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Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet is related to healthy habits, learning processes, and academic achievement in adolescents: a cross-sectional study
Although there is evidence that a healthy diet and being regularly physically active are related with multiple health benefits, there is limited information on the academic and cognitive implications of these behaviors within adolescents, which is the reason Chacon-Cuberos et. al (2018) conducted this cross-sectional study involving 1059 adolescents from Spain. The main instruments employed were the Adherence to Mediterranean Diet Test (KIDMED), the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents (PAQ-A) and the Motivation and Learning Strategies Short Form (MSLQ-SF). There was a correlation between practising physical activity for >3 hours a week with better dietary habits (p<0.001) such as higher consumption of fish, vegetables, cereals, and nuts. Practising physical activity every week was related to improvements in several of the measured variables and to lower levels of anxiety within the academic environment (p<0.05). The team also discovered adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) was positively associated with elaboration and organisational strategies, critical thinking, self-regulation, time and study habits, self-regulation of effort, and intrinsically oriented goals (all p-values <0.01). Given the benefits of eating habits and the practice of PA in the cognitive processes involved in adolescent learning as shown by this study, intervention programs aimed at enhancing healthy habits are recommended. [NPID: performance, physical activity, Med diet, Mediterranean diet, anxiety, self-regulation]
Year: 2018
