Tine Opitz

MRF Research Fellow and Postdoctoral Research Fellow for EDIFY

Contact details

Address

Street

School of Health in Social Science | University of Edinburgh
Rm 2.05 | Wilkie Building

City
Edinburgh
Post code
EH8 9AJ

Biography

Background

After a BSc in Psychology at the Ruprecht-Karls Universität in Heidelberg and graduating from the Goethe-Universität in Frankfurt with an MSc in Clinical and Educational Psychology, I came to Edinburgh for an MSc in Social Anthropology. Striving to combine socio-cultural perspectives with clinical research and practice, I began a PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Edinburgh. After completing my PhD in 2023, I am now working as an MRF research fellow to investigate the associations between Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) and eating disorders. Additionally, I am working as a part-time postdoctoral research fellow for EDIFY, a project that aims to delineate eating disorder illness and recovery trajectories to inform personalised prevention and early intervention in young people.

Qualifications

Associate Fellow for teaching and learning support in higher education  (AFHEA)

Responsibilities & affiliations

Co-Founder of the Early Career Researchers in Eating Disorders Network 

Postgraduate teaching

Teaching Fellow at Moray House in Developmental Psychology in Education within the Institute for Education, Community and Society

Past PhD students supervised

Supervision of nine MSc students (MSc in Education - General and Child and Adolescent Psychology pathways)

Research summary

During my PhD, I investigated the conceptualising of orthorexia nervosa, using a multiperspective approach to explore excessive health concerns and disordered eating in a culture of health preoccupation. My current research interests focus on the associations between eating disorders and PCOS, general eating disorder risk factors, interdisciplinary research approaches, and innovative analysis techniques. 

Current research interests

Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating; PCOS; Eating Behaviours; Body Image; Socio-Cultural Research; Health Psychology

Knowledge exchange

Author of the 'Research Bow' Blog Post - "Research Reflection Inspired by World Vegan Day" 

https://blogs.ed.ac.uk/research-bow/research-reflection-inspired-by-world-vegan-day/

Organiser of the blog seris "Learnings From the Research Process", organised as part of the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) ‘Adolescents Mental Health and Developing Mind’ initiative

https://www.inspirethemind.org/amhdm-series 

Affiliated research centres

Current project grants

Medical Research Foundation Launchpad Grant: Investigating the association between polycystic ovary syndrome and eating disorder symptoms (https://www.medicalresearchfoundation.org.uk/projects/investigating-the-...)

Past project grants

Transnational Access Grant funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (awarded May 2024): fostering international collaborations in longitudinal data research to support a research exchange with University College Dublin

UKRI ‘Adolescence, Mental Health and Developing Mind’ Early Career Researcher – networking and knowledge dissemination award (awarded February 2024): fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and ECR training

Research Bow editorial team: Student Experience Grant

ConveRACEions team: Social Responsibility and Sustainability Student Project Grant and Student Experience Grant

Principal’s Career Development PhD Scholarship (awarded September 2018)

Conference details

  • Poster presentation at the Eating Disorders Research Society (EDRS) conference September 2024: "Investigating the longitudinal bi-directional relationship between self-reported restrictive eating behaviours and sleep in UK adolescents within the Millennium Cohort Study"
  • Oral presentation at the Appearance Matter Conference June 2024: "Bullying Victimisation and Adolescent Body Dissatisfaction Among Marginalised Youths"
  • Oral presentation at the SupportED event "10 Years of Making a Different" May 2024: "The Association Between Disordered Eating and Sleep in Non-Clinical Populations—A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis"
  • Presentation at the Lothian Health and Care Professions Research Conference November 2023: "The Minefield of Health"
  • Poster presentation at the International Conference on Eating Disorders (ICED) June 2022: "Healthy Eating in the Context of Disordered Eating – UK Mental Health Professionals’ Conceptualizations of Orthorexia Nervosa"
  • Paper presentation at the International Conference on Eating Disorders (ICED) June 2021: "A qualitative exploration of the impact of COVID-19 on individuals with eating disorders in the UK"
  • Poster presentation at the Eating Disorders International Conferece (EDIC) January 2021: "The psychometric properties of Orthorexia Nervosa-assessment-scales: a systematic review"
  • Poster presentation at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the NRS Mental Health Network November 2020: "Understanding Characteristics and Perceived Causes of Orthorexia – A Reddit Analysis"
  • Oral presentation at the Edinburgh University PGR HSS Conference September 2020: "Understanding Characteristics and Perceived Causes of Orthorexia – A Reddit Analysis"
  • Poster presentation at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the NRS Mental Health Network October 2019: "The Psychometric Properties of Orthorexia Nervosa Assessment Scales: A Systematic Review"
  • Oral presentation at the Edinburgh University PGR HSS Conference May 2019: "Orthorexic Society or Orthorexia Nervosa? Looking into the phenomenon of obsessive healthy eating"

