International Journal of Sport Sciences for Health
Volume:5 Issue: 2, Oct 2022

Mental health problems are extremely common all over the world and contribute significantly to illness and impairments. There is an acknowledged need for interventions that focus on prevention to foster mental health, and to fulfill this need, sports offer a promising way to promote mental health and avoid the beginning of a mental illness. In this study, a literature review is presented about the association between sports participation and mental health across the lifespan.

To determine the association between sports participation and mental health and get information about the mental health benefits that can be achieved by increased participation in sports, both by the general public and professional athletes at any age.

To conduct the literature review, a search on different databases was carried out for research articles with the key terms "sports participation” and “mental health" to find their association.

Participation in sports was found to be positively associated with psychological well-being and connected with fewer mental health problems. Sports participation was associated with higher self-esteem and a lower risk of anxiety, depression, and social-behavioral inhibition in adolescents. Sports participation led to reduced smoking and a type of personality that was resistant to alcohol and drug addiction. Sports club membership, high or moderately frequent sports participation, participation in outdoor sports, team sports, contact sports, and competition were all linked to fewer internalizing problems.

Participation in sports is beneficial to the mental health of children, adolescents, and adults. Team sports and sports clubs are especially advantageous for mental health due to social and psychological support. Creating opportunities for sports participation can lead to the promotion of mental health.

Stress and anxiety related to post-injury trauma in athletes is a latent problem in sport. The use of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) allows sports psychologists to intervene with their athletes more effectively to help them into their recovery and achieve peak sport performance.

Analyze the EMDR therapy effect in the psychophysiological responses of four athletes with stress related to a traumatic event during sports practice.

Four athletes (22.25 ± 1.71 years; 11.5 ± 2.65 years of experience) participated an idiographic single-case, multiple-probe study. The Sport Psychology Department of the institution approved the study for its application, which also followed the statement of the declaration of Helsinki. The participants had been medically cleared to practice their sport after sustaining a severe injury, but they expressed significant difficulty in performing optimally yet. The Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2RD was applied to measure the anxiety and self-confidence levels before, after and two weeks later EMDR therapy intervention. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing standard protocol therapy was carried out to identify the dysfunctional memories to be reprocessed, address the abnormal behaviors as trauma consequences, and develop the behavioral changes to manage the trauma. Heart rate variability parameters used as biofeedback were monitored during the EMDR protocol to associate with moments of stress and relief. Data analysis was performed using the smallest worthwhile change (SWC) of Hopkins to compare the results in the different moments of the protocol and study.

All four athletes reported likely and most likely beneficial changes (according to the SWC) in their levels of anxiety and self-confidence after the intervention with the EMRD therapy as well as at two weeks afterward. Heart rate variability (HRV) parameters linked with parasympathetic activity were reduced and the sympathetic parameters increased their levels when the intervention protocol induced stressor memories, observing an opposite behavior when EMDR phases let the athlete be relaxed or getting relief.

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing is a therapy is effective to manage a sport injury related psychologic trauma. Furthermore both, LnRMSSD and LnSS parameters of the HRV can be used as a biofeedback strategy for a better efficacy of EMDR-based treatment.

Variations in plasma volume and hematological parameters occur before and after training in soccer players. However, there are no reports on changes in hematological parameters resulting from a half-season of training in professional soccer players.

To investigate the effects of training load on plasma volume variations in elite soccer players.

Twenty soccer players from the 1st French division soccer league (Ligue 1) were included in the study. The training load was evaluated using the rating of perceived exertion (RPE, 10- Borg scale) after each training session and each match. Anthropometrics characteristics, hematocrit (Ht), hemoglobin (Hb) and plasma volume variations (PVV) were assessed at 3 different times: T1: Baseline (before the first week of pre-season), T2: At the end of pre-season (after 8 weeks of training) and T3: At the end of the first competitive period (after 26 weeks of training and at halfway of the competitive season).

