This study, of a large number of adolescents, showed a prevalence of ON similar to that recorded in adult populations. Since factors predisposing to ON in adolescence differ from those for other eating disorders, it is not clear whether ON should be treated as a new form of ED.
Purpose:The aim of this study is to assess the dependence between the obsessive-compulsive symptoms, the eating disorders symptoms and orthorexia in adolescents aged 15-19, due to define which of these areas orthorexia is closer to. The study controlled such variables as: age, sex, BMI, school type.Subjects and Methods:The study covered 1899 pupils of secondary schools. The OCD and ED symptoms assessment was carried out with the LOI-CV, EAT-26 and the ORTO-15 questionnaire (two threshold values: ON- 40 and ON -35). The research was financed by scientific grant of Nutricia Foundation.Results:Revealed correlations of risk factors of ON - OCD and ON - ED indicated the higher the probability of diagnosis of these disorders, the higher the probability of ON diagnosis, too. The compatibility of ON and OCD diagnoses was for ON-40 = 45.8% and ON-35, 76.5%. It was shown that the OCD increases the risk of ON at the threshold value ON = 35. In the case of ON and ED, the diagnostic compatibility was ON-40, 42.7% and ON-35, 84.4%. The analysis of various variables confirmed a significant dependency of ON from ED, which suggests that ON belongs to ED. The diagnostic accuracy in this case is better at the threshold value ON- 35.Conclusions:The results of our study should be confirmed in further research.
ObjectiveOrthorexia nervosa (ON) is an excessive fixation on the consumption of healthy food and an obsession with its biological purity. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of ON in a population of Polish urban adolescents and some possible contributory factors.MethodValidation and adaptation of the ORTO-15 Questionnaire was made in the group of 399 participants (15–21 years old). The validation procedure incorporated three basic methods to be applied in the reliability analysis. The reliability analysis of the ORTO-15 Questionnaire based on repeatability of the responses presents a very good (kappa: 0.81–1.00 for 5 items) and a good repeatability (kappa: 0.61–0.80 for 10 items). The reliability analysis based on the value of the Cronbach's α reached a satisfactory level (0.7–0.9). The ORTO-15 questionnaire was considered a reliable tool to identify the risk of ON in population studies in the group of urban youth aged 15–21. Assessment was made among 1899 high school students, 992 girls, and 907 boys, aged 15–21 years.ResultsThe mean value of the ORTO-15 was 39.2 ± 3.6 points, with no sex difference. The main factors connected with orthorexia, according to the “Orthorexia 35” definition were excess weight, sporting activities, out-of-school activities, smoking status, working parents and a high family income.ConclusionsThis study, of a large number of adolescents, showed a prevalence of ON similar to that recorded in adult populations. This is a first assessment of orthorexia among adolescent population.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.
Celem pracy było scharakteryzowanie ortoreksji (Orthorexia Nervosa; ON) na podstawie najnowszych wyników badań na temat częstości jej występowania, grup oraz czynników ryzyka, jak również zależności pomiędzy ortoreksją, a innymi jednostkami klinicznymi. Praca powstała w oparciu o przegląd bazy danych Medline/Pubmed. Przeanalizowano prace badawcze w kierunku epidemiologii, czynników ryzyka i konceptualizacji zjawiska ortoreksji, opublikowane w latach 2009-2019. ON pozostaje jednostką o niejasnej etiologii. Autorzy nadal dyskutują związek ON z innymi grupami zaburzeń (AN, BN, OCD, ASD). Dane epidemiologiczne są rozbieżne, wskazując skrajnie wartości od 1% do 90% w różnych populacjach. Czynniki ryzyka są zmiennie identyfikowane, w różnych grupach, a autorzy nie są jednogłośni co do wpływu determinant w postaci zmiennych antropometrycznych i socjodemograficznych na występowanie objawów ON. Na prezentowane wyniki wpływa stosunkowo niewielka liczebność grup badanych i ich ograniczona reprezentatywność oraz zmienność stosowanych narzędzi badawczych BOT, ORTO-15, EHQ, DOS. Wnioski: Wobec braku jasnego statusu nozologicznego, braku ujednoliconych i zoperacjonalizowanych kryteriów diagnostycznych oraz rzetelnych narzędzi jej oceny, ON wymaga dalszych badań. Podobnie, opracowania wymagają programy profilaktyki (zwłaszcza w grupach ryzyka) oraz nieistniejące programy terapeutyczne, wobec braku koncepcji leczenia ON, spowodowanej niejasnościami w konceptualizacji samego zjawiska.
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