Análise do comportamento de risco para ortorexia nervosa em estudantes de Nutrição da UFPB

Abstract

Orthorexia can be defined as a new eating disorder, characterized by an obsession for healthy eating. It is not yet classified as an Official Eating Disorder, as it does not (yet) have diagnostic criteria established and defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Several studies indicate that a large number of nutrition students have at risk behaviors for the development of orthorexia. Thus, the objective of the present study was to identify the prevalence of risk behavior for orthorexia in Nutrition students of the Federal University of Paraíba. The study was descriptive and transversal, participating in the research Nutrition students 18 years of age or older. Three instruments were applied, with the first questionnaire aimed at obtaining information on age, height and weight (BMI calculated by the researchers), and the period of the course, as well as a specific question about the reason for choosing the Nutrition course. The second was used to identify body image disorder, according to the scale of silhouettes. The third was used to verify the risk behavior for the development of orthorexia nervosa (Orto-15). 83 students with a mean of 21.09 years participated in the study, 81.9% female. Among the subjects evaluated, 71.1% were in the eutrophic range according to the BMI classification. Regarding the perception of the body image, it was verified that 53% of the students presented body image disorder. As to orthorexia, it was observed that 57.8% of the students presented a risk behavior of orthorexia. Therefore, it was concluded that a representative number of students in the course of nutrition presents the risk of developing orthorexia.