Prevalence of water intake among non-institutionalized elderly individuals in Southern Brazil

Abstract The scope of this study was to determine the percentage of elderly individuals receiving an adequate water intake and associated factors among non-institutionalized elderly individuals in the urban area of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul. It involved a cross-sectional, population-based study carried out in 2014 with elderly participants (≥ 60 years) of the “COMO VAI?” survey. The amount of water ingested per day of the interviewees was investigated, considering the intake of at least eight glasses per day to be adequate. The independent variables were sociodemographic, behavioral, and health characteristics, and Poisson Regression was used to investigate associations. A total of 1,451 elderly people were interviewed, with only 12.6% (95%CI 10.8; 14.7) drinking a sufficient amount. A higher percentage of the elderly with adequate water consumption was observed in younger elderly individuals, those overweight, those with five or more diseases, and those who were more impaired. A low percentage of the elderly with an adequate water intake was observed among the elderly adults in the study. The decreasing trend of water intake in relation to age highlights the importance of developing actions for the higher risk population to stress adequate water intake and the possible consequences of the lack of adequate consumption.

摘要：本研究旨在明确巴西南里奥格兰德州佩洛塔斯市区非机构养老老年人群中，饮水充足的老年人占比及其相关影响因素。本研究为基于人群的横断面研究，于2014年开展，研究对象为"COMO VAI?"调查中年龄≥60岁的老年参与者。研究调查了受访者每日饮水量，将每日至少饮用8杯水定义为饮水充足。自变量涵盖社会人口学特征、行为特征与健康特征，采用泊松回归（Poisson Regression）分析变量间的关联。本研究共访谈1451名老年人，其中仅12.6%（95%CI：10.8~14.7）饮水量达到充足标准。研究观察到，低龄老年群体、超重人群、合并5种及以上疾病人群以及功能受损程度更重的人群中，饮水充足的老年人占比更高。本研究中，老年人群饮水充足的整体比例偏低。饮水量随年龄增长呈下降趋势，这提示针对高风险人群开展饮水充足相关健康干预、阐明饮水不足可能带来的健康后果，具有重要公共卫生意义。