Background. Although the phenomenon of orthorexia is widespread, its prevalence is hard to estimate. The aim of the study was to attempt to determine the occurrence of orthorexia in the study group and to assess the associations between selected risk factors and the prevalence of orthorexia. The survey was conducted in April 2023 among students of the Faculty of Health  Sciences of the Academy of Applied Sciences in Nowy Sącz and via social media. A diagnostic survey method was employed using a questionnaire technique developed by the authors and the  ORTO-15 questionnaire. Two cut-off points of < 40 and < 35 points were used. The Mann-Whitney U test, the Chi-Square test of independence and Cronbach’s alpha were carried out to analyse  the results.
Results and conclusions. The prevalence of orthorexia nervosa for a cut-off point of < 40 points was estimated at 77.78 %. Lowering the cut-off point to < 35 points resulted in a decrease in the  prevalence of orthorexia in the study group to 24.69 %. For a cut-off point of < 40 points, a statistically significant relationship was obtained between the presence of orthorexia and the presence of chronic diseases. For a cutoff point of < 35 points, statistically significant relationships were obtained between the prevalence of orthorexia and BMI and between the presence of orthorexia  and complaints. The other factors were not significantly different for any of the assumed cut-off points. Based on the results, the authors emphasize the need for further research on the use and  creation of the useful adaptation of the ORTO-15 test in determining the prevalence and risk factors of orthorexia.