Evaluation of Exercise Addiction and Orthorexia Nervosa Among Individuals Attending Fitness Centers: Insights from an Adult Population Study

Abstract

Aim: This study aimed to determine the emotional eating status and orthorexia nervosa tendencies of 87 individuals aged 18–65 who had been attending fitness centers in the city center of Kirklareli for at least three months, and to examine their association with exercise addiction. Materials and Methods: Through a structured questionnaire, data on participants’ general characteristics, nutritional and physical activity habits, and body mass index (BMI) measurements were collected. The Exercise Addiction Scale (EAS-17) was employed to assess exercise addiction, the ORTO-11 scale to evaluate orthorexia nervosa, and the Emotional Eating Scale (EES) to measure emotional eating behaviors. Results: The mean age of the participants was 27.07± 8.66 years (Median: 24, Min: 18, Max: 52); 56.3% were male, 74.7% were single, and 65.5% had a high school education or lower. According to the EAS cut-off points, 4.6% were at low risk, 49.6% at risk, 42.5% addicted, and 3.4% highly addicted. A statistically significant difference was observed between waist circumference and the mean scores of the “Excessive Focus” and “Mood Alteration” subscales of EAS (p=0.001). Based on EES cut-off points, 34.5% of the adults were found to be low, 44.8% moderate, and 4.6% very high emotional eaters. No statistically significant relationship was observed between total EAS scores and total or subscale EES scores (p>0.05). Similarly, no statistically significant association was found between total and subscale EAS scores and ORTO-11 total scores (p>0.05). Discussion: The results of this study demonstrated that, among a substantial proportion of individuals engaged in exercise, no relationship was found between exercise addiction and tendencies toward orthorexia or emotional eating. Conclusion: It is considered beneficial for future studies to be conducted with larger sample sizes. © 2025 Sociedad espanola de dietetica. All rights reserved.