Research Article
Malnutrition among the Elderly in Malaysia and Its Associated Factors: Findings from the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2018
Table 2
Prevalence of malnutrition and risk of malnutrition among the elderly in Malaysia (prevalence (95% CI)).
| | Variable | MNA-SF status | value | | Malnutrition | Risk of malnutrition | Normal |
| | All | 7.3 (6.0–8.9) | 23.5 (21.2–26.0) | 69.2 (66.272.0) | — | | Sex | | Men | 7.2 (5.9–8.8) | 22.9 (20.1–26.0) | 69.9 (66.6–73.1) | 0.718 | | Women | 7.4 (5.6–9.7) | 24.1 (21.3–27.2) | 68.4 (64.5–72.1) | |
| | Strata | | Urban | 6.3 (4.8–8.4) | 21.1 (18.3–24.2) | 72.6 (68.7–76.2) | 0.001 | | Rural | 10.0 (8.2–12.2) | 30.2 (27.0–33.7) | 59.8 (55.9–63.5) | |
| | Age groups (years) | | 60–69 | 3.9 (3.0–5.1) | 20.5 (17.7–23.6) | 75.6 (72.3–78.6) | 0.001 | | 70–79 | 11.4 (8.3–15.5) | 27.8 (24.3–31.6) | 60.8 (55.9–65.4) | | | 80 and above | 23.3 (18.3–29.3) | 35.3 (27.3–44.3) | 41.3 (34.3–48.7) | |
| | Ethnicity | | Malay | 7.9 (6.2–10.1) | 24.3 (21.5–27.4) | 67.7 (64.1–71.2) | 0.023 | | Chinese | 4.7 (3.1–7.1) | 19.4 (15.1–24.6) | 75.9 (70.0–80.9) | | | Indian | 11.0 (6.0–19.2) | 24.9 (15.4–37.4) | 64.2 (50.8–75.6) | | | Bumiputra Sabah | 10.7 (6.7–16.9) | 30.6 (23.5–38.7) | 58.7 (48.4–68.3) | | | Bumiputra Sarawak | 5.6 (3.4–9.1) | 25.7 (21.1–31.0) | 68.7 (63.7–73.4) | | | Others | 9.1 (3.5–21.6) | 34.7 (24.3–46.9) | 56.1 (39.2–71.8) | |
| | Marital status | | Never married | 6.2 (2.6–13.8) | 36.0 (20.6–54.9) | 57.8 (41.0–72.9) | 0.003 | | Married | 5.5 (4.4–7.0) | 20.6 (18.3–23.1) | 73.8 (71.0–76.5) | | | Separated or divorced | 20.4 (3.8–62.3) | 30.2 (15.9–49.7) | 49.4 (27.9–71.1) | | | Widow or widower | 11.0 (8.9–13.6) | 29.0 (25.8–32.3) | 60.0 (56.5–63.4) | |
| | Education | | No formal/primary education | 10.3 (8.5–12.4) | 28.4 (25.6–31.3) | 61.4 (57.8–64.8) | 0.001 | | Secondary education | 3.1 (2.1–4.8) | 17.5 (14.2–21.5) | 79.3 (75.5–82.7) | | | Tertiary education | 3.5 (1.6–7.2) | 14.4 (9.8–20.7) | 82.1 (76.0–87.0) | |
| | Working status | | Employed | 3.8 (2.6–5.3) | 23.7 (20.1–27.7) | 72.5 (68.4–76.3) | 0.001 | | Unemployed | 8.5 (6.9–10.3) | 23.5 (21.0–26.1) | 68.1 (64.8–71.1) | |
| | Individual monthly income | | <RM1000 | 9.1 (7.4–11.2) | 26.1 (23.4–28.9) | 64.8 (61.3–68.2) | 0.001 | | RM1000–RM1999 | 6.4 (4.3–9.5) | 22.7 (18.9–26.9) | 70.9 (66.1–75.3) | | | ≥RM2000.00 | 2.4 (1.4–4.1) | 16.6 (12.4–21.8) | 81.0 (75.5–85.5) | |
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Significant <0.05 for Rao-Scott adjusted chi-square statistic. |
