Do I Have Orthorexia? Online Quiz

Orthorexia nervosa (ON) is one of the lesser-known eating disorders. It’s not “formally” recognized in the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), which can make it difficult to diagnose or understand, even for those going through it. But it can still lead to a number of physical, emotional, and mental health complications.

If you’re worried that your eating habits may be starting to get away from you or are bordering on a disorder, taking a “Do I have orthorexia?” quiz may help you clarify the situation or understand when it’s time to seek out help.

How Accurate is an Orthorexia Quiz?

The accuracy of any online quiz depends on many factors.

First, ensuring the quiz comes from a website you trust is important. Basing these quizzes on actual scientific information rather than the opinions of a non-professional writer, is paramount.

But you are the most significant factor in how accurate an online quiz results will be. Answering questions honestly is the best way to ensure your results are as true to your experience as possible. This goes even for cases when the most honest answer may feel uncomfortable.

Still, online quizzes can only go so far. While they may help point out particular behaviors or patterns, even the best online quizzes are never meant to replace a real-life assessment or consultation with a medical professional.

If you’re concerned about your eating behaviors or think you or a loved one may have orthorexia nervosa, regardless of your test results, you should seek out help from a therapist or your primary care physician.

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What to Do if I Have Orthorexia?

If a “Do I have orthorexia?” quiz or even if a medical professional tells you you have orthorexia nervosa, it’s important not to get discouraged. Treatment for the condition is very much available, and recovery is always possible.

Regardless of your quiz results, if you’re concerned about your eating habits, you should speak with your primary care physician or another trusted medical professional, like your therapist. These experts will be able to give you a thorough assessment and let you know if they’re concerned about your behavior or help you determine your next best steps.

An official diagnosis is often the first step toward getting specified help. Once you have that, you can look into treatment programs and work with your insurance company on coverage options for your care.

But regardless of where you turn to seek out help, the most important thing is looking for it. Talking with a medical professional can help you better understand what’s going on and give you better tools for dealing with unhelpful feelings, which can clear the way for a healthier and happier future.

What is Orthorexia?

Eating disorders are considered mental health conditions for a reason. Though they often have very real physical effects, the issue primarily lies in the mind, particularly in the way someone thinks about food, eating, and their body. When it comes to orthorexia, it’s especially important to keep that in mind.

Orthorexia nervosa involves an obsession with healthy eating, often coupled with an extreme fear of weight gain. [1] People with this condition also frequently feel upset if they can’t eat what they want or if they must eat something they consider “unhealthy.” [1] Often, these behaviors are accompanied by strict food rules, such as leaving out entire food groups in an attempt to eat “only” healthy food.

The obsessive tendencies involved in ON are what makes it a form of disordered eating, even if someone is eating food that’s good for them. Generally, behavior is considered part of a disorder once it starts consistently interfering with everyday life.

5 Warning Signs of Orthorexia

ON can be very hard to spot. People with this condition often present in “normal”-sized or even fit or athletic bodies. And because they eat only foods generally considered healthy, their behavior is frequently overlooked or even praised. But the issue is not in what they’re eating, but why.

Again, with all eating disorders, there’s a fine line between eating behaviors that are unhelpful and those that are part of a disorder. A “Do I have orthorexia?” quiz can help make that line a bit sharper.

Treatment for Orthorexia

There are several approaches for treating orthorexia nervosa.

Psychological therapy and education are the most common types of care for the condition. Many types of therapy can help build a healthier relationship with food, but for ON, a kind of treatment called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) may be particularly effective. [3]

Based on the idea that disordered thoughts drive disordered behaviors, CBT attempts to help patients understand and recognize those unhelpful thought patterns and then supply them with strategies to change these thoughts and, therefore, behaviors. [3]

Nutritional counseling has also been found valuable as care for ON. These specialized educational sessions help people with this condition understand the value of certain nutrients and a balanced diet and work with them on other possibly related issues, such as a fixation on weight loss or poor body image. [3]

Orthorexia vs. Anorexia

In some cases, orthorexia nervosa can mimic anorexia nervosa (AN). Both are generally thought of as restrictive disorders, meaning people who struggle with them restrict foods as their primary coping mechanism.

The two can also resemble each other in other ways, including eliminating certain foods from their diet, a fixation on nutritional labels, or developing strange rituals around food or eating.

The primary distinction is why people with ON act this way compared to people with AN. While orthorexia nervosa focuses on restricting foods based on their quality, anorexia nervosa frames the need to restrict food based on its quantity. [1]