Vegetarianism, empathy towards animals and orthorexia

Zadnjih godina biljna prehrana je postala aktualna tema, zajedno sa pokretima za prava životinja i za poticanje zdrave prehrane s kojima je ona usko vezana. Izraz "biljna prehrana" odnosi se na nekoliko klasifikacija prehrane i izbora hrane, kao što su vegetarijanska, veganska, poluvegetarijanska, lakto-vegetarijanska, ovo-vegetarijanska, peskatarijanska ili fleksitarijanska. Razlozi prelaska na taj tip prehrane mogu se svrstati u tri kategorije: briga o očuvanju okoliša, o pravima životinja i briga o zdravlju. Dosadašnja istraživanja utvrdila su povezanost vegetarijanstva sa empatijom prema životinjama i ortoreksijom nervozom. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je uključiti sve tri varijable te ispitati razlike u ortoreksijskom ponašanju i empatiji prema životinjama između vegetarijanaca i svejeda, kao i između muškaraca i žena, te povezanost ortoreksije i empatije prema životinjama. Sudjelovalo je 264 ispitanika (204 žene i 60 muškaraca). Rješavan je online upitnik koji se sastojao od sociodemografskog upitnika koji je uključivao pitanje o tipu prehrane, Skale empatije prema životinjama i Inventara ortoreksije nervoze. Obradom rezultata utvrđeno je da vegetarijanci više empatiziraju prema životinjama i imaju više pokazatelja ortoreksičnog ponašanja u odnosu na svejede, te da su žene više pokazatelja empatizirale prema životinjama u odnosu na muškarce, no nema razlike u ortoreksijskom ponašanju između muškaraca i žena. Između empatije prema životinjama i ortoreksije nervoze nije utvrđena značajna korelacija, osim u skupini vegetarijanaca gdje su vegetarijanci koji su empatičniji prema životinjama imali manje pokazatelja ortoreksičnog ponašanja.In recent years, plant-based nutrition has become a current topic, together with movements for animal rights and for the promotion of healthy eating, with which it is closely related. The term "plant-based diet" refers to several classifications of diets and food choices, such as vegetarian, vegan, semi-vegetarian, lactovegetarian, ovo-vegetarian, pescatarian, or flexitarian. The reasons for switching to this type of diet can be classified into three categories: concern for the preservation of the environment, concern for animal rights, and concern for health. Previous research has established a connection between vegetarianism and empathy towards animals and orthorexia nervosa. The aim of this research was to include all three variables and to examine the differences in orthorexia behavior and empathy towards animals between vegetarians and omnivores, as well as between men and women, and the connection between orthorexia and empathy towards animals. 264 subjects participated (204 women and 60 men). An online questionnaire was administered, which consisted of a sociodemographic questionnaire that included a question about type of diet, the Empathy Scale for Animals, and the Orthorexia Nervosa Inventory. Analyzing the results, it was determined that vegetarians empathize more with animals and have more indicators of orthorexic behavior compared to omnivores and that women have more indicators of empathizing with animals compared to men, but there is no difference in orthorexic behavior between men and women. No significant correlation was found between empathy towards animals and orthorexia nervosa, except in the group of vegetarians where vegetarians who are more empathetic towards animals had fewer indicators of orthorexia behavior