ArticleEating and weight disorders : EWD2022
The #orthorexia community on Instagram.
Article in Eating and weight disorders : EWD, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 18 citations in OpenAlex.
- Social Media Addiction and Orthorexia Nervosa Tendencies in Turkish Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study of BMI and Lifestyle Factors.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Orthorexia Nervosa in Bodybuilders: Exploring a Critical Research Gap and the Role of Social Media and Self-Monitoring Applications.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Review
- The Mediating Role of Social Camouflaging on the Relationship Between Autistic Traits and Orthorexic Symptoms.Brain sciences · 2025Article
- Relationships among nutrition knowledge level, healthy eating obsessions, body image, and social media usage in females: a cross-sectional study.BMC public health · 2025Article
- The Impact of Nutrition Education, Strength Training, and Body Image Perception on Orthorexia Nervosa Risk: A Cross-Sectional Study in Women.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Review
- The Mediating Role of Attitudes Towards Eating in the Relationship Between Compulsive Instagram Use and Orthorexia in Adults.Psychology research and behavior management · 2024Article
- "Your struggles are valid, you are worthy of help and you deserve to recover": narratives of recovery from orthorexia nervosa.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeThis mixed-methods study delved into the relationship between orthorexia nervosa (ON) and Instagram.
methodsTwo quantitative data sources were used: content analysis of pictures using #orthorexia (n = 3027), and an online questionnaire investigating the experience of ON and the use of Instagram of people sharing ON-related content on Instagram (n = 185). Following, interviews (n = 9) were conducted with people posting ON-related content on Instagram and self-identifying as having (had) ON.
resultsPeople who share ON-related content on Instagram were found to be primarily young women (questionnaire = 95.2% females, mean age 26.2 years; interviews = 100% females, mean age 28.4 years), who were found to be heavy social media users and favor Instagram over other platforms. Questionnaire respondents agreed in defining ON as an obsession with a diet considered healthy, with bio-psycho-social negative consequences, though those who self-identified as having (had) ON were more likely to point out the negative impairments of ON. Interviewees deemed Instagram partially responsible for the development of ON. Instead, they agreed that Instagram encourages problem realization. Content analysis showed that ON is encoded in pictures of 'food', 'people', 'text' and 'other.' Interviewees revealed that they started posting to recover, share information, help others, and they felt inspired to post by other accounts. A sense of belonging to the #orthorexia community emerged, where people share values and ideals, and seek validation from others.
conclusionConversations around #orthorexia on Instagram generate supportive communities aiding recovery. Individuals use Instagram for helping others and themselves recovering from ON. Understanding how people help each other, manage their health, cope with symptoms, and undertake recovery can inform the implementation of therapeutic interventions for ON. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case-control analytic studies.
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