Bridging the Gap for Homebound Elderly Diabetics: Increasing Awareness of Interventions for Diabetic Homebound Elderly Adults

Abstract

Tel: 815-752-7063 Fax: 815-753-1321 According to the National Diabetes Statistics Report of 2014 [1], 21 million people in the United States are diagnosed with diabetes. Of this number, 11.2 million are 65 or older. This is of concern because the numbers of people age 65 years and over has increased by 24.7% from 35.9 million in 2003 to 44.7 million in 2013 [2], which leads to an increase in the average life span of persons reaching age 65 to 19.3 years. Despite this significant increase in life expectancy, diabetes significantly reduces the lifespan for men and women over 50 years by an average of 7.9 years. Nationally, the highest prevalence of diabetes is among the American Indians/Alaska Natives (15.9%), followed by NonHispanic Blacks (13.2%), and Hispanics (12.8%). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Report [3], diabetes is the largest and fastest-growing chronic disease in the nation and was the seventh leading cause of death by disease in the United States in 2007. In addition to diabetes, there is increased risk of suboptimal nutrition, hospitalizations, nursing home admissions, and physical disability among the elderly population [4]. It is estimated that 37-40% of individuals over age 65 years do not get adequate nutrients [5]. Some measures such as Meals-on-Wheels (MOW) are already in place to assist the elderly with their nutritional needs. Currently, the Older Americans Act (OAA) federally mandates MOW to supply only a minimum of 1/3 of nutrients set by the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI) and meet state and local food safety and sanitation requirements for individuals 60 years and older. Furthermore, this act fund 30% of the cost of home delivered meals [6]. Provision of specific therapeutic diets is not included in the DRI for any population groups, therefore the homebound elderly diabetic clients who receive their meals from MOW need additional help in managing their food intakes in relation to their health condition.