<p>My Daughter 17, a high performance athlete, has only had her period 3 times. Family Doctor says probably once she stops her sport her body will adjust, but that if she continues to do her sport at College that she may want to go on the pill in order to get sufficient hormones. (She’s 5’3" & 108 lbs).</p>
<p>Have any of your (athlete) daughters gone through this experience? </p>
<p>I have lurked on the boards for a while and think there’s an amazing community of wise people here. I hope someone can relate to this and let me know if anyone else has experienced this and whether I should be more pro-active?</p>
<p>I am a physician and I just consulted my gynecologist husband who had the following comments:</p>
<p>In high performance athletes (runners, gymnasts, elite ballerinas, etc), oligomenorrhea (the medical terminology for infrequent irregular periods) is VERY common and not dangerous. From her height and weight, it does not appear that she has anorexia. If she is well-nourished, eating enough calories to maintain weight, and not bulimic, there is NOTHING to worry about. Regular menses will return when athletic activity is not as intense. Of course, if she or you have any concern, it would be important to consult a gynecologist who is board certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, not just a family doctor to exclude other causes of “secondary amenorrhea”, i.e. stopping periods after having had them before. There are other hormonal imbalances involving the adrenal glands or pituitary bland as well as other conditions that can cause secondary amenorrhea. Evaluation generally involves a pelvic examination (a Pap smear is not necessary if she is not sexually active) and some blood tests. Oligomenorrhea in athletes is usually not managed with oral contraceptives, according to my spouse. There does not appear to be a risk of osteoporosis in these young women.</p>
<p>quiltguru - Thank you for the detailed info…it does give me peace of mind. (Daughter definately not anorexic - eats like a horse, and is otherwise very healthy)</p>
<p>I’ll suggest a gynecologist visit for her to consider down the road a bit.
Thanks!</p>
<p>Redballoon, Quiltguru’s post agrees 100% with what my daughter has been told for the same condition the past four or so years. I wouldn’t worry.</p>
<p>I would just caution you that there is a huge incidence of eating disorders among female college athletes- especially in cross country, swimming, gymnastics and a few other sports. Keep an eye on things once she gets to college and find out her coach’s approach to this problem.</p>
<p>What does her coach say? Because there are lots of issues physically that come from missed periods. Bone density seems to be an issue, as does future health</p>
<p>Diagnosis of exercise amenorrhea requires a medical exam to be sure no other problems are causing the missed periods. The exam usually includes: pregnancy and bone density tests; complete physical and pelvic exams; and discussion of exercise and eating habits. Estrogen may be prescribed to restore hormone balance. </p>
<p>Athletes with amenorrhea should take at least 1500 mg of calcium daily. This is needed because calcium levels may be low, due to low estrogen levels. Nutritional counseling is also recommended to make dietary changes. </p>
<p>Ovulation and periods will begin when: </p>
<ul>
<li> food intake is increased and nutrition is improved </li>
<li> exercise is reduced to normal levels or </li>
<li> hormone levels are in balance</li>
</ul>
<p>I agree with the synthetic hormones, I showed this information to show that it is pretty serious when periods are missed, not to be taken lightly</p>
<p>I wasn’t even an athelete really… but I didn’t start to have regular periods until for my body type till I weighed more( I am same height and weighed about the same till I was 23, then I weighed about 120- and got pg- so irregular periods does not stop you from getting pg)</p>
<p>soy has estrogen- recommended for premenopausal and menopausal women- she might try substituting soy milk and see if that helps- but personally- I think periods are a PITA- but I wouldn’t recommend going on the pill just to regulate periods, unless other concerns.</p>
<p>My doctor told me my period would probably stop because of my body type/ I was starting Cross Country for my HS in addition to swimming 2-3 hrs a day, etc. I actually never stopped getting my period but my doctor said it was fine/normal if I didn’t get it because of my circumstances</p>
<p>MomofWildChild is on target about eating disorders. And not all doctors are expert on what is officially termed Female Athlete Triad. Check the web for info. Many female teen athletes are underweight with bone density problems, leading to fractures, etc, plus the amenorrhea. Look for a knowledgeable doctor, sometimes a sports medicine specialist. This is too important to ignore.</p>
<p>From what I have read, it may be “okay” to not have your period, but you need to compensate for not having it…diet, minerals, etc</p>
<p>And bone mass development in the teen years is very important</p>
<p>The casualness of saying, don’t worry about, is kind of alarming</p>
<p>Not that females are weak, but my gut tells me that not enough doctors are fully informed as to the overall physical ramifications of missed periods, and we as women need to educate ourselves and our daughters, and probably coaches and doctors</p>
<p>I missed a lot of mine when I did three sports during the schoolyear (in addition to going to the gym regularly). I quit sports not too long ago and now I have them regularly.</p>