Skip to main content

Table 2 Factors associated with nutritional status (at risk or malnourished vs normal) (n = 613)

From: Malnutrition risks and their associated factors among home-living older Chinese adults in Hong Kong: hidden problems in an affluent Chinese community

 

Univariate analysis

Multivariable analysis

ORU

95% CI

p

ORA

95% CI

p

Lower

Upper

Lower

Upper

Socio-demographic characteristics

 Received CSSA

  No (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Yes

1.46

1.01

2.09

0.042

    

Lifestyle characteristics

 Smoking status

  Non-smoker (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Ex-smoker

0.68

0.40

1.14

0.145

    

  Current smoker

1.57

0.92

2.68

0.097

    

 Level of physical activity (IPAQ-SF)

  Low (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Moderate

0.56

0.34

0.92

0.023

    

  High

0.40

0.23

0.69

0.001

    

Health status

 Total CCI score

  0 (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  1

1.02

0.67

1.54

0.932

    

  2

1.93

1.08

3.44

0.027

    

  ≥ 3

1.65

0.93

2.94

0.088

    

 Hearing ability

  Clear (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Fair

1.48

0.99

2.21

0.058

    

  Unclear

2.75

1.68

4.50

< 0.001

    

 Visual ability

  Clear (ref)

1

   

1

   

  Fair

1.96

1.28

2.99

0.002

1.71

1.09

2.67

0.020

  Unclear

3.31

2.12

5.17

< 0.001

2.71

1.68

4.35

< 0.001

 Difficulty in chewing food

  No (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Yes

1.45

1.02

2.07

0.038

    

 Usual appetite

  Normal (ref)

1

   

1

   

  Good

0.34

0.24

0.50

< 0.001

0.38

0.26

0.56

< 0.001

  Bad

5.17

2.25

11.91

< 0.001

4.52

1.92

10.62

< 0.001

Dietary factors

 Below recommendation of the dietary guidelinesa:

 Grains (3 to 5 bowls per day)

  No (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Yes

1.63

1.13

2.34

0.009

    

 Vegetables (at least 3 servings per day)

  No (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Yes

1.69

1.02

2.80

0.043

    

 Fruits (at least 2 servings per day)

  No (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Yes

1.78

1.17

2.71

0.008

    

 Usually cooking food myself

  No (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Yes

0.76

0.50

1.16

0.203

    

 Dietary supplements consumption

  No (ref)

1

   

NS

   

  Yes

0.81

0.56

1.16

0.248

    

 Dietary behaviour

  Favour food group

   No preference (ref)

1

   

NS

   

   Grains

0.66

0.35

1.23

0.192

    

   Vegetables

0.38

0.20

0.73

0.003

    

   Fruits

0.34

0.16

0.75

0.007

    

   Meats

0.50

0.27

0.96

0.038

    

   Others (milk/fat/salt/sugar)

0.63

0.11

3.71

0.605

    

  Usual number of main meals skipped per day

   None (ref)

1

   

1

   

   One or more

2.26

1.47

3.48

< 0.001

2.03

1.27

3.25

0.003

  Preferred temperature of food and drink

   Warm (ref)

1

   

NS

   

   Hot

1.48

1.03

2.12

0.034

    

   Cold

0.88

0.31

2.46

0.801

    
  1. CCI Charlson comorbidity index, IPAQ-SF the international physical activity questionnaire – short form, NE not entered into multivariable analysis, NS not statistically significant in multivariable analysis, ORA odds ratio adjusted for other significant factors obtained from backward stepwise logistic regression analysis using variables with p-value < 0.25 in univariate analysis as candidate variables, ORU univariate odds ratio, ref Reference group of the categorical variable
  2. aThe dietary guidelines were based on the serving size recommendation in the Healthy Eating Food Pyramid for Elderly, developed by Department of Health, Hong Kong [47]. The five major food groups include grains (e.g. rice, noodles, starchy vegetables, bread and oat meals), vegetables (e.g. leafy vegetables, melon, mushroom), fruits (e.g. apple, banana, dried fruits), meats (e.g. beef, fish, egg) and milk (e.g. cow milk, yogurt, cheese) [46]. One bowl equals to 250-300 ml, one serving of vegetable equals to half bowl of cooked vegetables, one serving of fruit equals to one medium-sized fruit, one tael of meats equals to meats with the size of a table tennis ball and one glass equals to 240 ml [47]
Back to article page

BMC Geriatrics

ISSN: 1471-2318

Contact us