Relationship Between Orthorexia Nervosa and Health and Fitness Status Among Students in Health-Related Academic Programs
Main Article Content
Keywords
Body image, weight bias, Weight stigma
Abstract
Introduction: Orthorexia nervosa (ON) can alter perceptions and behaviors related to healthy eating. The researchers were interested if ON symptomology relates to perceptions of body image, as well as measures of health, physical activity, and fitness among students in health-related academic programs.
Methods: Participants (n=12) completed the ORTO-15 questionnaire and the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire. Next, researchers collected resting vitals, non-fasting blood glucose and cholesterol, and body composition. Then, for six consecutive weeks, participants submitted weekly progress reports from their fitness tracking watch to document physical activity. The researchers conducted a Pearson correlation analysis among all variables, as well as an independent t-test to determine if participants who report greater ON symptoms have negative perceptions and behaviors towards weight and weight gain.
Results: Six participants reported greater ON symptoms on the ORTO-15. While not significantly different (p>0.05), those with greater symptoms tended to be overweight, have less physical activity and fitness, and were more concerned with body image, weight, and weight gain.
Conclusion: While 50% of participants had greater ON symptoms, they did not overemphasize exercise compared to participants in other studies.
References
2. Oberle CD, Samaghabadi RO, Hughes EM. Orthorexia nervosa: Assessment and correlates with gender, BMI, and personality. Appetite. 2017;108:303-310. doi:10.1016/j.appet.2016.10.021
3. Dunn TM, Gibbs J, Whitney N, Starosta A. Prevalence of orthorexia nervosa is less than 1 %: data from a US sample. Eat Weight Disord. 2017;22(1):185-192. doi:10.1007/s40519-016-0258-8
4. Grammatikopoulou MG, Gkiouras K, Markaki A, et al. Food addiction, orthorexia, and food-related stress among dietetics students. Eat Weight Disord. 2018;23(4):459-467. doi:10.1007/s40519-018- 0514-1
5. Cash TF. MBSRQ Users’ Manual. 3rd ed. Old Dominion University Press; 2000.
6. Langsted A, Freiberg JJ, Nordestgaard BG. Fasting and nonfasting lipid levels: influence of normal food intake on lipids, lipoproteins, apolipoproteins, and cardiovascular risk prediction. Circulation.
2008;118(20):2047-2056. doi:10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.108.804146
7. Nordestgaard BG, Langsted A, Mora S, et al. Fasting is not routinely required for determination of
a lipid profile: clinical and laboratory implications including flagging at desirable concentration cut- points-a joint consensus statement from the European Atherosclerosis Society and European Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine. Eur Heart J. 2016;37(25):1944-1958. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehw152
8. Pickering TG, Hall JE, Appel LJ, et al. Recommendations for Blood Pressure Measurement in Humans: An AHA Scientific Statement from the Council on High Blood Pressure Research Professional and Public Education Subcommittee. The Journal of Clinical Hypertension. 2005;7(2):102- 109. doi:10.1111/j.1524-6175.2005.04377.x
9. Lohman TJ, Roache AF, Martorell R. Anthropometric Standardization Reference Manual. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 1992;24(8):952. doi:10.1249/00005768-199208000-00020
10. JacksonAS,BlairSN,MaharMT,WierLT,RossRM,StutevilleJE.Predictionoffunctionalaerobic capacity without exercise testing. Med Sci Sports Exercise. 1990;22(6):863. doi:10.1249/00005768- 199012000-00021
11. Dhingra N. WHO Guidelines on Drawing Blood: Best Practices in Phlebotomy.; 2010. https://books.google.com/books/about/WHO_Guidelines_on_Drawing_Blood.html?hl=&id=lt DWoAEACAAJ.
12. AmericanCollegeofSportsMedicine.ACSM’sExerciseTestingandPrescription.LippincottWilliams& Wilkins; 2017. https://market.android.com/details?id=book-EqZEDwAAQBAJ.
13. Donini LM, Marsili D, Graziani MP, Imbriale M, Cannella C. Orthorexia nervosa: validation of a diagnosis questionnaire. Eat Weight Disord. 2005;10(2):e28-e32. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16682853.
14. HübnerC,SchmidtR,SelleJ,etal.ComparingSelf-ReportMeasuresofInternalizedWeightStigma: The Weight Self-Stigma Questionnaire versus the Weight Bias Internalization Scale. PLoS One. 2016;11(10):e0165566. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0165566
15.Physical Inactivity in the United States. The State of Obesity. https://www.stateofobesity.org/physical-inactivity/. Accessed August 14, 2019.
16. PhelanSM,BurgessDJ,YeazelMW,HellerstedtWL,GriffinJM,vanRynM.Impactofweightbias and stigma on quality of care and outcomes for patients with obesity. Obes Rev. 2015;16(4):319-326. doi:10.1111/obr.12266
17. PrinceSA,AdamoKB,HamelME,HardtJ,ConnorGorberS,TremblayM.Acomparisonofdirect versus self-report measures for assessing physical activity in adults: a systematic review. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2008;5:56. doi:10.1186/1479-5868-5-56
18. Wells JCK, Fewtrell MS. Measuring body composition. Arch Dis Child. 2006;91(7):612-617. doi:10.1136/adc.2005.085522
Article Sidebar
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright, 2025 by the authors. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.