Overweight in rural elderly: association with health conditions and quality of life

This study aimed to verify the association of overweight with functional disability, self-reported morbidities and quality of life (QoL) among rural elderly dwellers. This is a domestic and cross-sectional survey conducted in the rural region of a municipality of Southeast Brazil. Three hundred seventy non-overweight elderly people and 192 overweight elderly people were evaluated with the following tools: semi-structured; Katz and Lawton and scales; World Health Organization Quality of Life - BREF and World Health Organization Quality of Life Assessment for Older Adults. Overweight was associated with morbidities arthritis/osteoarthritis (p = 0.002), systemic arterial hypertension (p < 0.001), varicose veins (p = 0.009), heart problems (p = 0.028), diabetes mellitus (p = 0.001), cerebrovascular accident (p = 0.044) and urinary incontinence (p = 0.032). Overweight elderly had lower scores in the physical realm (p = 0.005) and higher scores in social relationships (p = 0.033) compared to those without this condition. Results point to the importance of monitoring the nutritional status of rural elderly to prevent comorbidities and improve the quality of life.