Determinants of malnutrition of elderly living in slum and non-slum areas in Bangladesh during COVID-19

The study aimed to assess the prevalence and determinants of malnutrition among 250 elderly persons living in slum (N= 100; Males59 and females41) andnon-slum(N=150; Males and females in equal numbers) areas during COVID-19 in Dhaka city of Bangladesh. These subjects were interviewed from August to October 2020. Mini Nutrition Assessment Short Form was also used in the data collection. Descriptive statistics, the Chisquare test, and the Logistic regression model were used for the analysis of data. The results show that most of the elderly were at risk of being malnourished. The slum elderly were more malnourished and were at risk of malnutrition than the non-slum elderly. The analysis reveals that age, occupation, and marital status are significantly associated with nutritional status. These findings maybe helpful for the policy makers to improve the nutritional condition of the elderly, especially in slum areas of the country.