Assessment of dietary habits, nutritional and emotional status of elderly in Mushin Local Government Area, Lagos State

Background: Old age is the final stage of the life cycle, characterized by functional decline and increased susceptibility to disease. Dietary habits, nutritional and emotional status have been shown to partly determine the quality of life of the elderly. Objective: This research assessed the dietary habits, nutritional and emotional status of the elderly. Methods: A structured questionnaire was used to obtain the socio-demographic characteristics as well as the dietary habits of the elderly. The mini-Nutritional assessment tool was used to determine the prevalence of malnutrition and Geriatric Depression Scale was used to identify depression among the elderly. Pearson’s Chi test was used to establish the association between Nutritional status and emotional status. Results: The assessment of the socio-demographic characteristics of the elderly showed that the majority (52.1%) were male, 32.4% were between the ages of 60-64 years and 81.7% were living with someone and quite a number (39.4%) lives with their spouse. The results of dietary habits assessment showed that most (69%) of the elderly ate at home with lunch as the most frequently eaten meal with 47.9% of the elderly preferred to eat lunch. The prevalence of malnutrition and depression among the elderly was found to be 11.3% and 50.7% respectively. At p < 0.05, no significant correlation existed between nutritional status and emotional status. Conclusion: Elderly habits of eating at home result in low cases of malnutrition but they still go through depression on average as they mostly live alone.