I’m a competitive skater on a strict diet. Ever since I started training five hours a day, I haven’t gotten my period. Why?

You may have a condition called the Female Athlete Triad. The Triad consists of three simultaneous health concerns—amenorrhea (loss of period), osteoporosis (weak bones from lack of calcium) and disordered eating (including calorie counting or binging and purging). Serious female athletes training for sports like running, swimming, dancing or skating are especially prone to the pressures of maintaining a certain weight.

According to Dr. Duncan Turner, “If you exercise rigorously, you may lose too much healthy fat, and you could stop menstruating,” which can have dangerous effects. You have a healthy, critical body weight. Your body needs to maintain a certain fat percentage to stay healthy—and function normally. If you go below that level by extreme exercising or not eating properly, your periods could cease. Fortunately, this disruption doesn’t seem to mess with reproductive organs. If you’re training and have missed three complete menstrual cycles, see your doctor.

4/21/2009 7:00:00 AM