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Constructing Moral Selves Through Food: A Qualitative Study of Orthorexic Eating Practices in the UK
by Panagiota Tragantzopoulou 1,*ORCID,Elina Mitrofanova 2ORCID andVaitsa Giannouli 3ORCID
1
School of Social Sciences, University of Westminster, London W1B 2HW, UK
2
School of Human Sciences, University of Greenwich, London SE10 9LS, UK
3
School of Psychology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Behav. Sci. 2026, 16(6), 997; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs16060997 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 27 March 2026 / Revised: 1 May 2026 / Accepted: 11 June 2026 / Published: 15 June 2026
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Body Image and Disordered Eating: Psychosocial, Cultural, Cognitive and Clinical Perspectives)
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Abstract
Contemporary health cultures increasingly promote disciplined eating and bodily optimisation, contributing to growing interest in orthorexia nervosa (ON), a pattern of restrictive eating characterised by an obsessive focus on food purity and health. While ON has been widely studied in relation to dietary restriction and health anxiety, less attention has been given to how individuals themselves construct meaning around these practices. The present qualitative study aimed to explore how individuals displaying orthorexic tendencies construct moral identity and self-worth through their dietary practices. Eighteen participants (13 women, 5 men; aged 19–58) living in the United Kingdom who self-identified as “healthy eaters” took part in semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis within a social constructionist framework. Four themes were generated: (1) The Disciplined Self, describing how strict dietary practices were framed as evidence of personal control and self-regulation; (2) The Body as Evidence of Purity and Health, where physical appearance and bodily feelings were interpreted as confirmation of moral and dietary correctness; (3) Ethical Eating and Moral Positioning, illustrating how participants positioned their food choices as ethically superior; and (4) Guilt and Moral Repositioning, highlighting the moral emotions that followed perceived dietary transgressions. These findings suggest that orthorexic eating practices function not only as health behaviours but also as moral performances through which individuals construct disciplined, responsible, and virtuous identities. Understanding these moral and identity dimensions may help situate orthorexic tendencies within broader sociocultural narratives surrounding health, morality, and self-discipline. |
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