Study on the Association Between Dietary Habits, Patterns and Frailty of the Elderly: A Cross-Sectional Survey from Communities in China

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of Chinese dietary habits and patterns on frailty among elderly people in Xi’an the community. We also sought to provide dietary suggestions for prevention of frailty. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted and participants were divided into three groups: non-frail group, pre-frail group, and frail group. Our sample included 100 individuals randomly selected from each group for the dietary survey. Information regarding general socio-demographic characteristics and the types and quantity of food intake in the past 3 days was collected by a questionnaire. Factor analysis was used to identify dietary patterns; multiple logistic regression analysis was used to explore the correlation between dietary pattern and frailty. RESULTS: (1) 1693 elderly individuals were screened. The prevalence of pre-frailty and frailty was 41.0% and 16.2%, respectively. (2) Two dietary patterns were defined: ordinary dietary pattern and high-fat dietary pattern. Compared with the high-fat diet, the intake of iron, vitamin E, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and legume protein was significantly lower in the ordinary diet (P < 0.05). (3) Multivariate regression analysis showed that the ordinary dietary pattern score was positively correlated with frailty, which was consistent after adjusting for confounding factors (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The low-fat and low-protein diet was positively correlated with the risk of frailty. Appropriate increase in fat and protein intake can help improve the frailty of the elderly in China.