Health Related Malnutrition

Student’s Name

Institution of Affiliation

Introductions and Key Points

The main topic that I have chosen is ‘Malnutrition associated with specific health conditions.’ Based on the same topic, I have chosen to use the question, “What specific health conditions increase the risk of malnutrition?” to address health conditions that are associated with malnutrition. Malnutrition is a major program because it can lead to many health problems. Some of the health problems associated with malnutrition include; stunted growth, eye problems, diabetes as well as risks of heart disease. Malnutrition is a global issue in that it affects billions of people. Some of the populations are at a higher risk of malnutrition, depending on their lifestyle, environment, and resources.

Article search

Bakker, M. H., Vissink, A., Spoorenberg, S. L., Jager-Wittenaar, H., Wynia, K., & Visser, A. (2018). Are Edentulousness, Oral Health Problems, and Poor Health-Related Quality of Life Associated with Malnutrition in Community-Dwelling Elderly (Aged 75 Years and Over)? A Cross-Sectional Study. Nutrients, 10(12), 1965.

Article Findings 

According to the article, as the population tends to age, the risk of malnourishment as well increases. The article cites that poor oral health can be a risk factor for malnutrition in institutionalized elderly. In finding out whether oral health problems, edentulousness, and health-related quality of life are associated with the risk of malnutrition in community-dwelling older adults, the research incorporates a cross-sectional observational study where 1325 community-living elderly above 75 years were asked to complete questionnaires on nutritional status, oral status, oral health problems, health-related quality of life, frailty, activities of daily living and complexity of care needs. The study results indicated that health-related quality of life is significantly associated with malnutrition; however, edentulous health problems are not associated with malnutrition. The article was chosen because it identifies with the same concept on research, and that is health problems associated with malnutrition. Oral health is a health condition and thus can increase the risk of malnutrition, although at a rate. 

Summary of evidence

Univariate analysis of the study was performed to identify the significance of the health problems with malnutrition. Out of this, 51% were edentulous, 38.8% had remaining teeth, and 10.2% had an implant-supported overdenture. Elderly with complex care needs were highly malnourished, most frequently followed by frail and robust elderly with 10%, 4.5%, and 2.9%, respectively. However, malnourished elderly reported more frequent problems with chewing and speech when compared with the well-nourished elderly. A major limitation of the study is related to the low prevalence of malnutrition (≈5%) in the population of the elderly assessed. Based on this, a low predictive value results for the defined associated factors. The small numbers of malnutrition may have influenced the extrapolation of the univariate and multivariate logistic analyses, which resulted in a low significance of edentulous health problem causing malnutrition.

Sharing Evidence

The information obtained from the research would be shared with the elderly – people above the age of 75 years as well as health service providers, both home-based and hospital-based, as they are directed related to solving malnutrition issues among the elderly. The information would be shared through explanations and examples to help the elderly understand how the quality of life influences the chance of malnutrition. The resources needed for the sharing of information are community-based, and they include financial assistance, educational, health care, and religious organizations. All these organizations will play a crucial role in helping disseminate the information.

Conclusion

The purpose of the paper is to investigate specific health problems associated with the risk of malnutrition. Based on this, it identifies edentulous problems as some of the major reasons why the elderly (above 75 years) have a high risk of malnutrition. According to the research used, malnourished elderly report high health problems compared to well-nourished.

References

Bakker, M. H., Vissink, A., Spoorenberg, S. L., Jager-Wittenaar, H., Wynia, K., & Visser, A. (2018). Are Edentulousness, Oral Health Problems and Poor Health-Related Quality of Life Associated with Malnutrition in Community-Dwelling Elderly (Aged 75 Years and Over)? A Cross-Sectional Study. Nutrients, 10(12), 1965.