NUTRITIONAL AND HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF FOOD INSUFFICIENCY AMONG U.S. ELDERLY

JUNG SUN LEE, EDWARD A. FRONGILLO, JR., AND CHRISTINE M. OLSON Division of Nutritional Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853

The purpose of this study was to examine the consequences of food insufficiency for the nutritional and health status of the elderly over 60 years old in the U.S.

The data analyzed were from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III, 1988-94), the first NHANES without an upper age limit.  Data included 6596 elderly aged between 60 and 90 years.  Multiple regression and logistic regression analyses were used to asses the extent to which food insufficient elderly were likely to have lower nutrient intake, anthropometry, and self-reported health status.

Food insufficiency was significantly associated with low intake of energy, protein, carbohydrate, saturated fat, niacin, Vitamins B6, B2, B12, magnesium, iron, and zinc, as well as, lower skinfold thickness.  Also food insufficient elderly were 2.27 times more likely to report fair and poor health status.

These results indicate that food insufficient elderly have worse nutritional and health status than do food sufficient elderly.  This calls for nutrition services to be targeted to food insufficient elderly in order to ameliorate food insufficiency, thus prevent its adverse nutritional and health consequences.

Funding for this project provided by the USDA.

Contact person:
Jung Sun Lee
Division of Nutritional Sciences
370 Martha Van Rensselaer Hall
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY 14853
Telephone: 607/255/0763
Fax: 607/255/0178
E-mail: j1138@cornell.edu

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