Low diet quality in older adults: a population-based study in southern Brazil

The aim of this study was to identify the factors associated with low diet quality in older adults from the city of Pelotas, Southern Brazil. Information on food consumption was collected using a reduced food frequency questionnaire, and diet quality was assessed by the Elderly Diet Quality Index DQI-E ("Índice de Qualidade da Dieta de Idosos - IQD-I"), devised by the authors. Points were attributed to each food evaluated according to frequency of consumption. Higher consumption frequency of healthy foods received higher scores whilst unhealthy foods received lower scores. Scores were divided into tertiles classified as: low quality, intermediate quality, and good quality. Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the association between diet quality and the independent variables. The factors associated with low diet quality were: male gender, age < 80 years, low education, problems affording food, underweight, mouth or teeth problems, and having less than four meals a day. Important barriers to the consumption of a good quality diet were observed, highlighting the importance of considering these aspects in the promotion of healthy eating among older adults.