Difference in food and nutrient intakes in Korean elderly people according to chewing difficulty: using data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2013 (6th)
Chewing difficulty is a factor contributing to a poor nutritional status in the elderly. The aim of this study was to examine disparities in food and nutrition intakes among Korean elderly people with and without chewing difficulty. SUBJECTS/
METHODS:
This study utilized data from the sixth KoreaNational Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted in 2013. The study subjects included males and females over 65 years of age who were not required to adhere to a special diet due to disease or sickness. They were divided into groups according to their chewingability. Those who found chewing “very difficult” or “difficult”, were combined to form the chewing difficulty group. Similarly, those who found chewing “moderately difficult”, “easy”, and “very easy” were combined to form the normal chewing group.