Health · Fitness & Nutrition · 2 hrs ago
Modern urban life makes the Mediterranean diet harder to follow
Researchers in Portugal and Spain reviewed why the Mediterranean diet is harder to follow today.
The eating pattern emphasizes vegetables, fruit, legumes, nuts, whole grains and olive oil, with smaller amounts of fish, dairy and eggs.
Long work hours, rising food costs and less time to cook can push people toward ready-to-eat foods, including products high in sugar, fat or salt.
The review also points to less physical activity as part of the challenge of maintaining a broader Mediterranean lifestyle.
The shift away from this way of eating has been especially marked among urban, younger and lower-income groups since the 1960s.
The authors drew on 116 sources, but did not use a systematic screening process, so their selection may have been biased.
The review considers ways to adapt Mediterranean-style eating to modern urban life, but the available text does not specify what happens next.
A new review says modern urban life is making the Mediterranean diet harder to follow.
The review identifies long working hours, rising food costs and convenient ultra-processed meals as barriers.
Adherence to the diet has declined substantially since the 1960s, especially among urban, younger and lower-income groups.
Researchers from universities and research institutions in Portugal and Spain reviewed existing studies and proposed ways to adapt the diet to modern lifestyles.
The review’s reference list included 116 sources, and the authors noted that their selection process could be open to bias.
- Who
- Researchers from Bragança Polytechnic University, the University of Vigo, the Galicia Sur Health Research Institute and the Polytechnic University of Guarda.
- What
- They reviewed challenges to following the Mediterranean diet in contemporary life and considered ways to adapt it.
- When
- The literature search ran from October 2024 to December 2025. The review was published on 2026-11-06.
- Where
- The study was conducted by institutions in Portugal and Spain.
- Why
- To examine why the traditional Mediterranean lifestyle is becoming harder to maintain and identify strategies for adapting it to modern urban lifestyles.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The researchers searched scientific literature and other sources for the review.
News-Medical published its report on the review.
- Reference list
- 116 sources
- Literature search
- October 2024 to December 2025
- Publication date
- 2026-11-06
- Study institutions
- Portugal and Spain
- Declining adherence
- Since the 1960s, particularly among urban, younger and lower-income groups