Effect of nutritional status on the performance components of physical fitness of amateur basketball players in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria

Optimal nutritional status is crucial for enhancing the physical fitness components of amateur basketball players as it directly influences their strength, endurance, and overall performance. This study assessed the effect of nutritional status on the performance components of physical fitness of amateur basketball players in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. This was a cross-sectional ex post facto study. Participants were 80 (40 male and 40 female) secondary school basketball players from a population of 160 (80 males (8 teams) and 80 females (8 teams) who were selected using random sampling technique from 16 registered teams from the 2023 Benue State Secondary School Basketball League organized by the Benue State Sports Council, Makurdi. All the participants underwent nutritional assessment based on WHO standards. The participants’ height and weight were measured in accordance with the protocol of ISAK. The Slalom test was performed to evaluate agility. The Harre circuit test (HCT) was used to assess coordination. Speed was assessed using the 50m dash. Reaction time was assessed using the reaction time ruler drop test. In all the tests, those with lower time were considered to be more fit and vice versa. Mean and standard deviation were computed for the performance of the participants in agility, coordination, speed and reaction time. The participants were split into three in relation to nutritional status (normal, thin/wasted and stunted). The analysis of variance was used to find out the different performance components of adolescents in relation to nutritional status. All the analyses were performed on 95% confidence intervals using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS v21). The result of the study indicated that nutrition has significant effects on agility (F=10.495, df=2, 77; p<0.05), coordination (F=17.750, df=2, 77; p<0.05), speed (F=5.908, df=2, 77; p<0.05) and reaction time (p<0.05) of amateur basketball players in Makurdi. It was concluded that nutritional status has a significant effect on several key performance components of physical fitness among amateur basketball players in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. It was recommended among others that coaches should take the nutritional status of their players as important as other parameters to ensure a better performance of their players in basketball. Key words: Nutritional status, physical fitness, performance, amateur, basketball, secondary school