Orthorexia Nervosa: When Healthy Eating Becomes Unhealthy

Abstract

Purpose Orthorexia Nervosa (ON) is a recently proposed eating disorder that has gained growing acknowledgment. However, there exists a significant gap in the literature regarding ON. Additionally, the lack of formal criteria for the diagnosis of ON has led to a debate regarding whether it is a standalone diagnosis or part of another condition, including other eating disorders. This debate is further fueled by shared characteristics and consequences between ON and other disorders, namely Anorexia Nervosa (AN) and Bulimia Nervosa (BN). Moreover, ON has been recognized as highly prevalent in individuals’ post-treatment for AN and BN. Thus, this study aimed to determine whether eating disorder history predicts greater severity of ON symptomology. Additionally, we aimed to determine whether sex, racial, and age group differences exist in severity of ON symptomology.Method The Eating Habits Questionnaire (EHQ) was administered to 535 individuals along with questions regarding previous eating disorder history and demographic variables. Results Analysis confirmed that individuals previously diagnosed with an eating disorder and those who previously received eating disorder treatment demonstrated higher ON symptomology severity. Minimal-to-no group differences among sex, race, and age in EHQ scores, except for Caucasian/White individuals scoring higher than Asian/Asian American individuals, were revealed.Conclusion ON is highly prevalent among individuals previously diagnosed with an eating disorder and those who previously received eating disorder related treatment. Little to no age, sex, and racial differences were demonstrated in ON symptomology. Level III: Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case-control analytic studies