TY - GEN
T1 - Prevalence of Orthorexia Nervosa among a sample of college students and its correlates with gender, weight status, physical activity, and body shape concern
AU - Krinki, Anna
AU - Camarena, Phame M
AU - Cheng, Chin-I
A2 - Yehia, Najat
PY - 2019/11
Y1 - 2019/11
N2 - Background: Orthorexia Nervosa (ON) is a pattern of disordered eating behaviors characterized by an obsessive fixation on eating healthy food and preoccupation with “proper nutrition”. Individuals with ON are at increased risk of developing severe physical and psychological complications. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of ON among a sample of college students based on gender, weight status, physical activity, and body dissatisfaction.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of undergraduate students (n=304, 83% female), with a mean age of 20 years, in spring 2019. Students were asked to complete an online survey that included questions on their demographic characteristics, OR screening (ORTO-15 test with < 40 being the cutoff), physical activity (IPAQ), body shape concern (BSQ), and body mass index (BMI) measurement. Two sample t-test, Chi-square test and multiple logistic regression were used for statistical analyses.Results: Results indicated that the majority of students (79%) scored below 40 on the ORTO-15 test, with no significant differences between male (80%) and female (79%) students. Likewise, no significant differences were also observed in the ON traits among students across the different BMI categories. However, higher prevalence of ON traits were observed among students with high physical activity levels (p=0.011) and elevated body shape concerns (p=0.013).Conclusions: Overall, a high prevalence of ON traits was observed among our students, particularly among students who are physically active and have elevated body shape concerns. Early screening is essential to identify students who might be at risk of disordered eating behaviors.
AB - Background: Orthorexia Nervosa (ON) is a pattern of disordered eating behaviors characterized by an obsessive fixation on eating healthy food and preoccupation with “proper nutrition”. Individuals with ON are at increased risk of developing severe physical and psychological complications. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of ON among a sample of college students based on gender, weight status, physical activity, and body dissatisfaction.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among a sample of undergraduate students (n=304, 83% female), with a mean age of 20 years, in spring 2019. Students were asked to complete an online survey that included questions on their demographic characteristics, OR screening (ORTO-15 test with < 40 being the cutoff), physical activity (IPAQ), body shape concern (BSQ), and body mass index (BMI) measurement. Two sample t-test, Chi-square test and multiple logistic regression were used for statistical analyses.Results: Results indicated that the majority of students (79%) scored below 40 on the ORTO-15 test, with no significant differences between male (80%) and female (79%) students. Likewise, no significant differences were also observed in the ON traits among students across the different BMI categories. However, higher prevalence of ON traits were observed among students with high physical activity levels (p=0.011) and elevated body shape concerns (p=0.013).Conclusions: Overall, a high prevalence of ON traits was observed among our students, particularly among students who are physically active and have elevated body shape concerns. Early screening is essential to identify students who might be at risk of disordered eating behaviors.
UR - https://2019.obesityweek.com/abstract/orthorexia-among-college-students-its-correlates-with-gender-bmi-pa-body-shape-concern/
M3 - Other contribution
PB - Obesity Society’s annual scientific meeting
ER -