Nutritional status and its determinants among community-dwelling older adults in Jordan

The elderly population of Jordan is growing, due to the low mortality rate, high total fertility rate, and the high rate of forced migration from neighboring countries to Jordan in recent years. However, the prevalence of chronic illnesses associated with other comorbidities among the elderly population in Jordan is high. Maintaining a good nutritional status is essential for maintaining general health and well-being among older people.

The aim of this study is to identify the nutritional status of community-dwelling older adults in Jordan and determine its possible associated factors.

A cross-sectional, descriptive design was utilized. Proportional multistage nonprobability sampling was employed to obtain a convenient sample of 225 Jordanian community-dwelling older adults. The participants were asked to complete a set of questionnaires related to nutritional status, which included a demographic information sheet, and the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA).

Among the sample, only 60 participants (26.7%) showed normal nutritional status. Most of the participants (n = 156; 68.3%) were found to be at risk of malnutrition, and nine participants (4%) were found to suffer from malnutrition. Advanced age (r = -0.631; p = 0.001), body mass index (BMI) (r = 0.546; p = 0.001), being single (mean (M) = 20.43, SD = 3.55), being male (M = 21.10, SD = 3.73), being unemployed (M = 21.71, SD = 3.51), being dependent in activities of daily living (ADLs) (M = 21.35; SD = 3.62), eating only two meals per day (M = 19.60; SD = 3.39), having suffered from illness or anxiety in the preceding 3 months (M = 21.11; SD = 2.39), having a mid-arm circumference of less than 31 cm (M = 19.51; SD = 3.47), low consumption of fruit and vegetables (M = 20.79; SD = 2.53), and polypharmacy (M = 20.62, SD = 4.09) were found to predict susceptibility to malnutrition among the participating older adults. Amongst the variables, age was identified as the most significant predictor of nutritional status and explained approximately 40% of the variance in nutritional status.

Malnutrition in older adults is a multifaceted phenomenon that needs to be integrated into the comprehensive assessment of older adults. It is essential that health-care professionals, particularly nurses, are fully aware of the associated risks of malnutrition among the elderly population. The high prevalence of the risk factors for malnutrition warrants conducting a controlled national-based assessment, using probability sampling, of the nutritional status among older adults in Jordan. Specifically, there is a real need to assess nutritional status among older adults who are at high risk of malnutrition, including senior, unmarried, male, unemployed, ADL dependent, and/or poly-medicated older adults.