Nutrient deficiencies and depression in older adults according to sex: a cross sectional study

Abstract

This paper explores the prevalence and predicting factors of depression in older Korean community-dwelling adults, giving special attention to nutrition and social support. Data from male (n = 123) and female (n = 135) older adults were collected in two senior centers in 2009. We found that depression was present in 17.1%. No significant gender difference was found in the prevalence of depression although the predicting factors were gender specific. In male participants, deficient protein intake, having more chronic diseases, and having a subjective perception of difficulties in mastication were predicting factors for depression, whereas deficient vitamin B6 intake, lower cognition, and lack of social support were predicting factors in female participants. The high prevalence of depression, regardless of gender, highlights the urgent need to screen depressed elders. The different predicting factors for depression in male and female older adults suggest a need to develop gender-specific interventions to alleviate depressive symptoms.