Nutritional Status and Dietary Habits of the Elderly Population in a Village in Punjab

Abstract

Objectives: To assess the nutritional status and dietary habits of the elderly population and their associations with socio-demographic factors in a rural area. Methodology: The Design is an analytical cross-sectional study. The Population was elderly men or women with age 60 years or above. This study was conducted in a village named Jia Bagga, district of Lahore, Pakistan. The sample size was 100 elderly subjects. Results: The mean age of the subjects was 69.08 and the mean BMI was 25.09. Out of 100 individuals that participated 22% were malnourished and 50% were at risk of malnourishment. Malnourishment was found to be significantly associated with age, financial dependency, physical activity, and overall eating habits. 18% of the subjects had fair, 81% had good and only 1% had excellent eating habits. The study has proved to us that the nutritional status of the elderly population in Rural areas is not satisfactory as most of the individuals were either at risk of being malnourished or were malnourished. So keeping these findings in mind, future policies regarding the Health and Well being of the elderly population should be carved in such a way that puts in place some barriers that can prevent this from happening. These policies will help us decrease the burden on our healthcare system and decrease morbidity and mortality as well.