Investigation of endocrine and cerebral response and nutrition and physical performance parameters according to bigorexia nervosa levels: a cross-sectional study in sports sciences faculty students

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of Bigorexia nervosa (BGN) levels on endocrine (Asprosin, GLP-1) and cerebral (BDNF) responses and nutritional and physical (6MWT, Six-Minute Walk Test)), speed, metabolic equivalent unit (MET)) performance parameters in students of the faculty of sports sciences. This study investigated muscle dysmorphic disorder (MDD), physical activity levels, and specific hormonal markers in 120 university students (63 females, 57 males) aged 18-25 years, all studying sport sciences and reporting no existing health problems. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, food frequency questionnaire and the Muscle Dysmorphic Disorder (Bigorexia) Inventory through face-to-face interviews. Physical activity was assessed using the 6-Minute Walk Test (6MWT) to measure walking distance, and Metabolic Equivalent (MET) was calculated based on the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) formula. Body Mass Index (BMI) was determined from anthropometric measurements of height and body weight. Saliva samples were collected to analyze Asprosin, BDNF, and GLP-1 hormone levels using the ELISA technique.Data were analyzed using number, percentage, mean, chi-square, t-test, Pearson correlation, and ANOVA tests. In all analyses, significance was accepted as p < 0.05. According to the demographic findings of the study, the majority of participants (64.2%) were third-year students, and 52.5% were female. The mean age of the participants was 22.01 years, the mean height was 168.59 cm, and the mean weight was 62.61 kg. 73.3% of the individuals were classified as normal weight, 12.5% as pre-obese, 11.7% as underweight, and 2.5% as obese. Men had significantly higher bigorexia and its subscale scores than women (p < 0.05), and bigorexia was positively correlated with height and negatively correlated with BMI (p < 0.01). Mean salivary BDNF levels were higher in participants consuming 1-2 meals per day (p = 0.035), and mean salivary asprosin levels were significantly higher in the obese group compared to the healthy group (p = 0.008). Additionally, a strong positive correlation was found between asprosin and GLP1 levels (r = 0.585; p < 0.01). Bigorexia status was significantly associated with meat, meat products, and fat consumption (p < 0.05), while no association was found with physical performance parameters such as 6MWT, speed, and MET (p > 0.05). The average MET value was found to be 4.53, indicating that participants generally engaged in moderate-intensity physical activity. In conclusion, examining endocrine (asprosin, GLP-1) and cerebral (BDNF) hormone responses, as well as nutritional and physical performance parameters, according to BGN levels reveals the impact of BGN on physiological and nutritional behaviors. Given the impact of BGN trends on students' health, examining hormone profiles and their relationships with physical performance and nutrition is believed to significantly contribute to understanding the health problems associated with BGN and developing appropriate interventions.