Objective: The dual burden of undernutrition and overnutrition has received attention around the world, especially in the Philippines, where malnutrition is an issue that the country is continuously facing. Malnutrition have been prevalent and alarming concerns among the Filipino elderly through the years. Several studies support the claim that the prevalence of malnutrition is associated with factors, such as socioeconomic status, biochemical, clinical, dietary intake, and food security. This study aimed to determine the factors associated with the nutritional status of the Filipino elderly. Materials and Methods: The study utilized the 2013 National Nutrition Survey. Data of the 1,807 sampled Filipino elderly who had no physical defects were considered. The Rao-Scott test and a multiple correspondence analysis were conducted to assess the association of the nutritional status of the Filipino elderly with the socio-demographics, health/clinical conditions, and nutrient intake factors. Results: Majority (54.97%) of the Filipino elderly had a normal nutritional status. However, both the prevalence of underweight and overweight are still alarming with a 20.19% and 24.83% rate, respectively. The socio-demographic characteristics found that are associated with the nutritional status of the Filipino elderly include age, sex, occupation, and education. Health conditions and behavioral risk factors such as smoking and drinking alcohol beverages were also found to have significant association with the elderly’s nutritional status. Lastly, a significant association between the nutritional status and the intake of nutrients such as iron, Vitamin A, niacin, and thiamine was observed. Conclusion: With both underweight and overweight/obesity still rampant among the Filipino elderly, their lifestyle and food intake should be given much attention. Further studies about the nutritional status of the Filipino elderly should be conducted to have a sufficient basis on how society can help the elderly maintain and improve their nutritional conditions.

Introduction:The elderly population is susceptible to malnutrition due to the physiological and functional changes caused by ageing. Hence, to prevent the degenerative nutritional conditions of the elderly and improve their quality of life, this study aimed to determine the influencing factors of malnutrition among Filipino elderly. Methods: Anthropometric component data from the 8th National Nutrition Survey (NNS) were utilised along with the nutritional status of Filipino elderly, based on body mass index as the dependent variable and variables from the clinical and health, dietary, and socioeconomic components of NNS as explanatory factors. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was then performed in fitting models. Results: High magnitude and severity of malnutrition were observed among Filipino elderly -20.2% were underweight and 24.8% were overweight. Significant influencing factors in estimating an elderly's odds of being underweight were the elderly's age group, presence of hypertension, presence of anaemia, and adequacy of vitamin A intake. Whereas, significant influencing factors in estimating an elderly's odds of being overweight/obese included highest educational attainment, presence of anaemia, hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidaemia. Conclusion: Knowing the influencing factors may help the elderly become more aware and conscious of their health, as well as to promote nutrient intakes to prevent malnutrition that can worsen their health conditions. Additionally, concerned institutions in the country could use the findings of this study as one of the bases in strengthening their approach and implementation or even provide relevant and timely policies and programmes that address malnutrition in the elderly of this country.