Summary
A DIETARY survey was carried out between October and December, 1969, on thirty-one elderly healthy subjects aged 64 to 86 years living in central Dublin. Their living conditions in relation to age, sex and social contacts, and in relation to dietary intake were analysed. Eighty-seven per cent lived alone but contact with church, family and friends provided social contact to varying degrees. Just over half the subjects depended on day clubs or Meals on Wheels for supplementary dietary intake. The average dietary intake of the sample was generally adequate, but was below the recommended British Standards for Calories and Calcium. However 36% of the subjects had an intake of Vitamin C, and 6% had an intake of iron, below the recommended British Standards. The intake of nutrients diminished with increasing age. Dietary intake was related to living conditions, the subjects living with relatives having the best intake, and those living alone and dependent on Meals on Wheels having the lowest intake.
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Student on term of field placement from Beloit College, Wisconsin, U.S.A.
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Wilson, C.W.M., Nolan, C. The diets of elderly people in Dublin. Ir J Med Sci 3, 345–355 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02956900
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02956900