Greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with better perceived sleep quality but not with objectively measured sleep parameters in 500 Spanish adults.
Key Findings
Results
Higher Mediterranean diet adherence (MEDAS score) was significantly associated with better subjective sleep quality.
Sleep quality was measured with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI); adherence was measured with the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS).
Each one-point increase in MD adherence was associated with lower PSQI scores (lower scores indicate better sleep).
Multivariable linear regression models were adjusted for key sociodemographic and clinical confounders.
Sample: 500 Spanish adults aged 25-65 years.
Results
Higher MD adherence was associated with lower odds of poor sleep quality, but this association did not reach statistical significance.
Analysis used multivariable logistic regression with adjustment for sociodemographic and clinical confounders.
The abstract states participants with higher adherence had lower odds of poor sleep quality, 'although this association did not reach statistical significance'.
Results
A dietary pattern identified by cluster analysis, characterized by higher consumption of fruits, vegetables, fish and olive oil, was associated with better perceived sleep quality.
The pattern was derived through cluster analysis of dietary intake.
The association was with subjective (perceived) sleep quality.
Results
No significant associations were observed between MD adherence and objective sleep parameters measured by actigraphy.
Objective sleep was assessed with wrist actigraphy over five consecutive days.
Parameters examined included sleep efficiency, sleep fragmentation and wake after sleep onset.
None showed a significant association with MD adherence.
Conclusions
Subjective and objective sleep measures showed divergent associations with Mediterranean diet adherence, suggesting diet may relate to sleep perception rather than objective sleep characteristics.
Study design was cross-sectional, so causality cannot be established.
The authors suggest the MD may be a modifiable factor related to sleep-related well-being.
What This Means
This study looked at whether eating a Mediterranean-style diet is linked to better sleep in 500 Spanish adults aged 25-65. Participants completed a diet questionnaire and a sleep quality questionnaire, and also wore a wrist device (actigraph) for five days that objectively tracked their sleep.
People who followed the Mediterranean diet more closely reported better sleep quality on the questionnaire. A dietary pattern rich in fruits, vegetables, fish and olive oil was also linked to better self-reported sleep. However, the wrist device did not show any significant link between diet and measured sleep efficiency, sleep fragmentation, or time awake after falling asleep. The link to a categorical measure of 'poor sleeper' status was also not statistically significant.
This research suggests that the Mediterranean diet may be related more to how well people feel they sleep than to measurable sleep patterns. Because this was a cross-sectional study, it captures a single point in time and cannot show that the diet causes better sleep. Further studies that follow people over time or test dietary changes would be needed to clarify the relationship.
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Alonso-Domínguez R, González-Sánchez J, Jiménez-Vaquero C, García-Yu I, Sánchez-Aguadero N, Crespo-Sedano A, et al.. (2026). Mediterranean Diet Adherence and Sleep Quality in Spanish Adults: Divergent Associations Between Subjective and Objective Measures.. Nutrients. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18203305