Orthorexia Nervosa in medical school students

Objective: The term orthorexia nervosa is used to define a pathological fixation related to the consumption of healthy foods. It is hypothesized that orthorexia nervosa shares certain phenomenological characteristics with other mental disorders such as anorexia nervosa, obsessive-compulsive disorder, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, somatic symptom disorder, illness anxiety disorder, and psychotic disorders. This study aims to evaluate the tendency towards orthorexia nervosa and related factors among medical students. Method: The study was conducted at the Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic of Çukurova University Medical Faculty and the Dean's Office unit of Çukurova University Medical Faculty. Socio-demographic Data Form, ORTO-11 Scale, Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Questionnaire, Orthorexia Nervosa Inventory, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, and Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale were administered to both groups. Results: A total of 208 participants, including 104 students and 104 controls, were included in the study. Among the participants, 55 students were female (52.9%) and 49 were male (47.1%), while among the control group, 59 were female (56.7%) and 45 were male (43.3%). When evaluating the data on exercise, diet, and following nutrition-related programs on social media in the student group, it was found that females had a significantly higher rate of following nutrition-related programs on social media compared to males (p: 0.008). No significant difference was observed in exercise and diet implementation in the student group (p: 0.734, p: 0.151, respectively). In the control group, females had a significantly higher rate of following nutrition-related programs on social media compared to males (p: 0.004). No significant difference was observed in exercise and diet implementation in the control group (p: 0.072, p: 0.302, respectively). The correlation between the administered scales was examined. A significant correlation was found between the ORTO-11 scale and the Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Questionnaire (MOCQ) (p: 0.001). A significant correlation was found between the Orthorexia Nervosa Inventory (ONI) and the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (p: 0.041). When the MOCQ Subscales were separately evaluated in the student and control groups, no significant difference was observed in the total score of MOCQ and the control and slowness subscales between students and the control group (p: 0.381, p: 0.380, 0.393, respectively). The cleanliness subscale of MOCQ was significantly higher in the control group (p: 0.022), the doubt subscale was significantly higher in the control group (p: 0.001), and the rumination subscale was significantly higher in the student group (p: 0.001). Conclusion: Orthorexia nervosa was found to be influenced by factors such as following a specific diet, following diet programs on social media, spending time on social media, health concerns and preoccupations. There was no difference in orthorexia nervosa tendency based on physical activity, smoking, and gender. The prominence of obsessive traits showed a positive relationship between female individuals and the following of diet programs on social media in relation to orthorexia nervosa. Keywords: nutrition and eating disorders, social media, orthorexia nervosa, medical students.