Values of Ht and lean body mass (LBM) increased during the first competitive period from T1 to T3 (Ht: ∆↑8%, P = 0.037, effect sizes (ES) = 1.0; LBM: ∆↑4%, P = 0.041, ES = 0.83) and from T2 to T3 (LBM: (∆↑2%; P = 0.05; ES = 0.77). Moreover, PVV decreased from T2 to T3 (P = 0.002, ES = 0.5) and from T1 to T3 (P < 0.05; ES = 1.26). There were no differences in Hb at T1, T2 or T3.

Changes in body weights, PVV and Ht during preparatory and competitive phases were affected by the training load and competitive play.

Pubertal development and sexuality in prime adolescence can individually or both affect academic performance during the secondary cycle.

The present study aims to examine the relationship between pubertal maturation, sexuality and academic Performance of secondary school students.

Data were collected via a cross-sectional survey after the release of the first quarter results. The sample was composed of 418 students (195 boys and 223 girls aged 13.96 ± 0.97 and 14.26 ± 0.85 years old respectively). The pubertal development scale and sexuality at prime adolescence scales were used to collect data. Academic performance was assessed based on quarterly cumulative GPA. Chi-square and Pearson's correlation tests were used and responses were structured into subcategories regarding factors of pubertal development, sexuality and academic performance.

The pubertal development of girls was more advanced than that of boys; the boys scores on the "going out with someone" scale (P ≤ 0.05) and on the “flirting with the aim of having sexual relations” scale (P ≤ 0.01) whereas girls scores on the "giving priority to love" scale (P ≤ 0.05). In general academic performance was above mean and below mean respectively for boys and girls. Pubertal development and sexuality were negatively correlated with academic performance mostly in girls.

The developmental stage was more pronounced in girls. Boys were ahead in sexuality and the mean of their academic performance was higher. The interactions of development and sexuality and their combined effect negatively influenced the academic performance of girls and boys with gender-specific degrees.

Recent research has focused on the effects of different types of strength training on the performance and body profile of adolescent athletes. However, the effects of short-term plyometric and jump rope training on body profile and athletic performance in adolescent basketball players are a matter of curiosity.

The aim of this study was to examine the effects of short-term plyometric and jump rope training on body profile and athletic performance in adolescent basketball players.

Twenty-two basketball players aged 13 - 15 were randomly divided into two groups as plyometric (n = 11) and jump rope training group (n = 11). All participants regularly completed to plyometric or jump rope training as 10 units for 4-weeks in addition to basketball training. Somatotype, body composition, push-up & sit-up test, sprint, agility (Illinois & hexagon), jump (vertical, squat, horizontal, plyometric) tests were measured before and end of the study.

The push-up (P = 0.049 vs < 0.001), sit-up (P = 0.20 vs < 0.001), squat jump (P = 0.010 vs 0.003) and horizontal jump (P = 0.028 vs 0.014) of the players were significantly increased after 4-weeks plyometric and jump rope training. In addition, plyometric jump (P = 0.007) and hexagon performance (P = 0.001) were significantly increased in jump rope training group. At the end of 4-weeks, body mass, endomorphy and ectomorphy scores of the lower limb plyometric training group, and body mass index, endomorphy & mesomorphy scores and quadriceps circumference of the jump rope training group were significantly increased.

Short-term plyometric and jump rope training affect the body profile and athletic performance of the adolescent basketball players, but jump rope training has a more significant effect on athletic performance than plyometric training. Therefore, jump rope training is recommended for coaches who want to gain more athletic performance in a short-term.

Insole orthotics are prescribed to correct human body position during both the standing position and the motion of gait. Also, they are being applied for people who have forefoot abduction and arch deformation. However, a little is known about the relationship between forefoot and arch orthotic correction and the alternation in foot biomechanics.

This study was aimed to determine the effect of non-prescription insole orthotics in walking gait parameters.

It was a quasi- experimental with pre-test, post-test design study. Twelve volunteer participants (41 ± 17 y), 10 men and two women, participated in this study. Three-dimensional (3D) cameras were used to do motion capture through those markers placed on lower body segments. Seven segments such as: Hip, left and right thigh, left and right shank, left and right foot were used for labelling in this study, which was measured with Vicon T-Series cameras at 250 Hz. The participants did walk in three different phases: Barefoot, running shoe, running shoe with a non-prescription orthotic inside. t-test was used to analyse the data.

