Loading...
5 results
Search Results
Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
- Nutritional level, health, and subjective well-being in elderlyPublication . Martins, Emília; Fernandes, Rosina; Mendes, Francisco; Pocinho, R.; Margarido, C.; Santos, R.; Marques. L.; Trindade, B.; Silva, S.; Gordo, S.Literature points out the positive association between food, good health, and life satisfaction, manly in elderly. The purpose of this ex post facto quantitative study was to analyse the relationship between nutrition level, health, and subjective well-being, also exploring sociodemographic variables, in a convenience sample of 550 community-dwelling elderly. Participants were between 63 and 94 (72,85+6,56) years-old, mostly female (69,3%), from the inland (79,2%), living accompanied (62,2%) and in rural areas (67,9%). A sociodemographic questionnaire, Mini-Nutritional Assessment, Satisfaction With Life Scale, and Positive and Negative Affect Scales were used in data collection. Data analysis was performed in SPSS 27, assuming a 95% confidence level. Nutritional level was positively correlated with life satisfaction (r,- ,165, p= ,004) and inverse associated with negative affect (r,- -,308, p<,00l). Those who showed a very bad self-perception of health, were older and lived alone, presented lower nutritional levels (p<,05). Participants with health problems showed higher levels of negative affect (p<,001). Elderly with better health self-perception presented higher results in life satisfaction - (•,-271 , p<,001) and positive affect (r,-244, p<,001), contrary to those with worst self-perception of health, who were older (r,- -, 178, p<,001), with higher BMI (r,- - 173, p<,001) and also higher scores in negative affect (r,- -,217, p<,001). The results in our sample confirmed the previous relationship between the variables studied. It emphasizes the assessment of nutritional status and health education, as well as creating policies to promote the practice of physical activity in cities.
- Nutritional status in a portuguese sample of institutionalized and non-institutionalized elderlyPublication . Martins, Emília; Mendes, Francisco; Fernandes, RosinaElderly institutionalization implies changes in the daily life with an impact on nutritional status. It is important to evaluate this impact in order to prevent malnutrition among the elderly. This ex-post facto study aims to evaluate the impact of the institutionalization in the elderly nutrition and health, as well as the influence of sociodemographic variables. Additionally, we intend to reflect on the practical implications for institutions caring for the elderly and caregivers on food preparation and management. A quantitative non-experimental study was performed with a convenience sample of 202 elderly, of both genders (70.3% women), aged 81.76 ± 7.47, from Long-Stay institutions (65.8%), Day Centres (6.9%) and community (27.2%), in the centre of Portugal. We used the Portuguese validation (Loureiro, 2008) of Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) for data collection and the SPSS-24 for statistical analyses (95% confidence degree). We found 50.9% undernourished and at risk in Long-Stay institutions vs. 13.2% in non-institutionalized elderly. The comparison between these groups shows statistical differences in nutritional status (U=2399, p=.000) and in global scores of MNA (U=1651, p=.000). There are low negative correlations between age and global score (rS= -.220, p=.003) and nutritional status (rS= -.199, p=.001), but no gender differences and a protective effect of academic qualifications. The study highlighted the prevalence and risk of undernutrition in elderly Long-Stay institutions. Hence, the interventions to reduce this public health problem should focus particularly among institutionalized elderly. However, for such interventions to be effective, it is essential to identify possible factors of this condition. It is imperative to monitor the nutritional status of the elderly and guiding institutions, caregivers and familiars.
