Orthorexia Nervosa
Orthorexia, or orthorexia nervosa, is an eating disorder that involves an unhealthy obsession with healthy eating. Unlike other eating disorders, orthorexia mostly revolves around food quality, not quantity. Unlike with anorexia or bulimia, people with orthorexia are rarely focused on losing weight (1).
Cluster Number:
Wiki Number: PW146
Diagnosis: Orthorexia Nervosa
US Patients:
World Patients:
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Symptoms: obsessive preoccupation with eating healthy food; the quality of food vs. amount of food eaten; more restrictive over time
Progression: may lead to excluding different classes of foods to unhealthy eating and weight “over-control”
Causes: increased viewing of Instagram where “food” is a frequent choice of topics, vs. other electronic messaging platforms
Medications:
Therapies: This is not (yet?) recognized in the 2013 “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual” as a disease.
Youtube Video: Orthorexia Explained (Orthorexia Nervose)
Amazon or Library Book: Health Food Junkies
Click the book to link or order from Amazon.
Support Group: eatingdisordersfoundation.org; 303-333-3364
(The Eating Disorder Foundation)
4 CURRENT ARTICLES
FROM PUBMED
The world-wide medical research
reports chosen for each diagnosis
Clicking each title opens the
PubMed article’s summary-abstract.
- Comparison between Physical Activity and Stress-Related Lifestyle between Orthorexic and Non-Orthorexic University Students: A Case-Control Studyby Sara Guidotti on May 11, 2024
(1) Background: The literature regarding orthorexia nervosa (ON) has well documented the association with other mental disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive and eating disorders. However, the research has not taken into account stress-related behavior and the conduction of physical activity (PA), both structured and unstructured. (2) Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 165 students of the University of Parma (92 females and 74 males) aged between 18 and 49 years old (mean = 24.62 ± 4.81)...
- Evaluation of factors related to organic food consumption and orthorexia nervosa tendenciesby Osman Bozkurt on May 10, 2024
The relationship between organic food consumption, awareness of reducing ecological footprint, and orthorexia nervosa (ON) tendencies has yet to be explored in detail. This study aimed to determine factors related to organic food consumption and ON tendencies in young adults. Also, the relationship between organic food consumption, awareness of reducing ecological footprint, and ON tendencies was investigated. This study was conducted with 887 young adults (58.4% female, 41.6% male, aged 18-25...
- Unveiling Anxiety Factors in Orthorexia Nervosa: A Qualitative Exploration of Fears and Coping Strategiesby Panagiota Tragantzopoulou on May 10, 2024
Orthorexia nervosa represents a controversial phenomenon in the realm of eating practices, characterized by an obsessive fixation on consuming only foods deemed 'healthy', and a preoccupation with food purity. While the existing literature has identified the presence of stressful behaviors among individuals with orthorexia, the precise factors and circumstances eliciting these stress-inducing emotions remain the subject of ongoing inquiry. This study aims to explore the triggers and situations...
- Orthorexic tendency and its association with weight control methods and dietary variety in Polish adults: a cross-sectional studyby Marta Plichta on May 7, 2024
The methods for controlling weight play a central role in formally diagnosed eating disorders (EDs) and appear to be important in the context of other nonformally recognized disorders, such as orthorexia nervosa (ON). These methods also have an impact on eating behaviors, including dietary variety. Our study aimed to: (i) assess the intensity of ON tendency by sex and BMI groups, (ii) evaluate the associations between ON tendency, weight control methods, and dietary variety, and (iii) determine...