Similarities and differences between eating disorders and orthorexia nervosa

Abstract

In today`s society there is an increased focus on having a healthy lifestyle and a good health. For some people, the attempt to achieve good health turns into an obsession which again may lead to an eating disorder. In recent years a new term is noticed, called orthorexia nervosa. Orthorexia is about being obsessed with healthy eating. Today there is a lot of research and literature about eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, while scientific literature concerning orthorexia nervosa is limited. The aim of this thesis was therefore, based on existing literature, to learn about orthorexia as a phenomenon and to explore the possible similarities and differences between the well-known eating disorders (anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa) and orthorexia nervosa.