Safe dance
Project report 2, 1997
A study of pre-professional dance training in Australia
by
Tony Geeves.
Published by Ausdance, 1997. A summary by Julie Dyson
$35 ($30 for members)
Safe Dance 2 is a valuable document for anyone involved with the training,
health and well-being of young people hoping to embark on a career in dance.
Tony Geeves was particularly concerned at one of the findings in the 1990 Ausdance
report, Safe Dance I, that 52% of professional dancers reported chronic injury
by the age of 18. What, he wondered, could be happening during their adolescent
years?
Questions answered?
Geeves embarked
on his PhD with the specific intention of developing a profile of the Australian
adolescent in pre-professional dance training, analysing lifestyle choices,
identifying training practices and stages of development associated with the
onset of chronic injuries, and making recommendations for a national strategy
to reduce injury and improve general health awareness in dance students.
The analysis revealed that the average age of onset of injury was 14.5 years,
and this was the same year as their training load was increased by two 90-minute
sessions, as opposed to an increase of one 90-minute session each year from
age of eleven. The Summary (p.43) in Safe Dance II continues:
This needs to be seen in relation to the average age (13.5 years) at which
the female dance students consulted a health professional for suspected eating
disorders or weight problems and recorded their first menstruation. Clearly,
this is a time of great change when students need more information on the possible
consequences of disordered eating patterns, stress, menstrual dysfunction and
lack of adequate active rest.
Attention to graduated work load should also be considered, particularly
by those responsible for planning schedules in dance schools and institutions.
So-called overuse injuries (micro trauma) were responsible for 47% of the
injuries which occurred over a period of time. Of these injuries, 52% occurred
in the first year during which the student underwent more than 12 hours per
week of intensive training. This would also suggest a need to revise training
practices during this period as well as training students to understand early
warning signs for this type of injury.
The figures indicate that the adolescents attempt to care for themselves
by taking vitamins, homoeopathic cures, health supplements and sleeping an average
of 8 hours. However, on the other hand there is a 20% increase in the habit
of smoking by the time these students reach tertiary level, and the number
involved in the recreational use of drugs has doubled in the same period.
This dichotomy, when viewed in concert with other factors, such as eating behaviours
and their perceptions of their own body mass, is disturbing. The denial or
lack of consciousness as to what constitutes disordered eating patterns or
eating disorders, as well as their naiveté in relationship to menstrual
dysfunction and its possible effects, are cause for alarm. The need for educational
programs is obvious.’
Geeves continues with recommendations for schools and institutions, and adolescents
in pre-professional dance training. He is particularly keen to seen the introduction
of a graduated work load for adolescents, and a greater emphasis on educating
young people in healthy lifestyle choices.
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