Nutritional adequacy of essential vitamins and minerals consumed by edentulous elderly at Little Sisters of the Poor in Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract

Edentulism is having few or no teeth in the oral cavity, which is an irreversible condition. It has been shown to be more prevalent in the aged especially among the female. Edentulism which is an age related problem is associated with inability to eat, which render the aged deficient of essential vitamins and minerals. The aim of study is to determine the Nutritional Adequacy of Essential Vitamins and Minerals consumed by Edentulous Elderly at Little Sisters of the Poor, Home for the Elderly, Enugu. The home houses 54 inmates. All inclusive sampling technique was adopted for the study. Oral examination was conducted using mouth mirror to ascertain the number of elderly with tooth loss. The food menu used for feeding the inmates was collected from the home and it served as a guide for collection of food samples for chemical analysis to determine the adequacy of essential vitamins and minerals (vitamin D, vitamin B12, calcium, potassium and magnesium). Minerals and Vitamin D and Vitamin B12 were analyzed using Wet Ashing method. The result showed that out of 54 elderly inmates, 44 inmates are edentulous of which females are mostly affected. The result from chemical analysis of food showed 32.5 mcg intake of vitamin D,12.2 mcg intake of vitamin B12, 0.017 mg intake of calcium, 0.346 mg intake magnesium and 0.034 mg intake of potassium and this as compared with recommended daily intake that there is adequate intake of vitamin D, excessive intake of vitamin B12 but inadequate intake of calcium, magnesium and potassium. This in turn shows that there is inadequate consumption of essential vitamins and minerals by edentulous elderly at Little Sisters of the Poor, Home for the Elderly, Enugu. This shows that there is need to include food rich in essential vitamins and minerals and also give supplement that are in form of medicine to the inmates to meet the adequacy.