Table 2.
Demographics and diet- and health-related characteristics of HANDLS study participants aged ≥60 years at Wave 4 categorized by risk for malnutrition, screened by Mini Nutritional Assessment.
| Characteristics | Normal Nutrition Status (n = 435) | At-Risk for Malnutrition (n = 311) | p-Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demographics | |||
| Age, years, X ± SE | 66.34 ± 0.19 | 65.81 ± 0.22 | 0.064 |
| Men, % | 38.9 | 41.3 | 0.492 |
| African American, % | 58.6 | 64.4 | 0.109 |
| Poverty <125%, % | 28.3 | 42.6 | <0.001 |
| Education, % <12th grade | 27.4 | 39.0 | 0.001 |
| Smoker, % | 28.9 | 45.2 | <0.001 |
| Health Conditions | |||
| BMI, kg/m2, X ± SE | 31.42 ± 0.31 | 30.15 ± 0.50 | 0.025 |
| CVD event since Baseline, % | 8.7 | 15.6 | 0.030 |
| Diabetes, % | 21.9 | 24.6 | 0.622 |
| Hypertension, % | 59.9 | 69.5 | 0.007 |
| Symptoms of depression, CES-D, % | 26.4 | 41.2 | <0.001 |
| Diagnosed depression, % | 26.0 | 44.2 | <0.001 |
| Diagnosed bipolar disorder, % | 2.8 | 6.5 | 0.015 |
| Diagnosed suicidal thoughts, % | 4.8 | 11.0 | 0.002 |
| Diagnosed anxiety disorder, % | 13.8 | 27.7 | <0.001 |
| Diet-related Measures | |||
| Food insecure, % | 15.0 | 24.6 | 0.002 |
| Not feel like eating, poor appetite most of the time, % | 3.3 | 8.1 | <0.001 |
| Energy, kcal, X ± SE | 1833 ± 32 | 1713 ± 40 | 0.017 |
| MAR Wave 4, X ± SE | 75.43 ± 0.70 | 72.69 ± 0.87 | 0.184 |
| NAR Vitamin C, X ± SE | 0.605 ± 0.017 | 0.553 ± 0.020 | 0.049 |
| NAR Thiamin, X ± SE | 0.887 ± 0.009 | 0.839 ± 0.012 | 0.001 |
| NAR Riboflavin, X ± SE | 0.938 ± 0.007 | 0.907 ± 0.009 | 0.005 |
| NAR Niacin, X ± SE | 0.946 ± 0.006 | 0.919 ± 0.009 | 0.011 |
| NAR Folate, X ± SE | 0.814 ± 0.011 | 0.775 ± 0.013 | 0.022 |
| NAR Copper, X ± SE | 0.881 ± 0.009 | 0.844 ± 0.011 | 0.007 |
| NAR Magnesium, X ± SE | 0.659 ± 0.010 | 0.607 ± 0.013 | 0.001 |
| NAR Selenium, X ± SE | 0.977 ± 0.004 | 0.960 ± 0.006 | 0.017 |
| NAR Zinc, X ± SE | 0.819 ± 0.010 | 0.775 ± 0.013 | 0.005 |
| Protein, gm/kg, X ± SE | 0.82 ± 0.02 | 0.83 ± 0.03 | 0.884 |
| Protein, % energy | 15.8 ± 0.2 | 15.5 ± 0.3 | 0.330 |
| Carbohydrate, % energy | 47.2 ± 0.5 | 48.7 ± 0.5 | 0.037 |
| Sugar, % energy | 21.8 ± 0.4 | 23.3 ± 0.5 | 0.022 |
| Total fat, % energy | 36.6 ± 0.4 | 35.7 ± 0.4 | 0.087 |
| Clinical and Physical Measures | |||
| Self-rated Health as poor/fair, % | 18.4 | 31.3 | <0.001 |
| Accomplished less due to health, most of the time, % | 8.2 | 16.9 | <0.001 |
| Health limits climbing stairs, a lot, % | 12.8 | 25.6 | <0.001 |
| Health limits moderate activities, a lot, % | 11.1 | 21.8 | <0.001 |
| Difficulty walking 1/4 mile; % | 23.6 | 35.9 | <0.001 |
| Difficulty walking up 10 stairs; % | 19.2 | 29.2 | 0.004 |
| Difficulty standing up from chair; % | 22.2 | 33.6 | 0.003 |
| Difficulty carrying 20 lbs, % | 13.4 | 20.3 | 0.068 |
| Difficulty using fingers, % | 17.8 | 26.6 | 0.004 |
| Biochemical Measures | |||
| Hs-CRP (mg/L), X ± SE | 4.84 ± 0.42 | 6.07 ± 0.67 | 0.102 |
| Albumin/Globulin ratio (g/dL); X ± SE | 1.42 ± 0.01 | 1.35 ± 0.02 | 0.002 |
| Albumin (g/dL), X ± SE | 4.25 ± 0.02 | 4.18 ± 0.02 | 0.005 |
| Potassium (mmol/L), X ± SE | 4.24 ± 0.02 | 4.13 ± 0.03 | 0.003 |
| Serum 25 OH Vitamin D (ng/mL), X ± SE | 31.17 ± 0.75 | 28.12 ± 0.89 | 0.009 |
Abbreviations: HANDLS—Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span, BMI—Body Mass Index, MAR—Mean Adequacy Ratio, NAR—Nutrient Adequacy Ratio, Hs-CRP—High sensitivity C-reactive protein. Defined by an affirmative response to the question, ‘Did you eat less because of insufficient money for food in the past month? Bolded font was used to emphasize p-values significant at <0.05 level.