Abstract
Background and objectives: Chemosensory function declines with the progression of age and can potentially impact adherence to a healthy diet. A loss of taste perception could induce higher sodium intake and increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a decrease in olfactory and gustatory function and to analyze the possible association with nutritional status and dietary sodium intake in older nursing home residents. Methods: This study included 123 participants aged 65 years and older (average age of 80.7 ± 5.8 years, 76.5% females) and 70 adults aged 18–64 years (average age of 43.8 ± 8.1 years, 77.2% females) for a comparison of chemosensory function. Olfactory function was determined by the European Test of Olfactory Capabilities (ETOC) and salty taste perception by the rapid detection threshold method. Nutritional status was evaluated by the Mini Nutritional Assessment-Short Form (MNA-SF®). Sodium intake was determined by 24 h recall collected on two non-consecutive days. Results: The results show that olfactory function in the elderly participants (17.3 ± 8.8, 65% hyposmic) was significantly impaired compared to that in the younger population (29.3 ± 2.9, 15% hyposmic) (p < 0.0001). The salty taste recognition threshold in the elderly population (48.8 ± 30.1) was significantly higher compared to that in the younger population (13.7 ± 10.7) (p < 0.001). The MNA® result for elderly participants was, on average, 13.7 ± 10.7, which indicated normal nutritional status; 22.8% of participants were at risk of malnutrition; and 1.6% were malnourished. This study established significant association between a higher salty taste threshold and intake of sodium (p < 0.02), but there was no significant impact of the loss of olfactory perception on sodium intake. There was no significant association between the loss of gustatory or olfactory function and the nutritional status of elderly people. Discussion: This study showed that chemosensory function declines in older nursing home residents and nutritional status does not appear to be related to this, but it could have a potentially negative impact on health as it is associated with higher sodium intake.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, H.T.-O.; methodology, H.T.-O.; software, H.T.-O.; validation, H.T.-O., I.K. and J.R.; formal analysis, H.T.-O.; investigation, H.T.-O.; resources, J.R. and D.G.; data curation, H.T.-O.; writing—original draft preparation, H.T.-O.; writing—review and editing, I.K., J.R. and D.G.; visualization, H.T.-O.; supervision, I.K. and J.R. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
This research received no external funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement
This study was conducted according to the guidelines laid down in the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the Ethics Committee of the School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, Croatia. Number of document: 380-59-10106-21-111/236; 641-01/21-02/01; Zagreb, November 11, 2021.
Informed Consent Statement
Written informed consent has been obtained from all participants.
Data Availability Statement
Results attained in this study are included in the manuscript. Individual data are not available due to official legal, organizational and data security policies, and ethical restrictions.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest. Co-authors H.T.-O., J.R. and D.G. are employees of the Podravka Ltd. Podravka Ltd. financially contributed to experimental part of the research. Co-authors receive regular pay from the company and no other funding was appointed to co-authors. Company did not influence or interfere in the research or any part of the content.
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