Assessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseases
This paper explores the macroeconomic impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in reducing the risk of premature death from non-communicable diseases (NCDs). By utilizing an aggregate health production function approach, we investigate whether adopting the Mediterranean-style diet has a mea...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Bologna University press
2025-03-01
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| Series: | New Medit |
| Online Access: | https://newmedit.ciheam.org/2024/12/09/assessing-the-impact-of-the-mediterranean-style-diet-in-preventing-non-communicable-diseases/ |
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| author | Fabrizio Ferretti Giulio Malorgio Roberto Capone |
| author_facet | Fabrizio Ferretti Giulio Malorgio Roberto Capone |
| author_sort | Fabrizio Ferretti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
This paper explores the macroeconomic impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in
reducing the risk of premature death from non-communicable diseases (NCDs). By
utilizing an aggregate health production function approach, we investigate whether
adopting the Mediterranean-style diet has a measurable country-level protective effect.
Our analysis draws on data from 178 countries and develops two composite indexes to
measure i) adherence to the Mediterranean-style diet and ii) the prevalence of
metabolic syndrome. Our results show a departure from the Mediterranean-style diet in
favor of the Western-style diet across countries in the Mediterranean region during the
last decades. However, we find that adhering to the Mediterranean-style diet
significantly reduces the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (after controlling for major
potential confounding factors, such as health system performance and the
implementation of WHO-recommended NCD prevention measures). The positive
effects of the Mediterranean-style diet are, however, outweighed by the negative ones
of unhealthy dietary patterns. These findings emphasize the need to promote the
Mediterranean-style diet to curb the burden of NCDs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-247818d7a5d74419a1c4e931d7d0d414 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2611-1128 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | Bologna University press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | New Medit |
| spelling | doaj-art-247818d7a5d74419a1c4e931d7d0d4142025-08-20T03:01:50ZengBologna University pressNew Medit2611-11282025-03-011202510.30682/nm2501aAssessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseasesFabrizio FerrettiGiulio MalorgioRoberto Capone This paper explores the macroeconomic impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in reducing the risk of premature death from non-communicable diseases (NCDs). By utilizing an aggregate health production function approach, we investigate whether adopting the Mediterranean-style diet has a measurable country-level protective effect. Our analysis draws on data from 178 countries and develops two composite indexes to measure i) adherence to the Mediterranean-style diet and ii) the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. Our results show a departure from the Mediterranean-style diet in favor of the Western-style diet across countries in the Mediterranean region during the last decades. However, we find that adhering to the Mediterranean-style diet significantly reduces the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (after controlling for major potential confounding factors, such as health system performance and the implementation of WHO-recommended NCD prevention measures). The positive effects of the Mediterranean-style diet are, however, outweighed by the negative ones of unhealthy dietary patterns. These findings emphasize the need to promote the Mediterranean-style diet to curb the burden of NCDs.https://newmedit.ciheam.org/2024/12/09/assessing-the-impact-of-the-mediterranean-style-diet-in-preventing-non-communicable-diseases/ |
| spellingShingle | Fabrizio Ferretti Giulio Malorgio Roberto Capone Assessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseases New Medit |
| title | Assessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseases |
| title_full | Assessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseases |
| title_fullStr | Assessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseases |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseases |
| title_short | Assessing the impact of the Mediterranean-style diet in preventing non-communicable diseases |
| title_sort | assessing the impact of the mediterranean style diet in preventing non communicable diseases |
| url | https://newmedit.ciheam.org/2024/12/09/assessing-the-impact-of-the-mediterranean-style-diet-in-preventing-non-communicable-diseases/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT fabrizioferretti assessingtheimpactofthemediterraneanstyledietinpreventingnoncommunicablediseases AT giuliomalorgio assessingtheimpactofthemediterraneanstyledietinpreventingnoncommunicablediseases AT robertocapone assessingtheimpactofthemediterraneanstyledietinpreventingnoncommunicablediseases |