Knowing isn't enough: Menstrual symptoms drive perceived performance impacts in women's football
No significant association was found between MHL and perceived menstrual cycle impacts in this cohort. However, symptom count emerged as a key factor, with athletes experiencing five or more symptoms more likely to report frequent negative effects on training performance. These findings suggest that addressing symptom recognition and management may be more critical than MHL alone in supporting athlete well-being and performance.
Authors
- Chelsea Oester (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0364-6689)
- Ric J. Lovell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5859-0267)
- Bryan Wilson
- Georgie Bruinvels (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9352-7228)
- Dean Norris (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7744-6233)
- Charles R. Pedlar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3075-9101)
Institutions
- Twitter (United States) (US)
- St Mary's University Twickenham London (GB)
- Fédération Internationale de Football Association (CH)
- University College London (GB)
- Western Sydney University (AU)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of science and medicine in sport
- Published
- 2025-11-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2025.11.007
- Primary Topic
- Menstrual Health and Disorders
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Western Sydney University