Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural Perspective
Obesity is a disease that straddles medico-nutritional, psychological, and socio-cultural boundaries. There is a clear relationship between lifestyle and obesity, and today the Mediterranean diet in the Mediterranean area may represent an interesting corrective asset. However, we should not be under...
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doaj-3881f642a3db477fa0ce39685e3dff262021-04-02T23:02:24ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health1661-78271660-46012021-04-01183715371510.3390/ijerph18073715Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural PerspectiveFrancesc Xavier Medina0Josep M. Solé-Sedeno1Anna Bach-Faig2Alicia Aguilar-Martínez3FoodLab & UNESCO Chair on Food, Culture and Development, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), Rambla del Poblenou, 156, 08018 Barcelona, SpainDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hospital del Mar, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Passeig Marítim, 25-29, 08003 Barcelona, SpainFoodLab & UNESCO Chair on Food, Culture and Development, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), Rambla del Poblenou, 156, 08018 Barcelona, SpainFoodLab & UNESCO Chair on Food, Culture and Development, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), Rambla del Poblenou, 156, 08018 Barcelona, SpainObesity is a disease that straddles medico-nutritional, psychological, and socio-cultural boundaries. There is a clear relationship between lifestyle and obesity, and today the Mediterranean diet in the Mediterranean area may represent an interesting corrective asset. However, we should not be under any misapprehension about the model’s capacity for action in non-nutritional terms. Our societies are experiencing a process of rapid change, and the Mediterranean area is no exception. The aim of this article is to present a view of obesity in the Mediterranean context from an open, mainly socio-cultural perspective, but from different points of view (medical, nutritional), seeking points of convergence and elements that contribute to the understanding of and approach to the disease in the context of the Mediterranean diet. As a public health and a multidimensional social problem, obesity must be dealt with in a holistic, open, and cross-disciplinary manner to ensure that it can be understood coherently. The only way to keep the usefulness of the Mediterranean diet within desirable limits will be our societies’ vitality and interest in rapidly adapting the Mediterranean diet to social change, thus providing valid answers to today’s needs.https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/7/3715obesityMediterranean dietpublic healthsociocultural perspectivesocial change |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Francesc Xavier Medina Josep M. Solé-Sedeno Anna Bach-Faig Alicia Aguilar-Martínez |
spellingShingle |
Francesc Xavier Medina Josep M. Solé-Sedeno Anna Bach-Faig Alicia Aguilar-Martínez Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural Perspective International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health obesity Mediterranean diet public health sociocultural perspective social change |
author_facet |
Francesc Xavier Medina Josep M. Solé-Sedeno Anna Bach-Faig Alicia Aguilar-Martínez |
author_sort |
Francesc Xavier Medina |
title |
Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural Perspective |
title_short |
Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural Perspective |
title_full |
Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural Perspective |
title_fullStr |
Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural Perspective |
title_full_unstemmed |
Obesity, Mediterranean Diet, and Public Health: A Vision of Obesity in the Mediterranean Context from a Sociocultural Perspective |
title_sort |
obesity, mediterranean diet, and public health: a vision of obesity in the mediterranean context from a sociocultural perspective |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health |
issn |
1661-7827 1660-4601 |
publishDate |
2021-04-01 |
description |
Obesity is a disease that straddles medico-nutritional, psychological, and socio-cultural boundaries. There is a clear relationship between lifestyle and obesity, and today the Mediterranean diet in the Mediterranean area may represent an interesting corrective asset. However, we should not be under any misapprehension about the model’s capacity for action in non-nutritional terms. Our societies are experiencing a process of rapid change, and the Mediterranean area is no exception. The aim of this article is to present a view of obesity in the Mediterranean context from an open, mainly socio-cultural perspective, but from different points of view (medical, nutritional), seeking points of convergence and elements that contribute to the understanding of and approach to the disease in the context of the Mediterranean diet. As a public health and a multidimensional social problem, obesity must be dealt with in a holistic, open, and cross-disciplinary manner to ensure that it can be understood coherently. The only way to keep the usefulness of the Mediterranean diet within desirable limits will be our societies’ vitality and interest in rapidly adapting the Mediterranean diet to social change, thus providing valid answers to today’s needs. |
topic |
obesity Mediterranean diet public health sociocultural perspective social change |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/7/3715 |
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