The paired t-test results indicated that there is significant difference in cadence, step length and stride length for running shoe, and non-prescription orthotics compare to those of barefoot (P ≤ 0.05). Additionally, it was found that, non-prescription orthotics resulted in higher step length and stride length, and less cadence (P ≤ 0.05). On the other hand, But, no significant changes were found for non-prescription orthotics (P ≥ 0.05).

It was concluded that cadence, step length and stride length were improved in running shoe compared to non-prescription orthotics group. But there were not any significant differences between running shoe and non-prescription orthotics.

In sport context learning a skill, and performing it flawlessly is of great importance. There is a unanimous consensus among sport scientists, coaches, and athletes, that along with physical, technical and tactical skills, psychological skills are also necessary for an optimal sport performance.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of mental toughness in motor learning and sport performance in wrestling.

This study was semi-experimental and its population were physical education students of the University of Tehran in 2018. Using intensive sampling method, 28 student-athletes, who never had any past wrestling skill practices, were selected. Subsequently, using Mental Toughness-48 questionnaires, they were divided into two equal groups of high and low in mental toughness. After that, all participants were randomly assigned into two groups of equal size and 30 wrestling skills were taught to them twice a week for 3 months by two professional wrestling coaches. Their motor learning was assessed by three other professional coaches in the last week of training and one week after the last session. Motor learning score was obtained by calculating the mean scores of acquisition and retention stages. Then, two groups with high and low levels of mental toughness were compared regarding their motor learning scores. Tools used in this study included demographic consent form, wrestling skills test and The Mental Toughness Questionnaire-48 (MTQ 48).

The results suggested that mentally tough student-athletes demonstrated significantly higher motor learning scores compared with their counterparts who had lower levels of mental toughness (P ≤ 0/05). This advantage was persistent both in the acquisition and retention stages (P ≤ 0/05).

It was concluded that mental toughness could be considered as a key factor in motor learning. Therefore, it is recommended to coaches and athletes to develop mental toughness in order to enhance motor learning and achieve successful performance.

Some chemokines like C C motif chemokine ligand (CCL) 2 and 5 and their receptors (CCR) 2 and 5 are mediators of chronic inflammation and cancer development. Moreover, physical exercise can increase the activity of antioxidant enzymes. However, its effect on cancer cells has not been reported at present.

Therefore, the present study aimed to ascertain the effect of 12-week aerobic exercise training (AET) on CCL2, CCR2, CCL5, and CCR5 in mice with breast cancer.

Sixteen Balb/c mice aged 4 - 5 weeks (n = 16; approximate weight: 18 ± 2 g) were divided into two groups: AET group (AETG) and control group (CG) (n = 8 per group). The AETG performed 12-week treadmill running at 18 m/min for 40 min and five times a week. Plasma levels of CCL2 and CCL5 were measured by ELISA, and the CCR2 and CCR5 were evaluated by Western blotting. Two independent sample t-test was applied to compare the differences between AETG and CG.

The analysis displayed after 12 weeks showed a significant reduction in AETG compared to CG in CCL2 (3.94 ± 1.12 vs. 15.40 ± 3.29 pg/mL; P = 0.001), CCR2 (0.56 ± 0.19 vs. 1.00 ± 0.001; P = 0.002), CCL5 (138.59 ± 15.72 vs. 267.57 ± 49.06 ng/mL; P = 0.001) and CCR5 (0.36 ± 0.12 vs. 1.00 ± 0.001; P = 0.001), respectively.

We concluded that one of the main mechanisms of a positive effect of exercise on breast cancer is reducing the inflammation via CCL2 and CCL5 and their related receptors CCR2 and CCR5, respectively. Since these molecules can be triggered off oxidative stress and tumorigenesis, these results can pave the way for further studies in this field.