Elderly Nutrition Improvement Program in the community health center : Nutritional evaluation of the elderly using the Index of Nutritional Quality and food group intake pattern

ABSTRACT

Physiological changes that affect nutrient absorption and utilization occur in older adults, and the collection of nutritional information is an important part of examining the nutrition and health issue. A nutritional survey using the 24-hour recall method was performed to identify nutritional quality and leading patterns of food group intake for protein, vitamin C, P and Fe were over 1, whereas those for vitamin A, B1, B2, niacin and Ca were below 1. The MAR(Mean Adequacy Ratio) was relatively low(0.75). The percentage of energy from carbohydrate, protein, and fat was 65.1, 15.6, and 19.5, respectively, thus the quantities of energy source were ideal. The Older subjects revealed poorer nutrition quality than the younger subjects did. The food group intake pattern of the elderly was not diverse, only 9% of them consumed all food groups in a day. These results suggest that nutritional guiflines for older Koreans should focus on the maintenance of adequate energy intake. In addition, selection of foods with high protein and calcium, such as dairy food, should be emphasized, particularly in the older elderly. Nutrition programs should target individuals at risk of not receiving enough nutrients, like the oldest elderly, and persons with lower education.