Dairy Product Intake in Older Adults across Europe Based On the SHARE Database

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate dairy intake patterns in older adults across Europe.Methods: We conducted cross-sectional analysis using data from the fourth wave (2011/2012) of the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) database. Prevalence rates regarding the number of weekly servings of dairy in individuals ≥50 years old were calculated for 16 European countries.Results: The overall prevalence rate of daily dairy product intake in Europe was 66.95% (CI95%: 66.28–67.63%). Global prevalence in men was 63.35% (CI95%:62.37–64.35%) and in women 69.80% (CI95%:68.86–70.71%). Among men, this type of intake was highest in Denmark (84.89% [CI95%: 79.11–90.66%]) and lowest in Poland (26.15% [CI95%: 22.71–29.58%]). Among women, the highest prevalence was found in Spain (89.51% [CI95%: 85.16–93.86%]) and the lowest in Poland (31.33% [CI95%: 27.05–35.61%]). The overall prevalence rate of dairy product intake less than once a week was 3.99% (CI95%: 3.83–4.16%). In terms of gender, men in Hungary (11.02% [CI95%: 9.16–12.89%]) and women in Slovenia (8.76% [CI95%: 7.26–10.25%]) had the lowest such intake.Conclusions: Dairy intake is very heterogeneous across Europe, with overall intake levels lower than recommended. Differences were also observed between genders, with a lower intake in men, and with age, with the intake lower in older individuals.