Portland women’s health and wellness coach highlights gaps in research, education for women in sports

When Greta Jarvis was 16 years old and on her high school’s lacrosse team, her menstrual cycle completely stopped. When she went to an OBGYN to discuss the issue, doctors told her this symptom was completely normal for female athletes. Nearly ten years later, she learned that her period loss, or amenorrhea, was abnormal and actually dangerous. In fact, it’s the body’s response to too few calories, too much exercise, and extreme stress. It’s also extremely common among young female athletes, and intensified by scarce targeted education on nutrition, body image and hormone health within women and girls'sports. Now, Jarvis coaches the same team she played on in high school, and she wants to provide the education that she didn’t have when she was growing up. She founded the Center for Active Women, where she organizes workshops for teams, schools and sports organizations to equip women and girls with the skills to develop healthy relationships with body, food, and exercise. She joins us to discuss her work.