The ageing population is accompanied by increased rates of cognitive decline and dementia. Not only does cognitive decline have a profound impact on an individual’s health and quality of life, but also on that of their caregivers. The Mediterranean diet (MD) has been known to aid in reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases, cancer and diabetes. It has been recently linked to better cognitive function in the elderly population. The purpose of this review was to compile evidence based data that examined the effect of adherence to the MD on cognitive function and the risk of developing dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. This review followed PRISMA guidelines and was conducted using four databases and resulted in 31 articles of interest. Cross-sectional studies and cohort studies in the non-Mediterranean region showed mixed results. However, cohort studies in the Mediterranean region and randomized controlled trials showed more cohesive outcomes of the beneficial effect of the MD on cognitive function. Although more standardized and in-depth studies are needed to strengthen the existing body of evidence, results from this review indicate that the Mediterranean diet could play a major role in cognitive health and risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

The Mediterranean diet (MD) is linked to decreased risk of chronic disease, such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and cognitive disease. Given the health promoting aspects of this diet, we conducted a secondary analysis of data from the National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey (NNPAS), which is the largest health study in Australia and the first nutrition-specific national-based study. The primary aim of this analysis was to determine the proportion of Australian adults adhering to the MD and to examine the association between adherence to the MD and markers of noncommunicable diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease. Out of the 9435 participants included in the study (mean age = 48.6 ± 17.6 years), 65% were in the middle tertile of the MD score. Participants who were married, employed, of a high-socioeconomic level, nonsmokers, educated and had a healthy body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference were more likely to have higher adherence levels to the MD, which was associated with lower diastolic blood pressure (p < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that, even after accounting for all possible confounders, higher adherence to the MD was associated with lower risk of dyslipidaemia, OR = 1.06 (1.01–1.10). In conclusion, this analysis is the first to assess adherence to the MD on a national level. Our results indicated that MD adherence may contribute to reducing the prevalence of dyslipidaemia, cerebrovascular disease and elevated blood pressure in a multi-ethnic, non-Mediterranean country.

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to understand how the public in a non-Mediterranean multi-ethnic society perceived the Mediterranean dietary pattern (MDP) and its general health benefits. A total of 373 participants took part in this study. Most of the sample were young adults, females and had been living in Australia for over 10 years. Knowledge of the MDP score, attitudes towards the MDP score and an adherence to the MPD score were measured. Normality of variables was tested. Simple linear regression and Chi-squared tests were conducted to examine associations. ANOVA tests were used to report participants’ demographics across various attitudes scores. Less than half of participants were aware of the MDP guidelines, food choices and health benefits. As for adherence to the MDP, 20% of the sample were found to have high adherence to the MDP. Results also showed that participants with high knowledge about the MDP were twice more likely to have higher MDP adherence rates, OR 95% CI = 2.3 (1.3, 4.0), p-value = 0.002. This paper provided new insights about the association between nutritional knowledge and adherence to the MDP in a multi-ethnic non-Mediterranean setting.

No abstract