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Rather than focusing on the intake of single nutrients, a dietary pattern refers to the overall combination of foods and beverages typically consumed by an individual or population over time. Examples of dietary patterns include the Mediterranean diet, which emphasizes whole grains, vegetables, and healthy fats, or the Mind diet, which includes foods that may help reduce the risk of cognitive decline and dementia, such as Alzheimer’s.
Author and reviewer
Editorial responsibilityReferences and further reading
- Evaluation of Dietary Patterns and All-Cause Mortality: A Systematic Review. Advances in Nutrition. 2021;12(6):2345–2365. View source
- The Association between the Mediterranean Dietary Pattern and Cognitive Health: A Systematic Review. Nutrients. 2017;9(7):674. doi:10.3390/nu9070674. View source
How to cite this entry
Encyclopedia of Nutritional Psychology. (2026). Dietary Pattern. The Center for Nutritional Psychology.
https://dev.nutritional-psychology.org/encyclopedia/dietary-pattern/Know a term that belongs in the Encyclopedia?
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