PMID- 36615739
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20230522
LR  - 20230522
IS  - 2072-6643 (Electronic)
IS  - 2072-6643 (Linking)
VI  - 15
IP  - 1
DP  - 2022 Dec 24
TI  - Dietary Intake, Body Composition and Performance of Professional Football 
      Athletes in Slovenia.
LID - 10.3390/nu15010082 [doi]
LID - 82
AB  - This is the first study to examine the nutritional status of professional 
      Slovenian football players. This study aimed to analyze the dietary intake of 
      elite football players during their preparation phase of the season and to 
      investigate whether there is a relationship between energy and macronutrient 
      intake with body composition and physical performance. Twenty-three footballers 
      completed a three-day dietary and physical activity diary and underwent body 
      composition measurements via bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA). 
      Fifteen participants also took part in the Cooper treadmill test to assess their 
      physical performance in correlation with their nutritional intake. Football 
      players had an energy intake that was significantly too low for their needs, 
      reflecting low energy availability. The average carbohydrate (CHO) intake was 
      below the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) recommendations, i.e., 
      <4 g CHO/kg body weight (BW). Additionally, players had adequate intakes of 
      protein and fat, and inadequate intakes of saturated fat, fiber, calcium and 
      vitamin D. There was a positive correlation between protein intake and lean body 
      mass. Additionally, a negative correlation was observed between body fat mass and 
      carbohydrate intake as well as between performance with the percentage of energy 
      intake from fat. Results of this study highlight what aspects of nutrition might 
      be improved upon in professional football players to maximize performance, 
      longevity and body composition of athletes, as well as the necessity of a 
      nutritionist role in this process.
FAU - Macuh, Matjaz
AU  - Macuh M
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0003-4933-5736
AD  - Department of Food Science and Technology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of 
      Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 10, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
FAU - Levec, Jana
AU  - Levec J
AD  - Department of Food Science and Technology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of 
      Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 10, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
FAU - Kojic, Nenad
AU  - Kojic N
AD  - Department of Food Science and Technology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of 
      Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 10, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
FAU - Knap, Bojan
AU  - Knap B
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0001-9957-3180
AD  - Department of Nephrology, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Zaloska 7, 1000 
      Ljubljana, Slovenia.
AD  - Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Korytkova ulica 2, 1000 Ljubljana, 
      Slovenia.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
DEP - 20221224
PL  - Switzerland
TA  - Nutrients
JT  - Nutrients
JID - 101521595
RN  - 0 (Carbohydrates)
RN  - 0 (Dietary Carbohydrates)
SB  - IM
MH  - Humans
MH  - Athletes
MH  - Body Composition
MH  - Carbohydrates
MH  - Dietary Carbohydrates
MH  - Eating
MH  - Energy Intake
MH  - Slovenia
MH  - *Soccer
MH  - Sports Nutritional Physiological Phenomena
PMC - PMC9824422
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - body composition measurement
OT  - energy imbalance
OT  - low energy availability
OT  - relative energy deficiency in sport
OT  - sports performance
COIS- The authors declare no conflict of interest.
EDAT- 2023/01/09 06:00
MHDA- 2023/01/11 06:00
PMCR- 2022/12/24
CRDT- 2023/01/08 01:36
PHST- 2022/11/17 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2022/12/20 00:00 [revised]
PHST- 2022/12/22 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2023/01/08 01:36 [entrez]
PHST- 2023/01/09 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2023/01/11 06:00 [medline]
PHST- 2022/12/24 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - nu15010082 [pii]
AID - nutrients-15-00082 [pii]
AID - 10.3390/nu15010082 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - Nutrients. 2022 Dec 24;15(1):82. doi: 10.3390/nu15010082.