title: Organivore or organorexic? Examining the relationship between alternative food network engagement, disordered eating, and special diets.
abstract: The alternative food network (AFN) refers to connections between consumers, producers, and sellers of organic, local/regional, "sustainably grown," and other artisanal and niche food not produced by the conventional system (Goodman & Goodman, 2007). Alternative foods are often viewed as the "right" consumption choice while conventional counterparts are positioned as ethically "wrong." A moral positioning of food, avoidance of certain food groups, and anxiety elicited by food consumption choices bears similarities to disordered eating behaviors (Hesse-Biber, Leavy, Quinn, & Zoino, 2006), including a newly proposed eating syndrome, orthorexia nervosa (ON; Vandereycken, 2011; Zamora, Bonaechea, Sánchez, & Rial, 2005). This study examines the relationship among engagement in the AFN, disordered eating behaviors, and special diets. We hypothesized that individuals with higher AFN engagement would be more likely report disordered eating behaviors as well as to follow a special diet. Adult men and women (N = 284) completed a series of measures assessing engagement in the AFN and eating behaviors. We found that individuals with higher AFN engagement were more likely to report ON tendencies but not significantly likely to engage in other disordered eating behaviors. Individuals following a special diet were significantly more engaged in the AFN, more likely to report ON tendencies, and more likely to self-report an eating disorder. Our findings suggest that the most engaged consumers participate in the AFN for the purported benefits reaped by society and the environment and not to moderate their consumption or mask disordered eating behaviors. Future research should prospectively explore associations between AFN engagement, ON and disordered eating behaviors, and special diets as well as consider the utility of incorporating AFN engagement into existing disordered eating prevention programs.
authors.affiliation: Furman University, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Greenville, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Michaela J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Barnett
authors.affiliation: Furman University, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Greenville, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Weston R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Dripps
authors.affiliation: Furman University, Department of Psychology, Greenville, SC, USA. Electronic address: kerstin.blomquist@furman.edu.
authors.forename: Kerstin K
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Blomquist
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D000072001:Diet, Healthy / Q000523:psychology; D004435:Eating / Q000523:psychology*; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D058870:Food, Organic; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Alternative food network; Diets; Disordered eating; Orthorexia