Adherence to Mediterranean Diet and health outcomes in adolescents: An Umbrella Review

Background: Proper nutrition represents one of the domains of adolescents' well-being. In this context, the Mediterranean Diet (MD), as a healthy, traditional, and sustainable dietary pattern, plays a crucial role in promoting adequate growth and preventing chronic Non-Communicable Diseases. The present Umbrella Review aimed to summarise the currently available evidence on the effects of Adherence to MD (AMD) in association with several health outcomes in adolescence. Methods: Five electronic databases were searched. Systematic reviews with or without meta-analysis of observational studies and randomised clinical trials, published in English language within 2013-2022, and assessed the health impact of AMD among adolescents were eligible. Details on study design, methods, population, assessment of dietary patterns, health outcomes, and main results were extracted. Results: The search yielded 59 references, after duplicates removal. Applying PICOS criteria, four systematic reviews and three meta-analyses were included. The AMD was evaluated in association with overweight/obesity and adiposity in two studies, musculoskeletal health in other two, inflammation in one, and cardiometabolic health in another one. The remaining review examined all the mentioned health outcomes in relation to AMD. Conclusions: Overall, this Umbrella Review showed limited evidence and a lack of consistency about the relation between AMD and health outcomes of interest in adolescence, recognising the need for further studies to better understand it. Umbrella Review Registration: PROSPERO registration number CRD42023428712.