Gender Differences in Food Consumption Patterns among Elderly Outpatients in Dhaka, Bangladesh – A Cross Sectional Study

Healthy life expectancy in elderly people largely depends on their dietary behavior. This study aimed to investigate the gender differences in food consumption patterns among elderly outpatients in a renowned hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh. A total of 85 elderly outpatients (56 male and 29 female) from the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) participated in this descriptive cross-sectional study. A convenience sampling technique was employed to choose the respondents, and a pre-tested structured questionnaire was used to collect socioeconomic, anthropometric and dietary information. A seven-day food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was used to collect the consumption frequencies of 11 food groups. Female outpatients were observed to be significantly more malnourished than their male counterparts. On the contrary, male outpatients were significantly…