Abstract
Objective: Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and a healthy diet may be part of an overall healthy lifestyle. The association between cardiorespiratory fitness and adherence to an overall Mediterranean Diet (MedD) pattern and specific MedD foods has been assessed. Design: Subjects completed a lifestyle survey and dietary pattern, using the validated MedD Adherence 14-item questionnaire and two self-reported 24-h dietary recalls. Participants’ height, body weight, waist circumference (WC), and CRF (maximum oxygen uptake, VO2max, ml/kg/min) were measured. Setting: University of Cádiz, Spain. Subjects: A sample of young adults (n = 275, 22.2 ± 6.3 years). Results: Mean VO2max was 43.9 mL/kg/min (SD 8.5 mL/kg/min). Most participants had healthy CRF (75.9%). The average MedD score was 6.2 points (SD 1.8 points). Participants who consumed more servings of nuts had higher VO2max. Those who showed low CRF performed less physical activity (PA) and had a higher body mass index (BMI) and WC compared with those classified as having healthy CRF. Nut consumption was positively associated with VO2max (β = 0.320; 95% CI 2.4, 10.7; p < 0.002), adjusting for sex, age, smoking PA, BMI, WC, and energy intake, showing the subjects who consumed more nuts were fitter than young adults who consumed less. Conclusions: CRF is positively associated with nut consumption but not with the overall MedD pattern and all other MedD foods in the young adults. The subjects who consumed more servings of nuts were fitter than young adults who consumed less. Moreover, fitter subjects performed more PA and had a lower BMI and WC than those who had lower fitness levels.
Highlights
Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is an important marker of cardiovascular health
Most participants were normal weight (66.5%), 3.4% of subjects were classified as having a low body mass index (BMI), 20.5% were overweight, and 9.5% were obese
Mediterranean Diet (MedD) adherence was medium in the total sample (6.2 ± 1.8 points) (Table 4), without statistical differences between men and women, the study suggests young adults with higher nut intakes showed higher VO2max values
Summary
Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is an important marker of cardiovascular health. Low levels of CRF are considered predictors of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in adults [1] and have been linked to excess body fat and features of metabolic syndrome in young people [2,3].High cardiorespiratory fitness, defined as meeting or exceeding the Fitnessgram® standard (maximum oxygen uptake, VO2max ) [4] is positively associated with healthier cardiovascular risk profiles, healthier body compositions, and improved insulin sensitivity [1,2,3]. Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is an important marker of cardiovascular health. Low levels of CRF are considered predictors of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in adults [1] and have been linked to excess body fat and features of metabolic syndrome in young people [2,3]. Diets usually containing high intakes of olive oil, nuts, fruits, and vegetables, such as the Mediterranean diet (MedD), can confer many health benefits, including lower risk of developing obesity, metabolic syndrome, and CVD [4]. The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of these substances might act synergistically in lowering risk factors related to some age-related diseases and highlight the importance of including nuts in a healthy diet [5]
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