Adherence to Mediterranean Diet among athletes participating at the XXX summer universiade.

A well-balanced diet is essential in sport. Due to its typical content in high-quality proteins, low glycemic index foods, and unsaturated fats, Mediterranean Diet (MD) may represent a good choice to cover nutritional needs of athletes. The aim of this study was to explore how the dietary habits of elite athletes, such as those competing at the XXX Summer Universiade, comply with the MD model.

Are nutrition and physical activity associated with gut microbiota? A pilot study on a sample of healthy young adults.

Background: The literature shows that gut microbiota composition is related with health, and a lot of individual and outer factors may determine its variability. In particular, nutrition and exercise seem to influence the presence in the gut of the two major bacterial phyla of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes.

Study Design: An ongoing cross-sectional investigation is aimed to explore these associations in humans.

Health protection and safety in physical activity and sport promotion: the continuous evolution of roles and regulations in Italy.

The promotion of physical activity is one of the main prevention strategies because of its fundamental role in reducing the risk of developing the major chronic diseases causing disability and death. Consistently with the approach of "health in all policies" for different age classes and health conditions, the Italian Ministry of Health identifies physical activity as a valid and economically sustainable instrument of prevention and health promotion for all the community. By highlighting the preventive role of physical activity, the Italian Government has recently inserted specific services regarding physical activity promotion among the Essential Levels of Care.