Centre for International Health, Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, University of Bergen, Årstadveien 21, Bergen, 5009, Norway.
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
BMC Public Health. 2024 Jun 5;24(1):1515. doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-19038-z.
The global population is increasingly aging, imposing a substantial burden on social and healthcare systems as aging is associated with gradual muscle wasting and functional decline. Consumption of protein-rich foods, such as livestock-based meat, providing high-quality proteins can prevent muscle wasting and related functional decline in older adults. However, there is a lack of data on the older adults' perceptions about meat consumption, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa.
To explore the perceptions about dietary meat consumption among older adults in Gasabo district, Kigali, Rwanda.
We conducted a descriptive qualitative study, using focus group discussions. A total of eight FGDs, lasting between 55 and 80 min, were conducted with gender-mixed groups, including 31 men and 33 women aged ≥ 55 years old. Eight older adults participated in each FGD session, and all discussions were conducted in the local language (Kinyarwanda) using a pre-designed interview guide. The discussions were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim and translated into English. The transcript was inductively analyzed using thematic analytical process.
Three themes were identified from the data, predominantly related to motives and barriers of meat consumption. The motives of meat consumption included improved quality and taste of the diet, improving own health, and having a social function. Barriers of meat consumption were perceived to be related to health risks, sustainability concerns (depletion of resources), and religious beliefs. Lastly, it was widely perceived that meat was unavailable and economically inaccessible, thus meat consumption was perceived to be associated with improved wealth.
The findings revealed a low and declining meat consumption among older adults due to poverty. Improving financial capacity or strategic public health work to improve protein consumption in the elderly is necessary to meet nutritional needs and facilitate healthy aging.
全球人口日益老龄化，给社会和医疗保健系统带来了巨大负担，因为老龄化与肌肉逐渐减少和功能下降有关。食用富含蛋白质的食物，如以牲畜为基础的肉类，可以防止老年人肌肉减少和相关功能下降。然而，关于老年人对肉类消费的看法，特别是在撒哈拉以南非洲地区，数据匮乏。
探讨基加利加萨博区老年人对饮食中肉类消费的看法。
我们进行了一项描述性定性研究，使用焦点小组讨论。共进行了 8 次 FGD，每次持续 55-80 分钟，参与者为男女混合组，包括 31 名男性和 33 名女性，年龄均≥55 岁。每次 FGD 有 8 名老年人参加，所有讨论均使用预先设计的访谈指南以当地语言（基尼亚卢旺达语）进行。讨论内容被录音并逐字转录成英文。使用主题分析过程对转录内容进行归纳分析。
从数据中确定了三个主题，主要与肉类消费的动机和障碍有关。肉类消费的动机包括改善饮食的质量和口感、改善自身健康和具有社交功能。肉类消费的障碍被认为与健康风险、可持续性问题（资源枯竭）和宗教信仰有关。最后，人们普遍认为肉类供应不足且经济上无法获得，因此肉类消费被认为与财富的增加有关。
研究结果表明，由于贫困，老年人的肉类消费较低且呈下降趋势。需要提高老年人的经济能力或开展战略性公共卫生工作，以改善蛋白质摄入，满足营养需求，促进健康老龄化。
