Authors: Sandra Léa Fontinele, Eduardo Duque & Sueli Pistelli

This study illustrates  the impact of dietary habits on the development of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and analyzes how changes in lifestyle open possibilities for improvement in the quality of life and how they contribute to the so-much desired successful aging. This is a cross-sectional quantitative study of a population aged 60 years and older, of both genders, living in the city of São Luís, Maranhão (MA). A semi-structured questionnaire was used to investigate the socio-demographic profile, weekly food consumption and lifestyle analysis. A total of thirty-four elderly individuals were evaluated; they were predominantly female (79.41%), non-whites (52.94%), and married (61.76%). Among the elderly, 55.88% (n=19) had at least one chronic NCD, the most frequent of which was arterial hypertension (51.61%) followed by obesity (29.03%) and diabetes mellitus (19.35%). The study showed a significant daily consumption of rice (47.1%), milk (61.8%), coffee (58.8%), and bananas (79.4%). The consumption of fish (64.7%) and leafy vegetables (38.2%) was shown to be consumed twice a week. 

Keywords: Aging, nutrition, chronic diseases, lifestyle, quality of life, longevity.

Sandra Léa Fontinele, Nutritionist and specialist in Gerontology. Praça da Faculdade de Filosofia, Braga, Portugal. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  

Eduardo Duque, Professor of Sociology, Portuguese Catholic University. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  

Sueli Pistelli, Professor of Nutritionist, Faculty of Laboro, Brasil. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.