Abstract

To promote health status, strategies and interventions to improve nutrition should be based on the proper diagnosis of the subject's eating patterns. The elderly usually have traditional food habits and preferences, and it is very difficult to change them. This study was designed to identify dietary behavior and food preference of the elderly, in order to provide baseline data for the Elderly Nutrition Intervention Program for the Public Health Center. A survey questionnaire was made for use by trained interviewers to query 151elderly people from 5 community elderly centers located in Suwon, Korea. The majority of them ate regularly and partook of all available side dishes. Their major dietary problems were frequent consumptions of salty foods, and eating too quickly. They consumed grains and vegetables regularly, but seldomly ate dairy products, fruits, meat and food prepared with oil. They also tended to eschew ready made processed food, high cholesterol food, and fast food. Also they did not dine out as much as younger people. Desirable eating habit score were not significantly influenced by socioeconomic variables and nutrition-related characteristics. These included nutrition knowledge, Nutritional Risk Index(NRI) and a score of health concerns. However, meal balance scores were significantly higher in the younger group(p<.05), the higher household income group(p<.05). According to stepwise multiple regression analysis, NRI was the most important determinant of a desirable eating habit score for the male elderly, whereas the score of health concerns was most important for female elderly subjects. The greatest predictor of the meal f balance score was nutrition knowledge. The elderly liked sweet tasting food, grains, rice, stews and Korean style soups. They disliked sour food, dairy products, processed food, and bread. The results indicate that the Elderly Nutrition Education Program should focus on increasing consumption of dairy products, fruits and food with oil, prepared by traditional Korean cooking methods. It also suggests that the program planning should consider the socioeconomic status of the elderly, such as income and education level, as well as concern for health.

• Keywords: elderly nutrition; dietary behavior; food; preferences; nutrition intervention program