Relationship of the Adherence to a Mediterranean Diet and Its Main Components with CRP Levels in the Spanish Population

Background: Adherence to a Mediterranean diet seems to be inversely associated with C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration. A 14-point Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS) has been developed to assess dietary compliance. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess whether each of the MEDAS questions as well as their final score were associated with the levels of CRP in general Spanish population. Methods: Cross-sectional analysis of 1411 subjects (mean age 61 years, 43.0% males) randomly selected from the general population. CRP levels were determined by a commercial ELISA kit. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet was measured by the 14-point MEDAS. Results: There was an inverse correlation between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and the CRP concentration, even after adjusting by age, gender, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, body mass index, statin treatment and hypertension treatment (p = 0.041). Subjects who consume ≥2 servings of vegetables per day (p = 0.003), ≥3 pieces of fruit per day (p = 0.003), ≥1 serving of butter, margarine, or cream per day (p = 0.041) or ≥3 servings of fish/seafood per week (p = 0.058) had significantly lower levels of CRP. Conclusions: Adherence to a Mediterranean-type diet measured by a simple questionnaire is associated with lower CRP concentration. However, this association seems to be particularly related to a higher consumption of vegetables, fruits, dairy products, and fish. View Full-Text

Keywords: CRP levels; Mediterranean diet; fruits; vegetables; dairy products; fish

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MDPI and ACS Style

Lahoz, C.; Castillo, E.; Mostaza, J.M.; De Dios, O.; Salinero-Fort, M.A.; González-Alegre, T.; García-Iglesias, F.; Estirado, E.; Laguna, F.; Sanchez, V.; Sabín, C.; López, S.; Cornejo, V.; De Burgos, C.; Garcés, C.; On behalf of the Investigators of the SPREDIA-2 Group. Relationship of the Adherence to a Mediterranean Diet and Its Main Components with CRP Levels in the Spanish Population. Nutrients 2018, 10, 379. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10030379

AMA Style

Lahoz C, Castillo E, Mostaza JM, De Dios O, Salinero-Fort MA, González-Alegre T, García-Iglesias F, Estirado E, Laguna F, Sanchez V, Sabín C, López S, Cornejo V, De Burgos C, Garcés C, On behalf of the Investigators of the SPREDIA-2 Group. Relationship of the Adherence to a Mediterranean Diet and Its Main Components with CRP Levels in the Spanish Population. Nutrients. 2018; 10(3):379. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10030379

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lahoz, Carlos, Elisa Castillo, Jose M. Mostaza, Olaya De Dios, Miguel A. Salinero-Fort, Teresa González-Alegre, Francisca García-Iglesias, Eva Estirado, Fernando Laguna, Vanesa Sanchez, Concesa Sabín, Silvia López, Victor Cornejo, Carmen De Burgos, Carmen Garcés, and On behalf of the Investigators of the SPREDIA-2 Group. 2018. "Relationship of the Adherence to a Mediterranean Diet and Its Main Components with CRP Levels in the Spanish Population" Nutrients 10, no. 3: 379. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10030379

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Relationship of the Adherence to a Mediterranean Diet and Its Main Components with CRP Levels in the Spanish Population

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