Avaliação do estado nutricional em idosos com diabetes mellitustus

Objective: To analyze the nutritional status of elderly individuals with diabetes mellitus. Methods: Cross-sectional population-based study. Part of the Longitudinal Study of Health of the Elderly of Alcobaça – ELSIA, including 465 elderly people. Data analysis was performed using a structured questionnaire containing sociodemographic, health and behavioral information. Nutritional status was assessed using the Mini Nutritional Assessment – MNA. Results: There was a prevalence of risk of malnutrition/malnutrition of 47,1% (15,7% in men and 30,1% in women) in the group with diabetes. The MNA analysis revealed that the individuals in the group with diabetes, when compared to the group without diabetes, presented greater weight loss in the last three months (p=0,017), took more than three different medications per day (p=≤0,0001), believed they were malnourished (p=0,003) and considered their own health as not very good (p=0,027). When comparing genders, the male diabetes group showed differences in relation to the use of multiple medications (p=≤0,0001), mobility (p=≤0,0001), and neuropsychological problems (p=0,029). While females showed a statistically significant difference in relation to use of multiple medications (p=≤0,0001). Conclusion: The findings showed a significant prevalence of risk of malnutrition/malnutrition in elderly with diabetes mellitus, especially in females. However, the presence of the disease in males has been shown to have a significant impact on nutritional status when analyzing MNA parameters.