Factors associated with adherence to a Mediterranean diet in adolescents from La Rioja (Spain)

Is higher adherence to the mediterranean diet associated with greater academic performance in children and adolescents? A systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the present study was to synthesize the available evidence from the relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) and academic performance in children and adolescents.

METHODS

A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted, which adhered to the guidelines outlined in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. Four electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library) were examined from inception to April 8th, 2024.

RESULTS

Eighteen studies were included in the current systematic review and sixteen in the meta-analysis. The relationship between adherence to the MedDiet and academic performance among children and adolescents was statistically significant (Pearson's correlation coefficient [r] = 0.17, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.14 to 0.21, p < 0.001; inconsistency index [I2] = 56.7%). The influence analysis revealed that removing individual studies one at a time did not result in any changes to the overall results (p < 0.05 in all cases).

CONCLUSIONS

A higher adherence to the MedDiet could play a relevant role in academic performance among children and adolescents.

Are physical activity and/or adherence to the Mediterranean diet determinants of the changes found in kinanthropometric variables, body composition and physical fitness in adolescents?

The practice of physical activity and adherence to the Mediterranean diet (AMD) have been extensively studied for their relationship with kinanthropometric, body composition and physical fitness variables. However, no previous study has analyzed whether these healthy habits are equally determinant for the differences found in kinanthropometric, body composition and physical fitness variables or, on the contrary, if one of them is more relevant. For this reason, the objectives of the present study were: (1) to analyze the differences in kinanthropometric, body composition, and physical fitness variables between adolescents with different levels of physical activity and AMD, and (2) to determine whether physical activity and/or AMD are predictors of differences in kinanthropometric variables, body composition or physical fitness in adolescents. The sample consisted of 791 adolescents (404 males and 387 females; mean age: 14.39±1.26 year-old) whose physical activity level, AMD, kinanthropometric variables, body composition and physical fitness, were measured. The results showed differences when considering the level of physical activity in kinanthropometric variables, body composition and physical fitness, but not the level of AMD, which was relevant only when it was poor, and the adolescents were inactive. Nevertheless, the AMD did not seem to exert such a determining effect as to produce significant differences on its own. On the other hand, the practice of physical activity did act as a predictor mainly of changes in the fitness variables. Therefore, the main novelty of the present study is the establishment of an order of importance of the healthy habits acquired by adolescents, concluding that the practice of physical activity is more determinant for the differences found in the study variables.

Mediterranean diet adherence and sleep pattern: a systematic review of observational studies

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Despite a huge body of evidence on the linkage between dietary intakes and pattern of sleeping, the findings are controversial. The current study aimed to summarize earlier findings on the association between adherence to Mediterranean diet (MD) and pattern of sleeping.

METHODS

This study performed based on PRISMA guideline. Systematically search was applied in PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar to find out relevant publications appeared up to February 2023. No restrictions on language and time of publication were applied. Duplicate citations were removed. We included observational studies which assessed MD as the main exposure and kind of sleep disorders as the main outcome.

RESULTS

A total of 20 observational studies included. Out of these studies, two were cohort studies and 18 had a cross-sectional design. A total of 21,714 participants included. Usual dietary intakes were assessed using a validated Food Frequency Questionnaire, and a diet history questionnaire. Some studies did not report methods of measuring habitual dietary intakes. Adherence to MD was evaluated by KIDMED questionnaire, PREMED, alternate Mediterranean (aMed) questionnaire, MEDAS questionnaire, MedDietScore, MEDI-LITE score, modified Mediterranean Diet Score (mMDS), Mediterranean food pattern (MFP) and modified Mediterranean diet score (mMED). Pattern of sleeping was examined as sleep quality, sleep duration, sleep latency, sleep efficacy, sleepiness, sleep disturbance, taking a nap and some other sleep disorders.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, findings of published studies highlighted the importance of consumption of MD for better sleep quality.

Factors associated with Mediterranean diet adherence in a sample of high socio-economic status children from southern Spain

OBJECTIVE

The present study examined the association of BMI, fat mass, physical activity engagement (PA), maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max), screen time and academic performance (AP) with Mediterranean diet (MD) adherence in a sample of high socio-economic status (SES) children.

DESIGN

A non-randomised design was used. A multilinear regression model was developed using backward elimination. Analysis included variables pertaining to age, BMI, VO2max, fat percentage, AP, PA engagement and screen time. All participants had a high SES and so this variable was not included as a predictor. Data met the assumptions required for multiple regressions in terms of linearity, homoscedasticity, normality, independence and non-multicollinearity.

SETTING

Two state and three mixed funding schools in Granada, Spain.

PARTICIPANTS

Data were collected from 244 children aged between 10 and 12 years.

RESULTS

Better AP, higher PA engagement and lower screen time were found to be predictive of MD adherence. These variables explained 22·9 % of the variance in data measuring adolescent MD adherence.

CONCLUSIONS

The present study suggests that, in addition to SES, PA, AP and screen time are important components to consider when targeting improvements in MD adherence in children. It is, therefore, concluded that interventions targeting improvements in PA, AP and screen time are needed to promote MD adherence in children, regardless of SES.

