Dietary diversity and nutritional status of cancer patients in southern Bangladesh

Résumé fourni par la source

Inadequate dietary diversity through distinct micronutrient deficiencies and related poor nutritional status can lead to poor cancer prognosis and increased morbidities. This cross-sectional study aimed to assess the dietary diversity and nutritional status of cancer patients in southern Bangladesh. A cross-sectional study was carried out from November 2022 to April 2023 on 403 cancer patients randomly selected from the different regions and hospitals located in southern Bangladesh. A structured, pre-tested, and interviewer-administered questionnaire was used. Individual dietary diversity score was measured based on the 24-hour dietary recall method according to FAO guidelines for measuring individual dietary diversity. Body mass index was measured to determine the nutritional status. Required data analyses, including descriptive statistics, chi-square, independent “t”, Pearson and Spearman correlation, one-way ANOVA, and multinomial logistic regression tests, were conducted by SPSS-26 software. The mean (± SD) of IDDS was moderate, 4.4 (± 1⋅8). About 41% of patients had low dietary diversity, whereas only 26% had high dietary diversity. The patients mainly relied on starchy foods (100%) as their main source of food, while organ meats (18.6%) were the least consumed. Older age, rural residence, low income, inadequate sleep, limited physical activity and lack of dietary modification after diagnosis were significantly associated with low dietary diversity among cancer patients. The overall nutritional status of cancer patients was relatively poor; about half of the patients were underweight (50.6%). In summary, the current study demonstrated that the majority of cancer patients had low dietary diversity, indicating a high susceptibility to micronutrient deficiencies. Therefore, efforts should be strengthened to improve patients’ income levels, household food security and subsidize treatment costs so that they are not exposed to stress and nutrition-related issues.

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