Higher adherence to a Mediterranean diet shown to be associated with lower abdominal adiposity in both genders
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In this cross-sectional study, the relationship between adherence to a modified Mediterranean diet and body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) was investigated in 497,308 adults from 10 European countries. Validated, country-specific, questionnaires were used at baseline to assess the degree of adherence to the modified-Mediterranean Diet Score (mMDS), high in foods of vegetable origin and unsaturated fatty acids. Mixed-effects linear regression analysis revealed that mMDS was not significantly associated with BMI. For a given BMI, higher adherence to this Mediterranean diet was significantly associated with lower WC, and this association was stronger in men and women from Northern European countries. The study results suggest that adherence to a modified Mediterranean diet is associated with lower abdominal adiposity measured by WC in European men and women.
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