Exploring the relationship between orthorexia nervosa, mindful eating and guilt and shame

Orthorexia nervosa (ON) is an under-researched maladaptive eating behaviour which focuses on the quality and purity of food. Mindful eating refers to being aware of what we eat by making conscious food choices. Guilt and shame are negative self-evaluative emotions which have been associated with maladaptive eating behaviours. This study explores the relationships between ON, mindful eating, and feelings of guilt and shame.

Two hundred and fifty-two participants were recruited from various online platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. They were asked to complete self-report questionnaires on ON, mindful eating, and guilt and shame.

The findings suggested that ON was significantly negatively associated with the mindful eating subscales focused eating, hunger and satiety, and eating with awareness and significantly positively associated with guilt and shame. In addition, guilt was significantly negatively associated with focused eating, whilst both guilt and shame were significantly negatively associated with hunger and satiety and eating with awareness. Further investigation suggested that guilt and shame mediated the association between mindful eating and ON.

It was concluded that guilt and shame could explain the association between mindful eating and ON. Limitations and future directions are discussed.