Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

Abstract

Research suggests collegiate students athletes are at an increased risk for binge drinking behaviors. Alcohol has numerous negative physiological effects. For collegiate athletes these negative physiological effects lead to decreases in performance. PURPOSE: To examine the relationship between self reported alcohol consumption and fatigue and hydration. METHODS: A correlational research design examined the relationship between the dependent measures. We acquired IRB approval to evaluate 5 Division I athlete teams (ages of 18-26; football=15, baseball=25, softball=11, soccer=25, volleyball=15; men=40, women=51). We measured hydration status using a clinical refractometer, self reported alcohol consumption using the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT) questionnaire, and fatigue using the visual analog scale for fatigue (VAS-F). During the initial team meeting we measured baseline fatigue and acquired informed consent. Athletic Training Services performed baseline hydration status testing during pre-participation physicals (PPEs). Each team participated separately on an "off day" post competition and again 3 days following. During the follow-up data collection sessions, we assessed hydration status, VAS-F, and AUDIT. RESULTS: We identified no significant relationships between dependent variables (Spearman's rho correlation range=0.003-0.079, p range=0.192-0.973). We identified significant differences in hydration status over time (F2,269=5.226, p=0.006, &eegr;²=0.037) with significant differences between baseline hydration status (1.017±0.001) and follow-up day 1 (1.021±0.001) and day 3 (1.020±0.001). We identified a significant difference between sports on AUDIT score (F4,86=4.279, p=0.003 &eegr;²=0.166) with significant differences between the highest risk team softball (9.73±1.22) and the lower risk team soccer (4.36±0.81) and baseball (4.36±0.81). CONCLUSIONS: Although strong correlations between dependent measures were absent, results may indicate alcohol consumption has an impact on hydration status. Although other factors may have influenced hydration, we did identify significant dehydration following alcohol consumption.

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