Relationship between Nutritional Status and Cognitive Functioning in the Elderly; a Case Study of Amol, Iran

The current study aimed to determine the relationship between nutritional status and cognitive functioning of the elderly.

This Descriptive-analytical study was performed in 2019 in health centers in Amol. This study was performed on 260 elderly people, covered by health centers in Amol, Iran in 2019. Participants were selected by cluster sampling method. Data were collected using the Mini Nutritional Assessment questionnaire, Psychometric Evaluation of the Cognitive State Test, Geriatric Depression Scale, Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale, and Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index. Statistical analysis was conducted using descriptive and inferential tests in SPSS version 20.

The mean age of the elderly was 67.3±6.65 years. Overall, 87.7% of the participants had a cognitive score above 25.5. The results of Spearman’s correlation test showed a significant positive relationship between the nutritional status and cognitive functioning of the elderly; this relationship was also significant in the regression model.

There is a relationship between nutritional status and cognitive functioning of the elderly covered by health centers in Amol, Iran.