adapts by slowing down all of its physiological processes, such as digestion, heart rate, and temperature regulation. With female athletes, RED-S causes a dangerous disruption to hormones that can suppress the menstrual cycle and ultimately lead to loss of bone density. In addition to the energy expenditure required by more physically demanding sports, athletes tend to slip into patterns of disordered eating due to the culture around the sport itself. This can lead to nutrient deficiencies like anemia which can cause the body to further shut down.

With the help of a sports dietician and knowledgeable sports medicine physician, RED-S is reversible. If you are an athlete and begin to notice any signs of RED-S, seek help from a specialist sooner rather than later.

Quotes

• “Every day you need a certain amount of energy just to live and breathe and go to work or school or just live your daily life… then you're left without enough energy to support body functioning.” (5:40-6:15 | Dr. Aubrey)

• “If somebody has low energy availability, that ultimately leads to hormonal suppression or abnormal hormone cycling.” (7:46-7:55 | Dr. Aubrey)

• “One of the ways the body adapts to energy deficiencies is that it basically slows the gut down.” (20:58-21:04 | Dr. Aubrey)

• “The nature of the activity itself, and then the nature of the culture around the sport, tends to promote behaviors that put people more at risk.” (30:10-30:23 | Dr. Aubrey)

• “I always encourage people, if they think something's not right, or they're recognizing that they're struggling with any of these things that we've talked about, it can never hurt to see somebody who specializes in this.” (53:31-53:45 | Dr. Aubrey)

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Connect with Dr. Aubrey Armento:

https://fastr.stanford.edu/