Nutrition Knowledge and Food Habits of the Elderly in Ghana: Evidence from Kwahu South District

Abstract

Caring for the elderly is a requirement for development. Ghana’s unpreparedness to meet the nutritional need of her steadily growing elderly population made this study delve into the food habits of the elderly. This study focuses on the nutrition knowledge and food habits of the elderly in the Kwahu South District of Ghana using the mixed methods approach. The study brings to bear both theoretical and empirical surveys related to the topic from global perspectives, focusing on Ghana. Applying both questionnaire and focus group discussion, the researcher solicited from a field setting cross-sectional data that was analysed within the causal - exploratory to achieve the study’s objectives. Data collected was analysed using the statistical package of SPSS 20 and CDC EZ 3.10C. Findings of this study established that the elderly's nutrition knowledge could not influence their food habits much because other factors like cost, motivation and availability, and health condition/status affect the foods they consume and how they are eaten.