Physical Activity and Eating Behavior Inequalities Mediating the Effects of Socioeconomic Status and Sex on Adolescent Quality of Life: Insights of the PRALIMAP Trial

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to quantify the 2-year mediating effects of physical activity (PA) and eating behavior (EB) on socioeconomic and sex inequalities in quality of life (QoL) among French adolescents.

METHODS

Adolescents from a 2-year school-based trial were included. PA and EB were assessed at baseline, 1 year, and 2 years using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire and an eating habits questionnaire, respectively. QoL was measured at 2 years using the Duke Health Profile questionnaire. The mediating effect of adherence to PA and EB guidelines in the associations between socioeconomic status or sex and QoL was analyzed with a counterfactual method.

RESULTS

Among the 3562 included adolescents (mean age, 15.2 [0.6] y), being a boy and having a high socioeconomic status was associated with high QoL. Differences in QoL by socioeconomic status were mediated by adherence to guidelines for PA (up to 10.2%) and EB (up to 8.8%), and differences in QoL by sex were predominantly mediated by adherence to guidelines for PA (up to 163.8%).

CONCLUSIONS

Policies, programs, and interventions designed to reduce socioeconomic and sex inequalities in QoL among adolescents could use PA and EB as leverage.

Mediterranean Diet in Developmental Age: A Narrative Review of Current Evidences and Research Gaps

Numerous studies in recent decades have shown that Mediterranean diet (MD) can reduce the risk of developing obesity in pediatric patients. The current narrative review summarizes recent evidence regarding the impact of MD across the different stages of child development, starting from fetal development, analyzing breastfeeding and weaning, through childhood up to adolescence, highlighting the gaps in knowledge for each age group. A literature search covering evidence published between 1 January 2000 and 1 March 2022 and concerning children only was conducted using multiple keywords and standardized terminology in PubMed database. A lack of scientific evidence about MD adherence concerns the age group undergoing weaning, thus between 6 months and one year of life. In the other age groups, adherence to MD and its beneficial effects in terms of obesity prevention has been extensively investigated, however, there are still few studies that correlate this dietary style with the incidence of non-communicable diseases. Furthermore, research on multi-intervention strategy should be implemented, especially regarding the role of education of children and families in taking up this healthy dietary style.

Mediterranean diet and adiposity in children and adolescents: A systematic review

Our aim was to summarize, through a systematic review, the current evidence from dietary intervention and observational studies on the impact of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on adiposity markers and obesity in children and adolescents. We searched Medline up to June 1, 2021 for the identification of intervention and observational studies meeting the inclusion criteria, following the PRISMA statement. We included 55 articles: 8 intervention studies and 47 observational studies. Three trials report a beneficial effect of the dietary intervention, whereas two did not, and three did not compare with a control. All observational studies were cross-sectional, and only five studies also included a longitudinal analysis. More than half of the cross-sectional studies found no significant association between adherence to Mediterranean diet and adiposity. Three out of the five longitudinal studies found a negative association. The majority of both observational and intervention studies was of low quality. Despite a large number of published studies, overall, there is only limited evidence of a beneficial effect of following a traditional Mediterranean diet to maintain a healthy body weight in childhood. More high-quality intervention and longitudinal data are needed to form the base of large-scale health programs to prevent childhood obesity.

Dietary patterns and health-related quality of life among Iranian adolescents

PURPOSE

Examining the associations of a-posteriori-defined dietary patterns and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among Iranian adolescents.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted among 900 apparently healthy students (mean age 15.33 years; 53.0% female) during 2020-21. The validated Persian version of self-report Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ Version 4.0 Generic Core Scales (PedsQL) for healthy adolescents was used in an online survey to assess HRQOL. Total, physical health, psychosocial health, emotional functioning, social functioning, and school functioning PedsQL scores were calculated, and impaired HRQOL was defined as > 1 standard deviation below the total population sample mean PedsQL scores. A validated food frequency questionnaire was used to assess dietary intakes during telephone interviews. Daily intakes of 20 predefined food groups were calculated and submitted to the principal component factor analysis to identify a-posteriori-defined dietary patterns.

RESULTS

Three major dietary patterns labeled as Mediterranean, mixed, and unhealthy were identified, of which only the Mediterranean pattern characterized by high intakes of vegetables, fruits, olives, potatoes, eggs, nuts and legumes, pickles, low-fat dairy, fish, poultry, and vegetable oils was consistently associated with HRQOL. Controlling for covariates in the multivariable-adjusted binary logistic regression analysis, participants in the top tertile of Mediterranean pattern score were less likely to have impaired HRQOL than those in the bottom tertile (total: OR 0.25; physical health: OR 0.35; psychosocial health: OR 0.15; emotional functioning: OR 0.17; social functioning: OR 0.15; and school functioning: OR 0.18; all P < 0.010).

CONCLUSION

Current findings indicate that an a-posteriori-defined Mediterranean-style dietary pattern is associated with better HRQOL among healthy Iranian adolescents.