Medical and hygienic issues of sports attire for young people

Abstract

Introduction: One of the risk factors for heath impairment of youths can be incompliance of requirements to choosing, storing, and treatment of sports attire together with the disturbance of personal body hygiene after sports activities. Purpose: To study medical and hygienic issues associated with youths awareness of hygienic requirements to the treatment of sports attire and footwear in sports activities. Materials and methods: Subject of research - college students of the regional centre in Belarus. 340 individuals aged between 15 and 18 were assessed. The methods of research were: questionnaire and statistical method «Statistics 6.1». Results: 88% of the interviewed persons responded that they chose their sports attire according to the design of clothes and their size without considering specific purpose of clothing. Following physical exercise 72% of the respondents do not change their sports shoes and internal footwear (socks). 31% of students do not have the habit of changing underwear after physical exercise. The answers to the questions “Do you wash your sports clothes after physical exercise?” and “Do you air and wash your sports footwear after physical exercise?” were definitely negative in 72% of the respondents and “don’t know” - in 12% of the interviewed. Moreover, 86% of students responded that they put their sports attire into the polyethylene bags and keep it until the next sports class. 84% of the respondents reported increased sweating and 27% - of skin acne on the back and upper limbs. Body pruritus was marked by 56% of students, pruritus in the foot area - by 46%. Direct association was revealed in subjects, who did not change their footwear after physical exercise and did not air their footwear, with the concerns in the foot area. The questions about the hygienic procedures were answered only by one seventh of the respondents. While going to the physical training class only 31% of the interviewed take with them the items of personal hygiene (soap, towel, tissues). Statistically important differences between sexes were not marked during the questionnaire analysis on all items. Conclusion: In sports activities college students irrespective of their gender show low level of awareness of sports attire hygiene and personal hygiene rules following physical training classes. Incompliance of the sports attire and footwear treatment rules were marked among the college students. Risk group for the development of skin and fungal foot pathology comprises young people who study in colleges of the regional center due to their incompliance of hygienic requirements to sports attire and footwear care.