Adherence to Mediterranean diet in a sample of Tuscan adolescents

Objective The aim of this study is to estimate the level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet in a group of Italian adolescents attending high school, in relation to their lifestyles and social and family contexts, and to compare nutrition habits of the sample with other similar ones. Research Methods & Procedures The KIDMED index and an “ad hoc” questionnaire were administered to 1127 students (mean age: 16.8±1.6 years) in the province of Florence. Any significant associations between the level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet and the aforementioned variables were assessed by the Chi² test and by logistic regression analysis. Results The adherence to the Mediterranean diet was good in 16.5%, average in 60.5% and poor in 23% of the students. The students attending technical high schools, those who played sports less than every day or almost, who spent more than 3 hours/day in sedentary activities, who defined their school performance worse than “more than sufficient”, and those who referred to use car/mopped as the most frequent mode of transportation, had significantly higher odds of poor vs average/good adherence to Mediterranean diet. Moreover, being normal weight or overweight/obese, and referring health workers as source of information on diet, seems to be protective factors against poor adherence to Mediterranean diet. Conclusions Our sample presents a departure from the Mediterranean dietary pattern. It is certainly necessary to implement public health policies targeting teenagers in order to promote healthier lifestyle choices; the nutritional patterns of the Mediterranean diet should be among these choices.