The Claim

In female competitive contemporary dancers, each additional hour of weekly training is associated with a 21% increased likelihood of bone injury (OR=1.21, 95% CI: 1.05–1.39), indicating that higher mechanical load without adequate recovery is linked to elevated fracture risk.

Source: (Low) Energy Availability and Its Association with Injury Occurrence in Competitive Dance: Cross-Sectional Analysis in Female Dancers

What the research says

Supports is higher

Support is ahead, but a single strong opposing study can change this.

Supports
44score
Challenges
0score

These are independent scores, not a percentage. Higher-grade studies count more, so a single strong opposing study can outweigh several weaker ones.

Correlation
1 study reviewed
In plain English

Female competitive contemporary dancers who train more hours per week have a higher rate of bone injuries. For every extra hour of training, the chance of a bone injury increases by 21%.

See the scientific wording

In female competitive contemporary dancers, higher weekly training exposure is associated with a 21% increased likelihood of bone injuries per additional hour of training per week (OR=1.21, 95% CI: 1.05–1.39), suggesting excessive mechanical load without adequate recovery increases fracture risk.

Why this might work

When dancers train too much without enough rest, their muscles get tired and can't absorb shock properly, so more force hits their bones. At the same time, not eating enough food to match their training burns out their energy supply, making muscles weaker and less able to protect bones. This combination causes repeated stress on bones that can't repair fast enough, leading to cracks or breaks.

Verified mechanismbased on 1 study

What the research says

1 study
  1. Study: (Low) Energy Availability and Its Association with Injury Occurrence in Competitive Dance: Cross-Sectional Analysis in Female Dancers

    Female dancers who train more hours each week are more likely to get bone injuries, and this study found exactly that — each extra hour of training raised their risk by about 21%. This probably happens because their bones don’t get enough rest to heal from all the jumping and pounding.

Score breakdown, mechanism chain, raw evidence, ideal studies needed & 1 supporting studies

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