Poor intake of milk, vegetables, and fruit with limited dietary variety by Botswana's elderly

The aim of this research was to determine dietary intake of elderly Batswana, evaluate the diet quality using the Health Eating Index (HEI), identify factors associated with poor quality, and determine the impact of age on dietary scores. Villages and towns were selected in three strata: urban, semi-urban, and rural. A total of 99 elderly (67% female, 33% males), age range 60-95 years, were recruited through purposive sampling. A 24-hour multiplepass food recall was combined with demographic, health, and cooking responsibilities questions. The elderly diet met requirements for only the Grains group (9 serving/day). Most elderly obtained good HEI component scores on fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, and Grains group intake. The HEI scores were poor for variety, milk, fruits, and vegetables. Most elderly had poor diet (38%) or a diet that needed improvement (59%), and only 3% had a good diet.