Supervisors info:
Φραγκίσκος Γονιδάκης, Aναπληρωτής Καθηγητής, Ιατρική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Θωμάς Παπαρρηγόπουλος, Καθηγητής, Ιατρική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Καλλιόπη Τριανταφύλλου, Επιστημονική Συνεργάτις, Ιατρική Σχολή, ΕΚΠΑ
Summary:
Abstract
Introduction: A healthy diet is undoubtedly a prerequisite for physical and mental health. However, the pathological preoccupation with healthy eating, i.e. orthorexia nervosa, has adverse consequences for the individual. Perfectionism is closely linked with manifestation of orthorexic symptoms. Until now, the literature regarding the study of orthorexia in the population group of health professionals is limited.
Aim: This research aims to study orthorexia among health professionals in Greece and to investigate the role of perfectionism in the manifestation of orthorectic tendencies as well as other variables such as BMI, the intake of nutritional supplements, the number of meals, the measurement of body weight and medical specialty.
Method: The sample consisted of 171 health professionals, of which 119 were women (69.5%) and 52 were men (30.4%). The average age was 32 years (SD= 14.3 years). Participants completed the demographics questionnaire, the ORTO-15 to assess orthorexia, and the Almost Perfect Scale Questionnaire to assess Perfectionism.
Results: Both the dimension of "Performance Criteria" and that of "Discordance" showed a statistically significant correlation with the occurrence of orthorectic symptoms, as p<0.001 and p=0.013 respectively. At the same time, the frequency of exercise (p=0.001), intake of nutritional supplements (p<0.001), BMI (p=0.010), marital status (p=0.024), age (p=0.014) and medical specialty (p=0.013) showed also a significant correlation with the appearance of orthorectic tendencies. In particular, those who exercised more than 3 times a week, those who received nutritional supplements, the underweight, the unmarried, the 25-30 year olds and the professionals of surgical specialties showed a higher score of orthorexia. Finally, the intake of nutritional supplements, age, BMI, frequency of exercise and dimensions of perfectionism emerged as independent factors for the manifestation of orthorectal tendencies.
Conclusions: The study shows that healthcare professionals with orthorectic tendencies have a greater tendency to perfectionism. Orthorexia nervosa is a remarkable phenomenon in the population of health professionals, however, it needs further investigation. The present research encourages the further study of the phenomenon of orthorexia in professional groups that are considered susceptible to the manifestation of orthorectal symptoms.
Keywords:
Healthy diet, Orthorexia nervosa, Perfectionism, Health professionals
