Ricardo Manuel Santos Labrador
Los hábitos de vida saludable como la dieta mediterránea y la actividad física conllevan grandes beneficios para la salud. El objetivo del estudio fue triple: (i) determinar la adherencia a la dieta mediterránea de los adolescentes de la provincia de Salamanca (España); (ii) comprobar si esta varía entre géneros, localidad de procedencia y niveles de actividad física; (iii) examinar la asociación entre la dieta mediterránea y la autopercepción de la salud. Participaron 867 adolescentes, de entre 12-16 años de edad (14.04±1.19 años), siendo el 53.9% (n=467) chicos. La adherencia a la dieta mediterránea fue medida con el cuestionario KIDMED, la salud autopercibida a través del Health and Wellbeing Questionnaire y el nivel de práctica de actividad física mediante el cuestionario IPAQ-A. Los resultados indicaron que el 31.8% de los escolares presentaba una alta adherencia a la dieta mediterránea, mientras que el 12.4% mostró una baja adherencia. Las chicas (χ2 = 8.077; p = 0.018) y los adolescentes más activos físicamente (χ2 = 10.225; p = 0.037) manifestaron una mayor adherencia. Asimismo, el índice de adherencia a la dieta mediterránea estuvo asociado positivamente con la salud autopercibida (β = 0.162; p < 0.001). En consecuencia, la mayor parte de los adolescentes salmantinos debería mejorar su adherencia a un patrón dietético saludable como es la dieta mediterránea, especialmente los de género masculino y los físicamente menos activos.
Healthy life habits such as the Mediterranean diet and physical activity lead to increased health benefits. The objective of this study was triple: (i) To determine the adherence to the Mediterranean dietary pattern in teenagers from Salamanca (Spain); To observe if there is any variation related with teenagers’ gender, place of residence and physical activity levels; (iii) To examine the association between the adherence to the Mediterranean diet and self-perceived health. In total 867 subjects between 12 and 16 (14.04±1.19 years) took part in this study, being the boys the 53.9% (n=467). Their adherence to the Mediterranean dietary pattern was measured with the KIMED questionnaire, their self-perceived health was measured through the Health and Wellbeing Questionnaire and, their level of physical activity practice was measured through the IPAQ-A questionnaire. The results indicated that the 31.8% of the students showed a high adherence to the Mediterranean dietary, while the 12.4% showed a poor compliance with it. The girls (χ2 = 8.077; p = 0.018) and those who were the most physical active students (χ2 = 10.225; p = 0.037) showed a higher adherence to the Mediterranean dietary pattern. Likewise, the rate of adherence to the Mediterranean diet was positively associated with their self-perceived health (β = 0.162; p < 0.001). In consequence, most of these teenagers should improve their adherence to a healthy dietary pattern as the Mediterranean diet, especially those of male gender and the least physically active.