The results showed that evidence is scarce and that very few scores fulfilled the applicability parameters and psychometric quality .
Scores measuring adherence to MD are useful tools for identifying the dietary patterns of a given population .
OBJECTIVE The aim of this review was to evaluate the conceptual suitability , applicability and psychometric properties of scores used internationally to measure adherence to the Mediterranean diet ( MD ) .
Modified Mediterranean diet and survival: EPIC-elderly prospective cohort study
Abstract Objective To examine whether adherence to the modified Mediterranean diet , in which unsaturates were substituted for monounsaturates , is associated with longer life expectancy among elderly Europeans . Design Multicentre , prospect i ve cohort study . Setting Nine European countries ( Denmark , France , Germany , Greece , Italy , the Netherl and s , Spain , Sweden , United Kingdom ) . Participants 74 607 men and women , aged 60 or more , without coronary heart disease , stroke , or cancer at enrolment and with complete information about dietary intake and potentially confounding variables . Main outcome measures Extent of adherence to a modified Mediterranean diet  using a scoring system on a 10 point scale , and death from any cause by time of occurrence , modelled through Cox regression . Results An increase in the modified Mediterranean diet score was associated with lower overall mortality , a two unit increment corresponding to a statistically significant reduction of 8 % ( 95 % confidence interval 3 % to 12 % ) . No statistically significant evidence of heterogeneity was found among countries in the association of the score with overall mortality even though the association was stronger in Greece and Spain . When dietary exposures were calibrated across countries , the reduction in mortality was 7 % ( 1 % to 12 % ) . Conclusion The Mediterranean diet , modified so as to apply across Europe , was associated with increased survival among older people
The results showed that evidence is scarce and that very few scores fulfilled the applicability parameters and psychometric quality .
Scores measuring adherence to MD are useful tools for identifying the dietary patterns of a given population .
OBJECTIVE The aim of this review was to evaluate the conceptual suitability , applicability and psychometric properties of scores used internationally to measure adherence to the Mediterranean diet ( MD ) .