Introduction Sports participation has been shown to have many benefits. However, along with the many benefits of sporting activity, it seems that female athletes may experience symptoms related to a condition called the female athlete triad. The purpose of this review is to evaluate the studies that determined the prevalence of the Female Athlete Triad conditions (low Energy Availability (EA), Disordered Eating (DE), Menstrual Disorders (MD), and low Bone Mineral Density (BMD)) in female adult athletes. Methods The electronic databases PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, and Cochrane Library were systematically searched for eligible studies. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were defined a priori. The selected studies were reviewed, and data extraction was carried out by the reviewers independently. Data extraction was carried out by the two researchers independently, using a predesigned and standardised form to record information and data. Results A total of 17 studies are included in this review (n = 1756). The prevalence of low EA ranged from 2.2% to 79.5% (mean: 35.8% ±25.4), of menstrual disturbance from 22.7% to 70.5% (mean: 34.9% ±14.7), and of low BMD from 0% to 45% (mean: 17.3% ± 15.3). Conclusions Female athlete triad conditions are common among adult athletes. Prevention, early detection and treatment of both energy deficiency and menstrual dysfunctions could contribute to improved athletic performance, protect from injuries, and decrease the risk of stress fractures.
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