Abstract
The purposes of this study were to evaluate the differences in Mediterranean diet and its components among primary and secondary school children and adolescents living in northern Italy, and the associations with the weight status. Adherence was assessed by the KIDMED (Mediterranean Diet Quality Index) questionnaire on 669 subjects (6–16 years) attending five schools of Novara. The adherence was poor in 16.7%, average in 63.7%, and high in 19.6% of the students. Poor adherence was more frequent in primary than in secondary schools (20.7% vs. 13.7%, p < 0.04). Some unhealthy behaviors were more prevalent in younger children. Children of other ethnic origins had a mixed behavior, choosing both traditional healthy and unhealthy foods. Besides male gender and primary school, in Italian children, the risk of overweight was directly associated with eating at fast-food restaurants (OR: 1.890, CI 95% 1.002–3.563), and inversely with consumption of vegetables more than once a day (OR: 0.588, CI 95% 0.349–0.991), and olive oil at home (OR: 0.382, CI 95% 0.176–0.826). In children of other ethnic origins, this risk was associated with skipping breakfast (OR: 16.046, CI 95% 1.933–133.266), or consuming commercial baked good or pastries for breakfast (OR: 10.255, CI 95% 1.052–99.927). The overall KIDMED score correlated with height (β: 0.108; p < 0.005). Poor food quality is replacing the Mediterranean dietary pattern in children and adolescents, in particular among younger children. Because the risk of overweight was associated with different components of the Mediterranean diet depending on ethnic origins, tailored nutritional programs remain a need.
Highlights
The Mediterranean diet (MD) is considered a model of a healthy diet, in particular after the publication of the first results derived by the PREDIMED study that demonstrated a reduction of cardiovascular mortality in subjects adherent to this dietary pattern [1]
MD is beneficial, with the urbanization of people living in the Mediterranean area, in particular children and adolescents are deviating to a “Western diet” more rich in saturated fat, refined grains, simple carbohydrates and processed foods [6]
Intriguing results have been obtained in trials, the dissociation between higher obesity prevalence in Mediterranean countries and lower prevalence of many of its comorbidities in subjects adherent to a MD pattern is still an issue, in particular in pediatrics
Summary
The Mediterranean diet (MD) is considered a model of a healthy diet, in particular after the publication of the first results derived by the PREDIMED study that demonstrated a reduction of cardiovascular mortality in subjects adherent to this dietary pattern [1]. MD is beneficial, with the urbanization of people living in the Mediterranean area, in particular children and adolescents are deviating to a “Western diet” more rich in saturated fat, refined grains, simple carbohydrates and processed foods [6]. This phenomenon has been named nutrition transition and is one of the players implicated in the high prevalence of overweight and obesity in countries supposed to adopt a traditional MD [5,7]. Intriguing results have been obtained in trials, the dissociation between higher obesity prevalence in Mediterranean countries and lower prevalence of many of its comorbidities in subjects adherent to a MD pattern is still an issue, in particular in pediatrics
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