Over the last decades, the abandonment of traditional dietary patterns, such as the Mediterranean diet, represents an important threat for human health and environmental safeguard. The DELICIOUS project aims to promote healthy lifestyles among children and adolescents by implementing activities and tools to increase the adherence to the Mediterranean Diet with an attention to the environmental impacts of the diet. This study protocol describes the DELICIOUS project as a single-arm, uncontrolled behavioural intervention providing formal and non-formal education activities, development of new snacks and recipe reformulation, web/mobile app development, and physical activities to school children and adolescents in five European countries. The project aims to increase awareness of the nutritional benefits and the sustainability aspects of the Mediterranean Diet and to promote consumers’ empowerment through an online platform for sustainable and healthy meal planning in the school canteen.

Background: The Mediterranean diet is considered a healthy dietary pattern associated with substantial health benefits. While its application at global level is rather difficult due to the intricate features eradicated into the cultural heritage of populations living in countries facing the Mediterranean basin, its preservation in such areas is considered crucial to maintain a good health status of current and future generations. Objective: To assess the level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet in children and adolescents living in 5 Mediterranean countries participating in the DELICIOUS project. Methods: An online survey was conducted involving 2011 parents of children and adolescents from Spain, Italy, Lebanon, Egypt, and Portugal. The KIDMED score applied to 24-h recalls of their children's diets was used to assess the level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet and cross-references with background and lifestyle variables. Results: Children and adolescents living in Lebanon and Portugal are more adherent than their counterparts in other countries. Some specific aspects related to the Mediterranean diet were rather common, such as olive oil consumption, daily fruit and vegetable intake, as well as lifestyle habits including having breakfast and limited sweets. Others, including having a second portion of fruit and vegetable, adequate consumption of fish, nuts, and cereals (for breakfast), as well as frequent consumption of fast foods underscored substantial abandonment of certain other Mediterranean diet features. Older adolescents with inadequate sleep duration, longer screen time, and low physical activity levels, as well as children of older parents with lower educational level, lower family income, and living in rural areas had significantly lower KIDMED scores. Conclusions: This study provides important information on the current status of adherence to the Mediterranean among children and adolescents in the Mediterranean region and may help setting specific targets for nutrition interventions aiming at its promotion.

Background: Attentional engagement, the ability to maintain focus on relevant tasks, plays a crucial role in optimizing human performance. Studies have shown that athletes exhibit superior attentional engagement compared to non-athletes; however, it remains unclear if these benefits persist in non-sport-related tasks or differ across types of sports expertise, such as open-skill versus closed-skill sports.

Methods: Ninety-three young adults, divided into open-skill athletes (n = 31), closed-skill athletes (n = 31), and a control group (n = 31), completed an auditory oddball task while the P3 component of event-related potentials was measured to assess attentional processing. Aerobic fitness was assessed using the YMCA fitness test, and linear regression models, adjusted for confounders, examined the relationship between aerobic fitness and attentional processing.

Results: Findings revealed that both open- and closed-skill athletes exhibited significantly larger P3 amplitudes than non-athletes, indicating enhanced attentional engagement. However, no significant differences in response time or response accuracy were observed between the groups. Hierarchical regression analysis further demonstrated a positive correlation between aerobic fitness and P3 amplitude, underscoring the role of aerobic fitness in cognitive processing.

Conclusion: These findings suggest that participation in either open- or closed-skill sports can enhance attentional engagement beyond the sports context in healthy young adults, with aerobic fitness playing a key role in supporting cognitive performance. Additionally, this study extends previous findings from Western and Asian literature by providing evidence from an Egyptian sample, thereby supporting the generalizability of the cognitive benefits of aerobic fitness and sports participation across different cultural contexts.

Background: Health-related fitness (HRF) components are essential for supporting healthy growth and reducing long-term health risks in children. This study explored cross-cultural variations in HRF among children from five Mediterranean countries—Egypt, Italy, Lebanon, Portugal, and Spain—within the framework of the DELICIOUS project.

Methods: A total of 860 children participated in the study, including 204 from Egypt (n = 204, 11.72 ± 1.46 years), 150 from Italy (9.66 ± 1.10 years), 200 from Lebanon (10.73 ± 1.90 years), 181 from Portugal (11.04 ± 1.83 years), and 125 from Spain (12.33 ± 2.27 years). Participants completed the International Physical Performance Test Profile (IPPTP), which assesses sprint speed (20 m dash), coordination (jumping sideways), upper body strength (push-ups), abdominal strength (sit-ups), lower body power (standing long jump), and cardiovascular endurance (6-min run). Children were categorized into two age groups: 8–10 and 11–14 years. ANCOVA, adjusting for BMI, was performed to analyze differences across countries and age groups.

Results: Analysis revealed significant differences in HRF across countries and age groups (p < 0.05). Spanish boys and girls consistently demonstrated superior sprint performance (20 m dash) and cardiovascular endurance (6-min run) compared to peers from other countries. Lebanese and Spanish girls exhibited stronger abdominal performance (sit-ups) than Egyptian girls, while Spanish girls also excelled in lower-body power (standing long jump). These findings underscore cross-cultural variations in HRF outcomes among Mediterranean children.

Conclusion: Cross-cultural differences in physical education programs and sports participation appear to influence HRF in children across the Mediterranean region. These findings underscore the need for culturally tailored physical education strategies and public health initiatives to ensure balanced fitness development in diverse cultural populations.

Background/Objectives. Traditional dietary patterns are being abandoned in Mediterranean countries, especially among younger generations. This study aimed to investigate the potential lifestyle determinants that can increase adherence to the Mediterranean diet in children and adolescents. Methods. This study is a cross-sectional analysis of data from five Mediterranean countries (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Egypt, and Lebanon) within the context of the EU-funded project DELICIOUS (UnDErstanding consumer food choices & promotion of healthy and sustainable Mediterranean Diet and LIfestyle in Children and adolescents through behavIOUral change actionS). This study comprised information on 2011 children and adolescents aged 6–17 years old collected during 2023. The main background characteristics of both children and parents, including age, sex, education, and family situation, were collected. Children’s eating (i.e., breakfast, place of eating, etc.) and lifestyle habits (i.e., physical activity level, sleep, and screen time) were also investigated. The level of adherence to the Mediterranean diet was assessed using the KIDMED index. Logistic regression analyses were performed to test for likelihood of higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet. Results. Major determinants of higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet were younger age, higher physical activity level, adequate sleep duration, and, among dietary habits, having breakfast and eating with family members and at school. Parents’ younger age and higher education were also determinants of higher adherence. Multivariate adjusted analyses showed that an overall healthier lifestyle and parents’ education were the factors independently associated with higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet. Conclusions. Higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet in children and adolescents living in the Mediterranean area is part of an overall healthy lifestyle possibly depending on parents’ cultural background.