Investigation of the relationship between orthorexia tendencies and nutritional status of individuals in the COVİD-19 pandemic

Objective: This study was conducted to determine the nutritional status of orthorexic and non-orthorexic individuals in the pandemic and to examine the relationship, and to examine the changes in the nutritional status of volunteer participants over 18 years of age and orthorexic individuals in the pandemic. Material and Methods: 1129 people participated in the study, 297 people were excluded from the study due to being under the age of 18 and filling in the questions incorrectly and 832 participants were included in the study. In order to collect the data, the 'ORTO-11 Test' and the 'Questionnaire Form' were developed in order to examine the relationship between the Orthorexia Tendency and Nutritional Status of the Individuals in the Covid-19 Pandemic. In the study, which was carried out online via google e-forms, the participants were asked to fill in the volunteer questionnaire and the ORTO-11 scale. Statistical evaluation of the data in the study was made using the IBM SPSS 22 package program. Kolmogorov Smirnov Test was used to analyze the normal distribution of the data in the study. Mann-Whitney U Test was used in the analysis of independent variables, Wilcoxon T Test was used in the analysis of dependent variables, and Pearson Chi-Square and Fisher Freeman Halton tests were used in the analysis of categorical variables. Arithmetic mean ± standard deviation for quantitative data, percentage and frequency values for qualitative data were used as descriptive values. The statistical significance limit was accepted as p<0.05. Results: 92.2% of the individuals (n=767 people) were women, 78.6% (n=654 people) were orthorexic, and 68.4% (n=569 people) were in the 18-25 age group and mean age is 24.42±5.4129. While 98.8% (n=822 people) of the participants were not vegetarian, 99.3% (n=826 people) had not been diagnosed with any covid-19 before. In terms of BMI value, while the mean BMI was 26.76±5.4099 kg/m² before the pandemic, it was 26.79±5.2860 kg/m² during the pandemic. During the pandemic, a statistically significant relationship was found between orthorexia and the use of Instagram, being a dietitian, using alcohol, and exercising during the pandemic. The risk of orthorexia was found to be higher in Instagram users, non-alcoholics, dietitians, and those who did not exercise during the pandemic. There was no statistically significant difference in terms of body weight before and during the pandemic, and also in terms of being diagnosed with orthorexia and covid. The increase in consumption of meat and meat products, legumes, stated by the participants; the decrease in the consumption of bread, rice, pasta, sugary drinks and sweets stated by the participants was mostly in orthorexic individuals. Considering all the participants, the highest consumption increase in vegetables and fruits, sweets, nuts, tea and coffee; in addition, it was stated by individuals that there was a decrease in consumption in bread, rice, pasta, sugary drinks and chips. Conclusion: According to the results of the study, no weight difference was found when the pre-pandemic and during the pandemic were compared. In the pandemic, it was observed that the participants and especially orthorexic individuals preferred healthier foods.