Johns Hopkins University, Center on Aging and Health, Baltimore, MD 21231, USA.
J Nutr Health Aging. 2012;16(6):511-8. doi: 10.1007/s12603-012-0031-2.
This study investigated the relationship between social support (including instrumental support, emotional support, social interaction, social space, and family networks) and diet quality, as indicated by serum carotenoid levels.
The sample consisted of participants in the Women's Health and Aging Study with longitudinal carotenoid data (n=325). We performed regression analyses using baseline indicators of social support and changes in social support to determine whether baseline levels and/or change in levels of social support predict changes in serum carotenoid levels. Social support changes were measured over 1 year from baseline to follow-up round 1. Carotenoid level changes were established from follow-up round 1 to round 2. To determine whether or not regression to the mean was driving these results, we performed an analysis that included baseline and change levels of social support indicators.
At baseline, the frequency of leaving one's home was associated with a decrease in carotenoid levels. Leaving one's home more frequently predicted an increase in carotenoid levels and attending fewer activities predicted a decrease in carotenoid levels.
In older, community-resident disabled women, baseline levels of social support did not consistently predict diet quality. However, change in social support predicted both positive and negative change in diet quality and thus provides supportive evidence that social activity and family interaction may play meaningful roles in the maintenance of diet quality among functionally compromised older women. Further research is necessary to more fully understand the impact of multiple forms of social supports on the diet quality of older adults.
本研究旨在探讨社会支持（包括工具支持、情感支持、社会互动、社会空间和家庭网络）与血清类胡萝卜素水平所反映的饮食质量之间的关系。
该样本包括具有纵向类胡萝卜素数据的妇女健康与衰老研究参与者（n=325）。我们使用基线社会支持指标和社会支持变化进行回归分析，以确定基线水平和/或社会支持水平的变化是否预测血清类胡萝卜素水平的变化。社会支持的变化是在从基线到随访第 1 轮的 1 年内测量的。类胡萝卜素水平的变化是从随访第 1 轮到第 2 轮确定的。为了确定是否是均值回归导致了这些结果，我们进行了一项包括社会支持指标的基线和变化水平的分析。
在基线时，离家频率与类胡萝卜素水平下降有关。更频繁地离家预示着类胡萝卜素水平的增加，而参加较少的活动则预示着类胡萝卜素水平的下降。
在年龄较大、居住在社区的残疾老年女性中，基线社会支持水平并不始终能预测饮食质量。然而，社会支持的变化既预示着饮食质量的积极变化，也预示着饮食质量的消极变化，这为社会活动和家庭互动可能在功能受损的老年女性饮食质量维持中发挥有意义作用提供了支持性证据。需要进一步的研究来更全面地了解多种形式的社会支持对老年人饮食质量的影响。
