Nutritional and oral health status of an elderly population in Nairobi.

OBJECTIVE To determine the nutrition and oral health status of elderly persons in Nairobi, Kenya. DESIGN A cross-sectional study. SETTING Households in Dagoretti Division of Nairobi. SUBJECTS Two hundred and eighty nine persons (29.8% males and 70.2% females) aged 45 years and above were assessed. RESULTS The level of malnutrition using the mid upper arm circumference was 18.8% while by body mass index was 11.4%. Of the population assessed, 46.4% had normal nutritional status while 40.9% were overweight, with more females (48.0%) than males (25.9%) being overweight. The study established that many of the elderly persons suffered from dental problems, especially periodontitis with 89.9% having dental plaque, calculus 85.6%, gingival recession 82.5% and bleeding gums 77.4%. The decayed index missing and filled teeth, was 7.173 with 19.7% caries free, 51.9% reported tooth mobility and edentulousness was common. CONCLUSIONS Under-nutrition, obesity and dental problems are issues of concern among the elderly. There is need to develop policies that will look into the nutrition and dental health of the elderly in order to improve their welfare.