TY - JOUR AU - Moreira , Pedro AU - Sousa , Ana S. AU - Guerra , Rita S. AU - Santos , Alejandro AU - Borges , Nuno AU - Afonso , Cláudia AU - Amaral , Teresa F. AU - Padrão , Patrícia PY - 2018/02/27 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - Sodium and potassium urinary excretion and their ratio in the elderly: results from the Nutrition UP 65 study JF - Food & Nutrition Research JA - fnr VL - 62 IS - 0 SE - Original Articles DO - 10.29219/fnr.v62.1288 UR - https://foodandnutritionresearch.net/index.php/fnr/article/view/1288 SP - AB - Background: We aimed to describe urinary sodium and potassium excretion and their ratio in a representativesample of Portuguese elderly population, according to sociodemographic characteristics and weight status.Methods: A cluster sampling approach was used, representing older Portuguese adults (≥65 years) accordingto age, sex, education level, and regional area within the Nutrition UP 65 study. This cross-sectional evaluation was conducted in 2015 and 2016. From a sample size of 1,500 participants, 1,318 were eligible for the present analysis, 57.3% were women, and 23.5% were aged ≥80 years. Sodium and potassium consumption was evaluated through one 24 h urinary excretion. Inadequate sodium intake was defined as ≥2,000 mg/day,inadequate potassium intake was considered as <3,510 mg/day, and inadequate sodium-to-potassium ratiowas defined as >1, according to the World Health Organization cutoffs.Results: The proportion of the participants with an inadequate intake was 80.0% in women and 91.5% inmen (sodium), 96.2% of women and 79.4% of men (potassium), and 98.4% of women and 99.1% of men (sodium-to-potassium ratio). Higher sodium adequacy was observed among the older elderly, unmarried, withlower household income, and underweight/normal weight. Higher potassium adequacy was observed in theyounger elderly, married, and with higher income.Conclusion: The majority of the Portuguese elderly population was classified as having inadequate sodium,potassium, and sodium-to-potassium ratio urinary excretion. Therefore, strategies for reducingsodium and increasing potassium intake are priorities in the Portuguese elderly population. ER -