Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Perceived Immunity Among the Saudi Population: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background The Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) is a model of a sustainable dietary pattern. It has a protective role against coronary heart diseases, but nowadays it is hypothesized against many other diseases. Aim of the study This study aims to assess the prevalence of adherence to the Mediterranean diet and its association with immune status among the general Saudi population. Subjects and methods A cross-sectional study design was conducted over a sample size of 327 Saudi adults living in Jeddah. A self-administered online questionnaire was distributed in a digital Google Form via various social networks using the convenient sampling technique. The questionnaire had four major divisions: sociodemographic, general health characteristics, adherence to MedDiet, and immune status. The data were collected, validated, and subjected to statistical analysis. Results The study showed a statistically significant association between adherence to MedDiet and perceived immune status (p-value <0.05). However, the associations between adherence to MedDiet and having any chronic illness, and perceived general health were not statistically significant (p-value >0.05). Multivariable regression models showed that sex and occupation are significant predictors of adherence to MedDiet. Conclusion This study concluded that despite low adherence to MedDiet among Saudis, there was an association between adherence to MedDiet and immune status. This study recommends the implementation of MedDiet as an intervention for the management of chronic diseases to be considered by policymakers and guideline developers.