Conceptualisations of health in orthorexia nervosa: a mixed-methods study

PURPOSE: Limited research has explored conceptualisations of health and healthy eating in orthorexia nervosa (ON). This mixed-methods study aimed to investigate how ‘health’ and ‘healthy eating’ are conceptualised by individuals at risk for ON. This study examined the potential relationships between health anxiety, beliefs about health controllability and orthorexic symptomatology in our broader sample. METHODS: A total of 362 participants took a survey on health anxiety (measured with the HAQ), beliefs about the controllability of one’s own health (IMHLC) and ON symptomatology (E-DOS and EHQ). Participants ‘at risk’ for ON (n = 141), also completed an online qualitative survey about conceptualisations of health and healthy eating. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis (part A). The PROCESS macro for SPSS was used for the quantitative analysis (part B). RESULTS: Conceptualisations of health and healthy eating were complex. Four themes were generated from our qualitative data: ‘health is more than thin ideals’, ‘healthy food equals healthy mind’, ‘a body that works for you’ and ‘taking control of your body’. Our quantitative analysis revealed that health anxiety and beliefs in health controllability independently predicted ON symptomatology. CONCLUSION: A richer understanding of what health means in the context of ON is important, given the centrality of this concept to the proposed classification of this disordered eating style. Our findings highlight that both health anxiety and health controllability are important targets for future investigation, given their potential relevance to the aetiology and treatment of ON. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level V, based on a descriptive study. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40519-022-01443-1.