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Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and all-cause mortality risk in an elderly Italian population: Data from the ILSA study

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The journal of nutrition, health & aging

Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study was to evaluate adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (MD) and its association with all-cause mortality in an elderly Italian population.

Design

Data analysis of a longitudinal study of a representative, age stratified, population sample.

Setting

Study data is based upon the Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging (ILSA) a prospective, community-based cohort study. The baseline evaluation was carried out in 1992 and the follow-up in 1996 and 2000.

Participant

Participant food intake assessment was available at baseline for 4,232 subjects; information on survival was available for 2,665 at the 2000 follow-up.

Measurements

Adherence to the MD was evaluated with an a priori score based on the Mediterranean pyramid components. Cox proportional hazard models were used to assess the relationship between the MD score and all-cause mortality. Six hundred and sixty five subjects had died at the second follow-up (identified up to the first and second follow-up together; mean follow-up: 7.1±2.6 years).

Results

At the 2000 follow-up, adjusting for other confounding factors, participants with a high adherence to MD (highest tertile of the MD score distribution) had an all-cause mortality risk that was of 34% lower with respect to the subjects with low adherence (Hazard Ratio=0.66; 95% CI: 0.49-0.90; p=0.0144).

Conclusion

According to study results, a higher adherence to the MD was associated with a low all-cause mortality risk in an elderly Italian population.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Research Council, Aging Branch, Institute of Neuroscience, Via Giustiniani 2, 35128, Padova, Italy

    F. Limongi, Marianna Noale, G. Crepaldi & S. Maggi

  2. Geriatrics Section, Department of Medicine-DIMED, University of Padua, Padua, Italy

    A. Gesmundo

Authors
  1. F. Limongi
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  2. Marianna Noale
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  3. A. Gesmundo
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  4. G. Crepaldi
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  5. S. Maggi
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Consortia

ILSA Working Group

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marianna Noale.

Additional information

The authors contributed equally to the study.

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Limongi, F., Noale, M., Gesmundo, A. et al. Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and all-cause mortality risk in an elderly Italian population: Data from the ILSA study. J Nutr Health Aging 21, 505–513 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-016-0808-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-016-0808-9

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