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Dear Colleagues and Friends,
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Dietary changes and patterns
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The pandemic caused by COVID-19 has affected human health and lifestyle. As a result, research on pandemic's impact on the Mediterranean dietary pattern has increased. A longitudinal study in a Spanish population used new technologies during the 2020 confinement to promote the Mediterranean diet (MD) through social networks by posting informative articles and daily surveys. They observed higher adherence to MD during the follow-up and concluded that social media are a good tool to increase the promotion of the MD, especially in young adults. Following this line of research, a cross-sectional study observed the influence of lockdown on diet and anxiety level. Anxiety was also related to weight gain and poorer dietary habits characterized by increased consumption of ultra-processed foods. The study found that women with lower adherence to the MD had more anxiety disorders.
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The Mediterranean diet has been associated in numerous studies with the reduction and/or treatment of cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer and cognitive decline diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. A study in the PREDIMED Plus trial investigated the effect of the MD on cognitive development. In the absence of effective pharmacological treatments, potential modifiable lifestyle factors, such as diet, were investigated for improvement of cognition or delay of cognitive decline. Higher adherence to MD resulted in significant beneficial associations with better general cognitive function. In the same line, olive oil, as the main component of MD, has been studied for its potential health benefits. A review summarized the evidence of the benefits of olive oil on women's health. Several human and experimental studies have concluded that olives and their polyphenolic extracts have beneficial effects especially on breast and ovarian cancer, osteoporosis and postmenopausal disorders, which suggested that olive oil should be consumed especially by women.
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