Organiser

  • Co-organiser of two ECR networking events to provide opportunities for knowledge exchange in the field of eating disorders (2023 & 2025)
  • Co-organiser of a science communication workshop for early career researchers funded under the "Adolescence, Mental Health and the Developing Mind" (AMHDM) initiative (2024)
  • Co-organiser of the Edinburgh University - School of Health in Social Science - Postgraduate Research Conference (2020)

Opitz, M. C., Cooney, S., Trompeter, N., Desrivieres, S., Micali, N., Schmidt, U., & Sharpe, H. (2024). Investigating the prospective relationship between weight loss behaviours and sleep in adolescents from the Growing Up in Ireland cohort. European Eating Disorders Review. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.70045

Moody, S., Ross, L., Opitz, M. C., Hemmings, A., İnce, B., Bryson, C., Kuehne, C., Douglas, D., Phillips, M., Langhorne, V., Schmidt, U., & Sharpe, H. (2025). Associations Between the Use of Fitness and Diet Tracking Technology and Disordered Eating Behaviour: A Systematic Review. European eating disorders review : the journal of the Eating Disorders Association, 10.1002/erv.70006. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.70006

Opitz, M. C., Trompeter, N., Rabelo-da-Ponte, F. D., Carroll, M., Buchan, K., Gaggioni, G., Moody, S., Desrivieres, S., Micali, N., Schmidt, U., & Sharpe, H. (2024). The Association between Disordered Eating and Sleep in Non-Clinical Populations – A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of sleep research, e70117. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.70117

Opitz, M. C., Gaggioni, G., Trompeter, N., Rabelo-da-Ponte, F. D., Desrivieres, S., Micali, N., Schmidt, U., & Sharpe, H. (2024). Investigating the Longitudinal Bi-Directional Relationship between Restrictive-Type Disordered Eating and Sleep in UK Adolescents within the Millennium Cohort Study. European child & adolescent psychiatry, 34(8), 2405–2416. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-025-02641-9

Trompeter, N., Dârvariu, Ș., Brieva-Toloza, A. V., Opitz, M. C., Rabelo-da-Ponte, F. D., Sharpe, H., ... & Micali, N. (2024). The prospective relationship between anxiety symptoms and eating disorder symptoms among adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis of a bi-directional relationship. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 1-28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-024-02601-9

Donini, L. M., Barrada, J. R., Barthels, F., Dunn, T. M., Babeau, C., Brytek-Matera, A., ... Opitz, M. C. … & Lombardo, C. (2022). A consensus document on definition and diagnostic criteria for orthorexia nervosa. Eating and Weight Disorders-Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity, 327(8), 3695-3711. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-022-01512-5

Opitz, M. C., Newman, E., & Sharpe, H. (2022). Understanding Perceived Characteristics and Causes of Orthorexia Nervosa in Online Communities – A Reddit Analysis. Cyberpsychology. https://doi.org/10.5817/CP2022-5-6

Sharpe, H., Newman, E., Robertson, M. D., Opitz, M. C., Peebles, I., & Duffy, F. (2022). An 8-month longitudinal exploration of body image and disordered eating in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eating behaviors, 46, 101660. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2022.101660

Brown*, S., Opitz*, M. C., Peebles*, A. I., Sharpe, H., Duffy, F., & Newman, E. (2021). A qualitative exploration of the impact of COVID-19 on individuals with eating disorders in the UK. Appetite, 156, 104977. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2020.104977     *co-first authors

Opitz, M. C., Newman, E., Mellado, A. S. A. V., Robertson, M. D., & Sharpe, H. (2020). The psychometric properties of orthorexia nervosa assessment scales: a systematic review and reliability generalization. Appetite, 155, 104797. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2020.104797

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