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A health problem can make women athletes more injury prone

With new fitness classes growing in popularity, it's time to start thinking out of the box and try spice up your routine

A spectrum of symptoms adds up to a condition called "female athlete triad" that could increase your risk of bone stress injuries and fractures, according to a recent study.

Low energy, menstrual irregularities, low bone mineral density, or any combination thereof could indicate female athlete triad, and it affects non-athletes, too, says lead author Elizabeth Matzkin, MD, an orthopedic surgeon.

Eating right can help, for the symptoms are usually the result of poor nutrition, according to the study, which was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

"It is important for young females to maximize their bone density until about the age of 25, anything lost before then cannot be regained," says Dr. Matzkin. "After age 25 we can only hope to maintain what we have."

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Having just one of the three symptoms indicated a 15 to 21 percent chance of developing a bone stress injury, and the number increases with the onset of other symptoms.

Two symptoms ups your chances to between 21 and 30 percent and having all three symptoms increases your risk of bone stress injury to between 29 and 50 percent, according to the study.

While the study upholds that the benefits of sports for women greatly outweigh the risks, it also points out that as more women participate in sports, the injury rate has climbed.

Citing US statistics, Dr. Matzkin notes that participation has skyrocketed from 310,000 women in 1971 to 3.37 million in 2010, yet injuries are on the rise.

In light of these figures, it's important to recognize the symptoms of female athlete triad and take control of your nutrition.

"By preventing premature bone loss in young female athletes, we can potentially prevent future fragility fractures," says Dr. Matzkin, whose study was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS).

Last year, new guidelines on how to manage symptoms and how to judge when to return to play were published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Intended for healthcare professionals, they involve a risk stratification algorithm and point system to ease diagnosis.

A specialist or healthcare provider can provide targeted information on proper nutrition for young female athletes.