Abstract

The incidence and type of gastrointestinal complaints among endurance runners were investigated with a questionnaire among participants in a marathon event in northern Finland. The running distances were 1/4, 1/2 and full marathon. The fitness level of the participants varied from habitual joggers to national-class endurance runners. The response rate of the 426 participants was 55 (230). Gastrointestinal disturbances during the run were reported by 32 of the respondents. The prominent symptom during the 1/4 marathon was stitch (32). The main complaints during the 1/2 marathon were stitch (21), pain (12), and retching or heartburn (5). The most frequent symptoms during the full marathon were stitch (16), pain (9), diarrhoea (4) and nausea (4). Gastrointestinal symptoms hindered maximal performance subjectively for 16, 18 and 19 in the 1/4, 1/2 and full marathon, respectively. Most of the symptomatic runners (73) had suffered from gastrointestinal complaints during the preceding training period, and 25 of the asymptomatic runners reported previous gastrointestinal troubles during training. Verf.-Referat