EVALUATING THE EFFECTS OF ORAL CONTRACEPTIVE USE ON BIOMARKERS AND BODY COMPOSITION DURING A COMPETITIVE SEASON IN COLLEGIATE FEMALE SOCCER PLAYERS

High training demands throughout the competitive season in female collegiate soccer players have been shown to induce changes in biomarkers indicative of stress, inflammation, and reproduction, which may be exacerbated in athletes using oral contraceptives (OCs). To compare biomarkers and body composition between OC-using and non-using (CON) female soccer players throughout a competitive season. Female collegiate soccer players were stratified into two groups based on their reported OC use at the start of pre-season (OC: n=6; CON: n=17). Prior to the start of pre-season and immediately post-season, athletes underwent a battery of performance tests. Blood draws and body composition assessments were performed prior to pre-season, on weeks 2, 4, 8, and 12 of the season, and post-season. Area-under-the-curve ratios (OC :CON ) indicated the OC group were exposed to substantially higher levels of sex-hormone binding globulin (AUC =1.4, probability=p>0.999), total cortisol (1.7; p>0.999), c-reactive protein (5.2; p>0.999), leptin (1.4; p=0.990), growth hormone (1.5; p=0.97), but substantively lower amounts ofestradiol (0.36; p