Sociodemographic, nutritional and health status factors associated with adherence to Mediterranean diet in an agricultural Moroccan adult's population

Background. Numerous studies have demonstrated beneficial effects of adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) on many chronic diseases, including chronic kidney disease (CKD). Objective. The aim of this study was to assess the adherence of a rural population to the Mediterranean diet, to identify the sociodemographic and lifestyle determinants and to analyze the association between adherence to MD and CKD. Material and Methods. In a cross-sectional study, data on sociodemographic, lifestyle factors, clinical, biochemical parameters and diet were collected on a sample of 154 subjects. Adherence to MD was assessed according to a simplified MD score based on the daily frequency of intake of eight food groups (vegetables, legumes, fruits, cereal or potatoes, fish, red meat, dairy products and MUFA/SFA), using the sex specific sample medians as cut-offs. A value of 0 or 1 was assigned to consumption of each component according to its presumed detrimental or beneficial effect on health. Results. According to the simplified MD score, the study data show that high adherence (44.2%) to MD was characterized by intakes high in vegetables, fruits, fish, cereals, olive oil, and low in meat and moderate in dairy. Furthermore, several factors such as age, marital status, education level, and hypertension status were associated with the adherence to MD in the study population. The majority of subjects with CKD have poor adherence to the MD compared to non-CKD with a statistically insignificant difference. Conclusions. In Morocco, maintaining the traditional MD pattern play crucial role for public health. More research is needed in this area to precisely measure this association

Adherence to the Mediterranean diet in two Moroccan populations living at different distances from the Mediterranean Sea

Background. There is growing strong scientific evidence over the past few decades that the Mediterranean diet (MD) has protective effects on cardiometabolic health. Objective. This study aimed to assess MD adherence and its association with sociodemographic and lifestyle factors among women living in two Moroccan provinces, El Jadida and Tetouan, located at different distances from the Mediterranean Sea. Material and methods. It is a cross-sectional study involved 355 subjects of which 55.8% reside in the province of El Jadida, and data on socio-demographic characteristics, lifestyle, cardiovascular risks, medical history and of food frequency consumption were collected. Compliance with the MD was assessed with a simplified MD adherence score based on the weekly frequency of consumption of eight food groups. Results. The overall mean Simplified Mediterranean Diet Score was 4.37 ± 1.47 with inadequate compliance in 55.2% of the sample. No significant association was found between adherence to MD and geographic, socio-demographic, lifestyle or the major cardiovascular risk factors. However, the participants do not comply with half of the recommendations based on the Mediterranean diet pyramid. The lowest level of compliance was observed for olive oil, followed by sweets, eggs, potatoes, fruits, red meat, vegetables, legumes, olives, nuts and seeds. The increased contribution of sugars, dairy products and meat to the overall food intake is significant in the category with high adherence to MD. Conclusion. The study data indicate that Mediterranean Diet is far from being a global pattern in this Moroccan population. The study draws attention to the need for a promoting intervention to maintain this pattern as the original diet in the region