{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,20]],"date-time":"2026-03-20T22:56:39Z","timestamp":1774047399306,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":37,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"22","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,11,14]],"date-time":"2024-11-14T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1731542400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia","award":["Researchers Supporting Project Number (RSPD2024R1013)"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["Researchers Supporting Project Number (RSPD2024R1013)"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: The goal of this pilot study is to evaluate adherence to the Mediterranean Food Pattern (MFP) in a self-selected sample of university students, addressing a perspective of food sustainability. In addition, it seeks to relate adherence to MFP with sociodemographic characteristics and nutritional status. Methods: This is a cross-sectional pilot study whose data collection was carried out by an online questionnaire between January and April 2023. Results: Two hundred and forty-eight students participated\u2014most of them were female (78.2%), had a median of 22 (20; 30) years, resided in the central region of Portugal (42.3%), and were pursuing a degree (73.4%) in a public higher education institution (66.5%). The prevalence of overweight (overweight and obesity) found was 33.1%. Females predominantly used olive oil as their main source of fat (95.9%, p = 0.009) and had a higher consumption of sugary drinks (81.4%, p = 0.004) compared to males, who reported usage rates of 85.2% and 63.0%, The median score of the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener was 7 points, presented with an interquartile range (Q1: 6, Q3: 8), indicating moderate adherence. The analysis showed no differences between the sexes (p = 0.087). There was also a negative correlation between adherence to the MFP and the body mass index (p = 0.007; r = \u22120.171). In addition, adherence to the MFP was associated with the area of study and the course attended, with students in health-related fields showing higher adherence. Conclusions: These findings underscore the necessity for targeted interventions aimed at promoting adherence to the MFP among university students, which could contribute to improved health outcomes and enhanced environmental sustainability.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu16223886","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,11,14]],"date-time":"2024-11-14T09:14:31Z","timestamp":1731575671000},"page":"3886","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":9,"title":["Mediterranean Food Pattern Adherence in a Female-Dominated Sample of Health and Social Sciences University Students: Analysis from a Perspective of Sustainability"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1238-1798","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Leandro","family":"Oliveira","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"CBIOS (Research Center for Biosciences and Health Technologies), Universidade Lus\u00f3fona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Campo Grande 376, 1749-024 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Ariana","family":"Saraiva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research in Veterinary Medicine (I-MVET), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Lisbon University Centre, Lus\u00f3fona University, Campo Grande 376, 1749-024 Lisboa, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0597-7892","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Jo\u00e3o","family":"Lima","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CERNAS Research Centre, Polytechnic University of Viseu, 3504-510 Viseu, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6346-8319","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Edite","family":"Teixeira-Lemos","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CERNAS Research Centre, Polytechnic University of Viseu, 3504-510 Viseu, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7473-3037","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jwaher Haji","family":"Alhaji","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Sciences, College of Applied Studies and Community Service, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2802-7873","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Conrado","family":"Carrascosa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Animal Pathology and Production, Bromatology and Food Technology, Faculty of Veterinary, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Trasmonta\u00f1a s\/n, 35413 Arucas, Spain"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5286-2249","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ant\u00f3nio","family":"Raposo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CBIOS (Research Center for Biosciences and Health Technologies), Universidade Lus\u00f3fona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Campo Grande 376, 1749-024 Lisboa, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,11,14]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"96","article-title":"The Mediterranean diet as an example of food and nutrition sustainability: A multi-disciplinary approach","volume":"35","year":"2018","journal-title":"Nutr. 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