{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,11,6]],"date-time":"2026-11-06T21:13:22Z","timestamp":1793999602914,"version":"4.8.0"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,21]],"date-time":"2025-05-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1747785600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Sarcopenia and frailty are interrelated conditions and have a high incidence in older adults. They contribute to increased morbidity and mortality and poor quality of life. There is emerging evidence that healthy diets such as the Mediterranean diet could delay the onset of sarcopenia and frailty. This review aims to evaluate the role of the MD in preventing these conditions. Methods: A literature search was conducted on PubMed (MEDLINE, NCBI) for English-language articles published within the last 10 years (2014\u20132024) using the search terms \u201cMediterranean diet\u201d, \u201cfrailty\u201d, \u201csarcopenia\u201d, and \u201cold people\u201d. A total of 111 articles were identified, of which 36 were excluded during the initial screening. Subsequently, 75 manuscripts were assessed for eligibility. Subsequently, a further 62 articles were excluded (narrative reviews, articles not focused on the elderly population, or articles with different outcomes). Finally, 13 articles were included in the review. Results: The 13 selected studies comprised seven observational studies, three systematic reviews and meta-analyses, and three clinical trials. The findings suggest that adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD), particularly when combined with physical activity, may improve body composition and cardiometabolic health and reduce indicators of sarcopenia in obese older adults. Furthermore, MD-based nutritional interventions were associated with improved physical functions such as balance, gait, fall risk, flexibility, and muscle strength (p &lt; 0.05, all). The MD also demonstrated a preventive effect against frailty, particularly in pre-frail individuals. Conclusions: High adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) may delay the onset of sarcopenia and improve muscle function in older adults. However, the available scientific evidence is of low to moderate quality. Well-designed prospective intervention studies are needed to confirm whether the MD can modify the natural history of sarcopenia and\/or frailty in older adults.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu17101743","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,21]],"date-time":"2025-05-21T07:44:57Z","timestamp":1747813497000},"page":"1743","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":15,"title":["The Role of the Mediterranean Diet in the Prevention of Sarcopenia and Frailty in Older Adults: A Narrative Review"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"17","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7693-6591","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marta","family":"Arroyo-Huidobro","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Geriatric Department, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Villarroel Street 170, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Magali","family":"Amat","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Physiotherapy Department, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Aina","family":"Capdevila-Reniu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Internal Medicine Department, Hospital de Matar\u00f3, Consorci Sanitari del Maresme, 08304 Matar\u00f3, Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ariana","family":"Chavez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Geriatric Department, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Villarroel Street 170, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5553-3216","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Martina","family":"Pellic\u00e9","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Geriatric Department, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Villarroel Street 170, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Andrea","family":"Ladino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Internal Medicine Department, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Constanza","family":"Sep\u00falveda","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Geriatric Department, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, University of Barcelona, Villarroel Street 170, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8018-1523","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Emilio","family":"Sacanella","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Internal Medicine Department, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Institut d\u2019Investigacions Biom\u00e8diques August Pi I Sunyer (IDIBAPS), 08036 Barcelona, Spain"},{"name":"Centro de Investigaci\u00f3n Biom\u00e9dica en Red, Fisiopatolog\u00eda de la Obesidad y la Nutrici\u00f3n (CIBEROBN), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1185","DOI":"10.1093\/aje\/kws205","article-title":"Relation of the traditional Mediterranean diet to cerebrovascular disease in a Mediterranean population","volume":"176","author":"Misirli","year":"2012","journal-title":"Am. 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