Exploring the role of mindful eating and self-compassion on eating behaviours and orthorexia in people following a vegan diet

Exploration of the Mediating Role of Self-Compassion and Mindfulness on Orthorexia Nervosa and Perfectionism

Orthorexia Nervosa (ON) is characterized by an excessive preoccupation with healthy eating, accompanied by increasingly restrictive dietary practices over time. In light of the increased attention to ON, it is noteworthy that the existing body of research, specifically with regard to mindfulness and self-compassion remains constrained in scope and depth. A total of 151 participants over the age of 18 completed scales measuring Orthorexia, Self-Compassion, Mindfulness, and Perfectionism. The findings revealed that individuals exhibiting high levels of ON tended to have low levels of self-compassion and mindfulness, along with high levels of perfectionism. Furthermore, the results indicated that self-compassion and mindfulness acted as mediators in the relationship between perfectionism and orthorexia nervosa. These findings deepen our comprehension of orthorexia and underscore the role of self-compassion and mindfulness, or their absence, as mediating factors in this context. The implications of these results and potential future directions are discussed.

Assessing the presence and motivations of orthorexia nervosa among athletes and adults with eating disorders: a cross-sectional study

PURPOSE

Orthorexia nervosa involves restricting diet based on quality rather than quantity. Although orthorexia is well reported in many at-risk populations, limited data addresses its presence in individuals with eating disorder history (EDs) or athletes. We aimed to identify the presence and potential drivers of orthorexia in adults with EDs and endurance athletes, compared to control subjects.

METHODS

Participants ≥ 18y included: people with a diagnosed eating disorder (ED as per DSM-5); endurance athletes (training/competing ≥ 5 h/week); or control subjects. Participants (n = 197) completed an online survey assessing orthorexia (eating habits questionnaire, EHQ), eating motivations (TEMS-B) and compulsive exercise (CET).

RESULTS

ED had the highest orthorexia symptom severity (92.0 ± 3.02, n = 32), followed by athletes (76.2 ± 2.74, n = 54) and controls (71.0 ± 1.80, n = 111) (F (2) = 18.2, p < 0.001). A strong positive correlation existed between weight control motives and higher orthorexia symptom severity (r = 0.54, 95% CI [1.35, 2.36], p < 0.001), while a weak negative association existed between Hunger and Pleasure motives and higher orthorexia symptom severity (r = 0.23, 95% CI [- 2.24, - 0.34], p = 0.008; r = 0.26, 95% CI [- 2.11, - 0.47], p = 0.002, respectively). A moderate positive relationship was found between CET and orthorexia symptom severity (95% CI [1.52, 3.12], p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Adults with ED history and endurance athletes have greater orthorexia symptom severity compared to control. Clinicians working with at-risk populations should screen patients and be aware of red-flags of orthorexic traits, desire to control weight, and compulsive exercise behavior.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

III: Evidence obtained from cohort studies.

Mindful eating and eating behaviours in Greece: exploring the validity and reliability of two mindful eating scales and other eating behaviours for Greek-speaking populations

BACKGROUND

Mindful eating has seen an increase in clinical and non-clinical practices of changing health outcomes. Meanwhile, the restriction of not having validated scales in other languages proposes a barrier to exploring the impact of mindful eating cross-culturally, and specific to the present project, across Greek-speaking populations, limiting the potential of exploring the association with Mediterranean dieting.

METHODS

In the present research, volunteers (n = 706) completed online the Mindful Eating Behaviour Scale and the Mindful Eating Scale. A forward-backwards translation, leading to face validity, and was assessed for internal consistency (Cronbach's Alpha) and followed up by an assessment of the factorial structure of the scales. Divergent and convergent validity was explored using motivations to eat palatable foods, grazing, craving, Dusseldorf orthorexia, Salzburg emotional eating, and the Salzburg stress eating scales.

RESULTS

Results indicated that both scales displayed good internal consistency, and the assessment of the factorial structure of the scales was equally good and semi-consistent with the English versions, with parallel analyses and item loadings proposing problems that have been shown in critical review literature. Associations of mindful eating scales to other eating behaviours were replicated to previously established findings with English-speaking populations.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings that deviated from the expected outcomes are central to the discussion on the measurement of mindful eating, and further direction highlights the way forward for researchers and clinicians.

LEVEL V

Descriptive studies.

Exploring the moderating role of mindfulness, mindful eating, and self-compassion on the relationship between eating-disordered quality of life and orthorexia nervosa

Orthorexia nervosa (ON) is characterised by an obsessive focus on healthy eating, following restrictive dietary practices and dietary restrictions escalating over time. The aim of this study was to explore mindfulness, mindful eating, self-compassion and quality of life in a female population. Two hundred eighty-eight participants completed Orthorexia, Self-Compassion, Mindful eating, Mindfulness and Eating Disorder Quality of Life scales. The results indicated that there was a negative relationship between ON and mindfulness, self-compassion and mindful eating. Furthermore, the present study found a positive relationship between lower quality of life and ON, while findings indicated that self-compassion and the awareness facet of mindfulness moderated the relationship between ON and QOL. The present results contribute to a better understanding of orthorexic eating behaviours in a female population, and identify the moderating capacity of self-compassion and mindfulness. Further implications and future directions are discussed.Level of evidence Level V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

Exploring the association of body mass index, mindful and emotional eating, and orthorexia

BACKGROUND

Orthorexia nervosa (ON) is defined as a fixation on healthy eating behaviours. Research exploring ON and body mass index (BMI) has been inconsistent, with some findings indicating a positive relationship between ON and BMI, while other studies have suggested no relationship. To date, potential associations with emotional and mindful eating have been explored only in a vegan population. The present research adopted an exploratory approach and examined the relationship between orthorexia and BMI, and possible associations with emotional and mindful eating. The potential predictive value of mindful and emotional eating with respect to ON was also explored, while the role of four different types of emotional eating (happiness, sadness, anger, anxiety), utilising an emotional eating scale incorporating positive and negative emotions, was further explored.

PARTICIPANTS AND PROCEDURE

Two hundred and twenty-three participants completed the online survey that was distributed via social media to a British sample.

RESULTS

The findings suggested a negative correlation between ON and BMI. Participants who presented higher levels of orthorexia were more likely to display higher levels of focused eating, a central aspect of mindful eating, as well as lower levels of emotional eating in response to happiness - two elements that further predicted ON in multiple regression models.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggest a need to conduct further research to explore the possible role of happiness as a potential protective tool against ON, and further suggest the likely negative role of some components of mindful eating in ON. Future directions are discussed in light of the present findings.