Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Its Association with Body Composition and Physical Fitness in Spanish University Students.

Ana Isabel Cobo-Cuenca,Noelia María Martín-Espinosa,Alba Soriano-Cano,Miriam Garrido-Miguel,Asunción Ferri-Morales,Vicente Martínez-Vizcaíno

doi:10.3390/nu11112830

Ana Isabel Cobo-Cuenca, Noelia María Martín-Espinosa + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11112830

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Abstract

The aims of this study were to assess the association of adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) with physical fitness and body composition in Spanish university students and to determine the ability to predict the MD adherence of each Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS) item. A cross-sectional study was performed involving 310 first-year university students. Adherence to the MD was evaluated with MEDAS-14 items. Anthropometric variables, body composition, and physical fitness were assessed. Muscle strength was determined based on handgrip strength and the standing long jump test. Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) was measured using the Course–Navette test. Only 24% of the university students had good adherence to the MD. The ANCOVA models showed a significant difference between participants with high adherence to the MD and those with medium and low adherence in CRF (p = 0.017) and dynamometry (p = 0.005). Logistic binary regression showed that consuming >2 vegetables/day (OR = 20.1; CI: 10.1–30.1; p < 0.001), using olive oil (OR = 10.6; CI: 1.4–19.8; p = 0.021), consuming <3 commercial sweets/week (OR = 10.1; IC: 5.1–19.7; p < 0.001), and consuming ≥3 fruits/day (OR = 8.8; CI: 4.9–15.7; p < 0.001) were the items most associated with high adherence to the MD. In conclusion, a high level of adherence to the MD is associated with high-level muscular fitness and CRF in Spanish university students.

Highlights

The influence of diet on human health has aroused the interest of epidemiologists for hundreds of years
The mean BF%, total fat mass, and Body mass index (BMI) were higher in women than in men (p < 0.001)
We evaluated the prevalence of the adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) and the relationship between adherence to the MD and physical fitness and body composition in a sample of Spanish university students during their first academic year

Summary

Introduction

The influence of diet on human health has aroused the interest of epidemiologists for hundreds of years. Some population-based studies and randomized trials have provided evidence suggesting that greater adherence to the MD reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, and all-cause mortality [2,3,4,5]. A meta-analysis demonstrated that a two-point increase in an adherence score was associated with a significant reduction in overall mortality and a reduced risk of cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases [6]. The Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS-14 items) is a valid instrument for the estimation of adherence to the MD which has demonstrated itself to be sensitive to capturing the inverse association between MD and obesity indicators in high cardiovascular risk adults; this 14-item questionnaire requires less involvement from participants than the usual food frequency questionnaires and is less time demanding [10]

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