Abstract: 

There is an immense lack of adherence information surrounding Mediterranean diet adherence in United States high school students, especially Allegheny County, Pennsylvania students. The researcher formulated the following research question in order to address this gap: To what extent do high school students in the Allegheny County region adhere to a Mediterranean-style diet in 2023-2024? This study consisted of 102 participants from various high schools in the Allegheny County region. To measure participant adherence, the researcher distributed a Google Form survey which included a slightly modified version of the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener as the primary data collection tool. Ultimately, the results of the study found that Allegheny County high school students have low to moderate Mediterranean diet adherence. These findings are concerning considering this population is not receiving the full mental health, physical, and cognitive benefits associated with adhering to a Mediterranean diet. However, this study provided important insight into the diets of Allegheny County high school students which could be used to better dietary education in schools and improve school cafeteria options in an attempt to increase adherence.