Nutritional status of the older adults in nursing homes: A cross-sectional study

To investigate the nutritional status of older adults in nursing homes in Chongqing, China, compare and analyse the differences in the physical condition, cognitive function and social-related factors of older adults with different nutritional statuses.

Malnurtition in the older people has become a priority concer, and the incidence and factors associated with malnutrition vary somewhat by healthcare setting. In Chongqing ,China, there is lack of research on malnutrition of the older people in nursing homes. Here, we investigated the incidence of malnutrition and analysed the associated factors.

A cross-sectional study.

From January to April 2023, a cross-sectional survey was conducted in three nursing homes in Chongqing, China. Participants completed a series of questionnaires, including the Demographic Information Questionnaire which included age, gender, education level, previous occupation, marital status and other information. The survey also included validated non-demographic instruments [Short-Form Mini-Nutritional Assessment (MNA-SF), Barthel Index (BI) and Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE)] to identify related impact factors. The Guidelines for cross-sectional studies were used in this study (Data S1).

209 older adults aged 60 and over participated in this study, of whom 121 were women and 88 were men. The average (SD) age of the participants was 84.7 (6.3) years. Of the participants, 46.4% were classified as well nourished. About 39.2% were at risk of malnutrition and 14.4% were malnourished. Compared to those who were well nourished, those who were malnourished or at risk of becoming malnourished were more likely to suffer from comorbidities, polypharmacy, a higher risk of falling, ADL dependence and to receive more nutritional interventions. However, there are no significant differences after adjustment for age, education level, previous occupation, marital status, length of stay, and type of health care payment.

Malnutrition is a common problem among older adults innursing homes in Chongqing, China. There are certain differences in physical conditions and nutritional interventions among older adults withdifferent nutritional status.

This study suggests that the problem of malnutrition is very prominent in nursing homes in Chongqing, China. Cognitive impairment, impaired activities of daily living, fall risk and nutritional intervention need to be prevalent in older adults with (risk of) malnutrition.