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Nutritional status and quality of life in different populations of older people in Poland

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 68, pages 1210–1215 (2014)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/objectives:

To estimate the potential association of three distinct nutritional status measures (body mass index (BMI), calf circumference (CC) and the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA)) with health-related quality of life (HRQL) assessed with Euroqol 5D questionnaire in different populations of elderly people in Poland.

Subjects/methods:

The study group was comprised of 1003 community-dwelling subjects from the urban environment, 890 subjects from the rural environment and 879 subjects from an institutional environment (nursing homes). Bivariate and multivariate associations were identified between nutritional status measures and HRQL adjusted for demographic and social variables, health status, physical function and mental status.

Results:

Nutrition status indices (BMI, CC and MNA) were generally higher in the urban than in the rural environment and clearly worse in institutionalised elderly. In both community-dwelling groups, BMI and CC were negatively related to several Euroqol scores. In institutional residents, of opposite relationships were observed: higher values of these variables were connected with less frequent reporting of problems in Euroqol. In all the three groups, associations between HRQL scores and MNA were very similar: higher values of MNA were significantly connected with less frequent reporting of problems in Euroqol.

Conclusions:

BMI and CC, as overweight/obesity measures, are independent predictors of lower HRQL in urban and rural community-dwelling seniors and higher HRQL in institutionalised elderly. Poor nutritional state as measured by MNA is a similar determinant of well-being in all the three environments. This different relationship of popular overweight/obesity measures to HRQL should be taken into account while designing care for older people.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by grant no. NN404 0496 33 from the Ministry of Education and Science and the State Committee for Scientific Research, by Polkard Senior Study grant from the Ministry of Health and by grant no. 503/6-077-01/503-01 from the Medical University of Lodz. The authors were partially supported by the Healthy Ageing Research Centre project (REGPOT-2012-2013-1, 7FP). We appreciate the assistance of Emilia Adamiak, Elżbieta Braksator, Anna Będzichowska, Krystyna Bogus, Wiesława Bogusz, Katarzyna Ciepłoch, Joanna Czarnecka, Barbara Deka, Izabela Kośla, Małgorzata Kusiak, Leena Mary Mascharenhas, Monika Maliszak, Magdalena Ozga, Marta Retlikowska-Lipińska, Katarzyna Rosiak, Grażyna Ryszkiewicz, Monika Smolarek, Ewa Trzuskowska, Danuta Wantkiewicz, Danuta Zając and Halina Żarnecka in carrying out the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geriatrics, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland

    J Kostka, E Borowiak & T Kostka

  2. Department of Physical Medicine, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland

    J Kostka

  3. Institute of Nursing, Medical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland

    E Borowiak

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  1. J Kostka
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Correspondence to T Kostka.

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Kostka, J., Borowiak, E. & Kostka, T. Nutritional status and quality of life in different populations of older people in Poland. Eur J Clin Nutr 68, 1210–1215 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.172

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