Associations between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and attentional and executive processes in university students: An observational study

Objectives: This study analyzed the associations between adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) and attentional and executive processes in university students. Methods: An observational study was conducted involving seventy-three first-year physiotherapy students (mean age = 18.41 ± 0.78 years). MedDiet adherence was assessed using the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS), while cognitive performance was evaluated through the Global and Local Attention Test (AGL), Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), and Trail Making Test (TMT) A and B. Comparisons of cognitive performance between participants with low and medium-to-high MEDAS scores were performed using the Mann-U Whitney and student's t test. Also, correlations between cognitive performance and MEDAS score were analyzed using Pearson's or Spearman's correlation coefficients. Results: Adherence to MedDiet showed a positive correlation with TMT-A percentile (ρ = 0.264; p = 0.024). No other significant associations were observed between the MEDAS score and cognitive tests. Conclusions: A modest association was found between MedDiet adherence and cognitive performance, particularly in processing speed, as measured by TMT-A. However, the absence of significant effects in the other cognitive tests underscores the multifactorial nature of the relationship between diet and cognition, highlighting the need for further research to clarify these associations in young adult populations.