Effect of community-based nutrition education program on diet quality of the elderly in Jinshan District of Shanghai

Objective To evaluate the effect of a community-based nutrition education program on the dietary quality of the elderly with diet balance index(DBI).Methods Eighty-three volunteers from Zhujing Town of Jinshan District of Shanghai with age≥60 years were served as study objectives,and a total of 70 people completed the program.They were given nutritional guidance bimonthly in combination with measures such as community publications,panel discussions and individual interviews.Measurements of dietary intakes,which lasted for 3 d,were performed before intervention and 12 months after intervention,respectively.Diet quality was evaluated with DBI scoring system,and the parameters were compared before and after intervention.Results There were significant differences in DBI-Total Score(DBI-TS),DBI-Lower Bound Score(DBI-LBS) and DBI-Diet Quality Distance(DBI-DQD) before and after intervention for these 70 people (P0.05).The proportion of subjects with adequate milk and soy product consumption increased from 7.1%before intervention to 20.0%after intervention,that with proper amount of salt intake from 22.9%to 51.5%,and that with diverse diet from 20.0%to 49.9%.The major DBI pattern changed from pattern B(47.1%) and pattern E(34.3%) to pattern B(34.3%) and pattern A(32.9%).Conclusion The community-based nutrition education program for the elderly can improve the diet quality of the elderly.