A Basic Study to Establish a Nutrition Education System for Welfare Facilities for the Elderly at Home Using Body Composition Analysis and Nutritional Management Cards

This study was conducted to provide basic data to establish a nutrition education system using body composition analysis and nutrition management cards for users of welfare facilities for the elderly at home. The subjects were 82 elderly people in Wonju using welfare facilities at home. The survey methodology included measuring the height and body composition of the subjects and preparing a nutrition management card through interviews. The subjects included 19 males (23.2%) and 63 females (76.8%) and the average age was 85.4 years. The judgment scores using the nutrition management card of 57 subjects (69.5%) were ‘good’ and the scores of the remaining 25 (30.5%) showed that they needed ‘attention’. The body composition including body moisture, protein, minerals, muscle mass, and fatty mass was significantly higher in the ‘good’ group. In the diet information, the response to “difficulty in chewing” was significantly higher in the attention group (p<0.05). In the area of nutrition monitoring, queries regarding weight change over three months resulted in a significantly higher response of “no change in weight” in the ‘good’ group, but the ‘attention group’ had a higher number of responses of “I do not know”. The responses to “BMI ≥ 23” were significantly higher in the ‘good’ group (p<0.001). In conclusion, the body composition and BMI were higher in the ‘good’ group, and difficulty in chewing was higher in the ‘attention’ group. In addition, it was found that the elderly with poor nutritional status were less interested in their weight and health management. Therefore, considering these results, it is necessary to establish a nutrition education system for users of welfare facilities for the elderly at home.