Spending Longer Time in the Kitchen Was Associated With Healthier Diet Among Japanese Older Women With Frailty

Objective

To evaluate the conditional effect of time spent in the kitchen on the association between frailty status and healthy diet among older women.

Design

Secondary analysis of an online cross-sectional survey conducted in January 2023.

Participants

Six hundred Japanese women (aged ≥ 65 years).

Main Outcome Measure(s)

Frailty status evaluated using the Kihon Checklist (25 affirmative questions assessing daily functions, weight status, and mental condition); healthy diet assessed by the days of consuming ≥ 2 meals that include staple, main and side dishes in a meal (SMS meal) in a day; and time spent in the kitchen.

Analysis

Moderation analysis was used to evaluate the conditional effect of time spent in the kitchen on frailty status and SMS meal intake. Chi-square tests for independence were used to evaluate the differences in the Kihon Checklist items by frailty status.

Results

Spending longer time in the kitchen indicated more frequent SMS meal intake and the trend was stronger among older women with frailty than those with robustness. All items except for 1 item regarding weight status (P = 0.15) were significantly associated with frailty status (P < 0.001).

Conclusions and Implications

Further studies are needed to evaluate the causal relationship between frailty status, healthy diet, and kitchen use.