Purpose: To evaluate the Mediterranean diet (MD) adherence of an elderly Greek population, and its association with the grade of cognitive decline and psychological status.
Methods: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), and Mediterranean diet score (MedDietScore) questionnaires were used to assess the impact of MD adherence on cognitive abilities and psychological state of a Greek elderly population.
Participants: 2092 men and women over 65 years old (mean age 74.97 ± 8.41 years) from seven different Greek cities RESULTS: 34.4% of the study population showed cognitive impairment, while 32.3% of the participants had depressive symptoms. More than half of the participants (52.1%) showed very low or low MD adherence. Higher MD adherence was significantly associated with better MMSE and GDS scores. Moreover, higher MD adherence was significantly associated with younger age, female gender, higher educational level, and better anthropometric parameters. MD adherence was independently associated with cognitive and psychological status, and gender after adjustment for potential confounders.
Conclusion: Higher MD adherence is strongly associated with better cognitive status and less depressive symptomatology. Public health policies are recommended to focus on the promotion of the MD, as a crucial strategy to reduce the risk of cognitive impairment and depression.
Keywords: Cognitive impairment; Depression; Elderly; Mediterranean diet; Public health.