- Physical activity and subjective well-being in elderlyPublication . Silva, Adriana; Teixeira, Bruna; Guimarães, Cristina; Pereira, Paula; Fernandes, Rosina; Mendes, FranciscoPhysical activity, although recognized as fundamental in the prevention of non-communicable diseases and in the improvement of subjective well-being, show low levels among the Portuguese elderly. This ex-post-facto study was developed to characterize the levels of physical activity and subjective wellbeing among the elderly, as well as the possible relations between both and the socio-demographic and health variables consequences in this sense. Of the convenience sample of 100 participants, aged between 65-89, 66 were women. 69 lived inland (mostly away from cities) while 31 lived in coastal areas. 56 lived in rural areas and 44 lived in cities. 54 were married while 69 did not live alone. The instruments used in data collection were the Modified Baecke Questionnaire (Physical Activity) (2014), Satisfaction with Life Scale and Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (Subjective Well-Being) (1991, 1992). Descriptive and inferential analysis were performed using SPSS-24 with p<.05 as the cut off point for significance. The elderly with higher median scores in Baecke had better results (p <.05) in subjective well-being. There was no significant difference among those who lived alone and those who were married as well as those living in the coastal region but a negative affect was found in women and the urban population. Our findings showed that the perception of health was positively correlated with physical activity and subjective well-being among the sample. The practice of physical activity is a key element of subjective well-being, because it mitigates negative affectivity and has a more positive impact than any socio-demographic or health variable.
- Cognitive abilities and physical activity in community-dwelling elderlyPublication . Martins, Emília; Fernandes, Rosina; Mendes, Francisco; Felizardo, Sara; Pocinho, R.; Margarido, C.; Santos, R.; Marques, L.; Trindade, B.; Silva, S.; Gordo, S.There is evidence of the protective role of the regular practice of physical activity (PA) in relation to the aging cognitive decline. A non-exper- imental quantitative study was developed to explore the relationship between physical activity and cognitive abilities in community-dwelling elderly, ana- lysing the relevance of sociodemographic and health related variables. The convenience sample included 546 participants, aged between 63 and 94 years (72.85+6.55), mostly female (69.6%), from the inland of the country (79.5%) and rural areas (68.2%). For data collection, in addition to the sociodemographic questionnaire, the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Modified Baecke Questionnaire were used. Statistical analyses (p<.05) were performed using the SPSS-IBM 27. The results point to a positive and significant relationship between the global scores of MoCA and Baecke (r,- 138, p<.02). Self-perception of health was also positively associated with both the MoCA and Baecke global scores (r,- 23 2» p<.001 and r =.204, p<.Oil) and age showed a negative relationship with those two variables (r,- -.294, p<.001 and r,-- *1 3, p<.001). In the association between MoCA and Baecke, the contrast between genders was quite sharp, with males not show ing any statistical relevance (p>.05) in contrast to females (rs=.182, p<.05). Household (living alone or accompanied) showed significant differences in the MOCA, favourable to those living accompanied (U=-3.96, p>.001). In Baecke, only the gender contrast was statistically significant, favourable to females (U= 25395, pt.05). These data are reinforced by scientific evidence and point to policies that promote the practice of physical activity in elderly.
- Characterization of the Physical Activity Level (PAL) in Portuguese ElderlyPublication . Mendes, Francisco; Martins, Emília; Fernandes, Rosina; Amante, Maria João; Rosado, António; Molina, JesúsThe positive impact of physical activity on the elderly is so relevant that WHO (2016) encourages it and sets out global recommendations for its practice. This paper describes a non-experimental study with 202 participants, with a mean age of 81.76 ± 7.47 years, of which 70.3% are female. 20.7% live with a spouse and 5.2% with their sons/daughters. The vast majority of participants (92.1%) has different levels of support from their care givers. Subjective measures were collected through the Baecke Habitual Physical Activity Questionnaire (HPAQ) (2009), and analyzed using the SPSS-24 with the confidence level of 95%. The results show that only 1.5% of the participants engaged in Sports Score (SS) while 44% participated in Leisure Time Score (LTS) activities with mean values of 1,045±1.05. The Domestic Activities Score (DAS) involves the largest number of subjects (83.7%) with a mean of .817± 69, and the HPAQ average is 1.3±1.31. Inferential analysis shows that advanced age, non-cohabitation with spouse and institutional support are relevant in the type of Physical Activities engaged in by the elderly. Gender and Body Mass Index (BMI) were not significant. It is, therefore, important to sensitize the providers of elderly care to develop strategies likely to promote, monitor, and follow up such Physical Activities.