Relationships among falls and dietary patterns, nutritional inadequacy and prefrailty in community-dwelling older Japanese females: A cross-sectional study.

Background and objectives: Falls are common among older females. This study investigated the relationships among falls and dietary patterns, nutritional inadequacy and prefrailty in community-dwelling older Japanese females.

Methods and study design: This cross-sectional study involved 271 females aged 65 and over. Prefrailty was defined as exhibiting one or two of the five Japanese version of the Cardiovascular Health Study criteria. Frailty was excluded (n=4). Energy, nutrient and food intakes were estimated using a validated FFQ. Dietary patterns were determined from intakes of 20 food groups assessed with FFQ, by cluster analysis. Nutritional inadequacy for the selected 23 nutrients in each dietary pattern was examined based on DRIs. Binomial logistic regression was applied to examine the relationships among falls and dietary pat-terns, prefrailty, and inadequate nutrients.

Results: Data from 267 participants were included. The incidence of falls was 27.3%, and 37.4% of participants were classified as prefrailty. Three dietary patterns identified were namely; 'rice and fish and shellfish' (n=100); 'vegetables and dairy products' (n=113); and 'bread and beverages' (n=54). A binomial logistic regression analysis revealed that dietary patterns of 'rice and fish and shellfish' (OR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.16-0.95), and 'vegetables and dairy products' (OR, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.12-0.78) were negatively correlated with falls, and falls was positively associated with prefrailty.

Conclusions: Dietary patterns characterized by 'rice and fish and shellfish', and 'vegetables and dairy products' were associated with a reduced incidence of falls in community-dwelling older Japanese females. Larger prospective studies are needed to validate these results.