British Athlete Dina Asher-Smith has called for more research into the effect of periods on female athletes. The 2019 World 200m champion made the statement following pulling up in the European Athletics Championship final because of cramping calves. She attributed the cramps to “girls stuff” linking the incident to her menstrual cycle.
Dina Asher-Smith says more research is needed
Asher-Smith is quoted as saying “It’s a huge topic for women in sport. It is something I think more people need to research from a sport science perspective”.
The specifics of the camps in her calves would be tough to attribute to the menstrual cycle. This is however not to dismiss her diagnosis. If anything it would support her broader call for more research. As it stands there is simply not enough understanding about the causes of cramps or the impact of the menstrual cycle on elite performers to draw concrete conclusions.
This gets to the heart of the matter. Without more research regarding the effects of the menstrual cycle, it is difficult to know what impact it could be having on a range of performance metrics, including cramps and their impact on muscular function. Without this knowledge, questions remain regarding how the menstrual cycle affects different athletes and therefore how best to support them and combat any performance decrements.
As it stands a number of studies have examined the impact of the menstrual cycle on athletic performance with differing results. Some research has shown decreases in areas such as power and endurance, whilst others have shown no significant impact. To confuse the topic even further, some experts stress regular exercise as a key tool to manage symptoms of the cycle. However, an understanding of how much activity, how intense and if this should change during different phases of the cycle remains a cause for debate.
An area that has only recently begun to gain some attention is the seeming association with increased risk of concussion at different phases of the cycle. A report in 2019 highlighted a possible window within which the risk of concussion may be increased. The study showed that 66.7% of concussion occurred within a nine-day period, coinciding with the late luteal phase and first two days of menstruation. Zooming in a little more, injuries occurring within just the late luteal phase accounted for 50% of concussions (La Fountaine et al 2019).
Perhaps the only area within this topic that is clear, is that promoted by Asher-Smith, that more research is needed. Unfortunately, a gap between male and female research exists across much of science and medicine. It is probably fair to say that across sport science and sports medicine, that gap is further exacerbated for a host of reasons.
Closing this gap relies on highlighting the issues and encouraging researchers to take on female-focused projects. To achieve this, funding needs to be available as well as access to female participants. Hopefully, the expansion of female sport will lead to a greater pool of participants willing to volunteer to take part in studies helping to address some of this imbalance and starting a new cycle of research.
Funding has historically proven to be the biggest hurdle. However, multiple national and international governing bodies are now making increased efforts to support female-focused research. Male research’s head start is exacerbated by the financial power of many professional clubs who can pioneer their own areas of study as they search for performance advantages. For women’s sport to catch up, it will need additional support from outside the traditional funding channels.
According to UEFA, Women’s football could see a sixfold increase in commercial return to €686 annually by 2033. It’s not just football where women's sport is on the rise. Across the spectrum of sport, women are now pushing for an increased piece of the sports marketing pie. This should be great news for brands, broadcasters and others in the industry as research can form a cornerstone of a sponsor's relationship with a rights holder and sport more generally. In fact, partnering with one team or NGB, but then spearheading research, gives that brand a credible and easy platform to address fans across the entirety of the sport, indeed across the entirety of women’s sport if they get this topic right.
For those within the marketing industry that have made long-term commitments to women’s sport, their brand proposition can be significantly enhanced by helping to close the research gap.
Funding is the obvious area where partners can support research. Many governing bodies do have funds ringfenced for performance and player welfare research. By topping this up, and offering other forms of value in kind, such as staff expertise, partners can help to accelerate and broaden programmes of study that are very much needed across female sport.
Marketing support is also of huge value. This can come in the form of campaigning to ensure that issues are understood. Promotion in the early stages can also attract and retain volunteers. If rights such as player appearances can be donated so that stars continue to take part in research studies, this can be used to attract other volunteers. Good quality research is dependent on a strong subject sample, so, links with role models can create significant kudos, encouraging others to take part in the same studies.
The promotion of results and showcasing their real world consequences then offers a credible platform upon which to build a comprehensive comms and PR campaign. The benefits of being involved in quality and relevant research can last for decades. This is because the brand has a legitimate and credible platform upon which to position itself in front of key audiences whenever the topic is discussed.
Quality research investigating meaningful topics never goes away, it is only built on. This means for partners of women's sports, if they invest today, they will have built an association that can be amplified by others on their behalf, long after their contractual terms have ended. The menstrual cycle presents an area of research that the sports marketing industry needs to support. Getting it right will take time, effort and financial backing. But with influential athletes such as Dina Asher-Smith likely to be supportive, the payback will last for years…
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