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Community-living elder's views on normal and low weight
C Thompson Martin1, J Kaiser Jones, N A Stotts
1Department of Nursing, CSU Stanislaus, CA, USA. cmartin2@csustan.edu
Objectives:
To investigate community-living older adult's understanding of normal and low weight.
Design:
Cross-sectional exploratory.
Setting:
Three counties in the Western United States.
Participants:
Community-living older adults (n=130), aged 65 and older, with a body mass index (BMI) < 24 kg/m2.
Measurement:
Interviews, using semi-structured questions, were analyzed using content analysis.
Results:
Only 22% (n=28) of the participants reported knowing the normal weight range for their age, and even fewer (2%, n=3) knew what a low weight was for their age. Most (n=125) reported receiving no information from their health care provider (HCP) on normal and low weight for their age.
Conclusion:
The majority of the participants were unaware that they were at-risk for poor nutritional status and low weight; they reported receiving little information from their HCP on preventing weight loss. Since most community-living older adults do not know what normal or low weight is for their age, they would benefit from receiving this information from their HCP.
Rationale:
Knowledge of older adults' views on normal and low weight may lead to early identification of weight problems and improve an older adult's nutritional status.
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