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Old, poor & malnourished
S Stitt1, C O'Connell, D Grant
1Centre for Consumer Education & Research, Liverpool John Moores University, IM Marsh.
Objective:
To monitor the effects of low, fixed incomes on the dietaries and nutritional well-being of elderly people.
Methods:
A questionnaire gathered data from a 'high income' sample (HIS) and a 'low income' sample (LIS) on income, eating and shopping patterns and nutritional awareness. A dietary diary provided the data required for a nutritional analysis of the foodstuffs consumed by the sample and inadequacies were identified by comparing nutrient intake to the Dept. of Health's (1991) Dietary Recommended Values (DRVs).
Results:
The dietaries of the low income sample showed substantial shortfalls from those officially recommended and these are presented as the result, primarily, of income poverty and not the consequence of ignorance or mental decline. The older poor know what healthy eating entails; in most cases, they simply cannot afford and indeed, the dietaries are often inferior to the 'general poor', because of the idiosyncracies of their nutritional requirements.
Conclusions:
The inability of the older poor to purchase a healthy dietary cannot be solved merely by health education or budgeting skills. Primarily, they need more money.