Mediterranean Diet and Changes in Frequency, Severity, and Localization of Pain in Older Adults: The Seniors-ENRICA Cohorts

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Although some components of the Mediterranean diet have shown benefits in pain risk through its anti-inflammatory/antioxidant properties, no population-based studies have investigated the effect of adherence to this diet on changes in pain over time. METHODS: We used data from 864 and 862 older adults recruited in the Seniors-ENRICA-1 and Seniors-ENRICA-2 cohorts and followed-up for 2.8 and 2.4 years, respectively. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet was assessed with the MEDAS score at baseline. Frequency, severity, and locations of pain obtained at baseline and follow-up were used to compute a pain scale. Analyses were performed using multinomial logistic regression models, and adjusted for the main confounders. RESULTS: Participants had a mean (SD) age of 71.5 (5.1) years, 36.8% were men, and 78.3% had chronic conditions. In the pooled cohorts, compared with participants in the lowest quartile of the MEDAS score (lowest adherence to the Mediterranean diet), those in the highest quartile showed a higher frequency of pain improvement versus worsening (relative risk ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.43 [1.03, 1.99]). This association was also evidenced in 2 components of the pain scale: improvement in pain severity (1.43 [1.01, 2.04]) and reduction in pain locations (1.54 [1.08, 2.20]), but a tendency to pain frequency improvement (1.34 [0.92, 1.93]) was also observed. The main contributors to these associations were high consumption of fruit and vegetables, and low consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. CONCLUSIONS: A higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet was related to a subsequent improvement in pain characteristics in older adults, suggesting that improving diet quality may help reduce the high health impact of pain.

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