The relationship between smartphone addiction, Mediterranean diet adherence, body composition, and quality of life among university students: a cross-sectional study

This study aims to examine the relationship between smartphone addiction and adherence to the Mediterranean diet, body composition, and quality of life among university students. A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted at Mardin Artuklu University between May 10 and October 31, 2025 with 302 undergraduate students. Data were collected via a sociodemographic form, the Smartphone Addiction Scale–Short Form, the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS), and the Short Form Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-36). A derived overall quality-of-life score was calculated as the mean of the eight SF-36 domain scores. Anthropometric measurements were taken, body composition was assessed by bioelectrical impedance analysis, and pinch strength was measured with a pinch meter. Based on the gender-specific SAS-SV screening thresholds (≥ 31 for males, ≥ 33 for females), 41.7% of students met the criterion for being at risk for smartphone addiction. Addiction scores correlated negatively with quality of life ( p < 0.01) and dominant pinch strength ( p < 0.05), and positively with body fat percentage ( p < 0.05), whereas no association was found with Mediterranean diet adherence ( p > 0.05). The strongest correlation was found between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and quality of life ( r = 0.385; p < 0.01). In the hierarchical linear regression analysis, quality of life ( p < 0.001), dominant pinch strength ( p = 0.009), and body fat percentage ( p = 0.018) were independently associated with smartphone addiction scores. In the logistic regression analysis using gender-specific cutoff points, higher quality of life (OR = 0.967; 95% CI: 0.950–0.985; p < 0.001) and higher dominant pinch strength (OR = 0.935; 95% CI: 0.875–0.998; p = 0.042) were associated with a lower likelihood of being at risk for smartphone addiction. A considerable proportion of students met the SAS-SV screening threshold for smartphone addiction risk. Higher smartphone addiction scores were associated with poorer quality of life, lower dominant pinch strength, and higher body fat percentage, but not with body mass index or Mediterranean diet adherence; the association with body fat percentage was not observed in the logistic regression model. Given the cross-sectional design and the limited explanatory power of the models, these findings should be interpreted as associations rather than causal effects. Body composition and pinch strength measures may provide complementary information beyond BMI when examining the physical correlates of smartphone addiction in young adults.