The mediating role of body appreciation between injury/illness history and quality of life among retired Japanese female athletes.

BackgroundSevere injuries and illnesses during an athlete's active career can lead to career interruption or retirement, and are associated with negative body image and decreased quality of life (QoL). However, the relationship between body image and QoL in retired female athletes with such medical histories remains unclear. Although support for athletes' health has recently increased, post-retirement support remains insufficient.ObjectivesThis study examined whether body appreciation, defined as respect for, acceptance of, and gratitude toward one's body, mediates the association between injury/illness history and QoL among retired female athletes.DesignA cross-sectional survey was conducted among 750 retired Japanese female athletes to assess their injury/illness histories (yes/no), QoL, and body appreciation.MethodsQoL was assessed using the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF), and body appreciation was measured using the Body Appreciation Scale-2. First, correlation analyses were performed for the study variables. Subsequently, mediation analyses examined whether body appreciation (M) mediated the relationship between injury/illness history (X) and the WHOQOL-BREF total score, the four domain scores, and the overall QoL (general health) score (Y).ResultsAmong 750 retired female athletes, 38.7% reported an injury/illness. Injury/illness history showed a small negative correlation with body appreciation (r = -.09), whereas body appreciation correlated with total QoL (r = .74) and QoL domains (r = .55 to .71). The mediation model indicated a significant indirect association with total QoL via body appreciation (B = -0.081, 95% CI [-0.145, -0.017]), with similar indirect associations observed for the QoL domains.ConclusionThe findings suggest history may be indirectly associated with post-retirement QoL through body appreciation, rather than being directly related to QoL alone. These results highlight the potential importance of fostering body appreciation to support the lifelong health of female athletes.