Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, Vol 53, Issue 6 M481-M483, Copyright © 1998 by The Gerontological Society of America
Self-reported versus measured weight and height in an older adult meal program population
LI Vailas and SA Nitzke
Department of Nutritional Sciences, The University of Wisconsin- Madison, USA. [email protected]
BACKGROUND: Self-reported weight and height are used to compute ponderal
indices in studies where it is impractical to obtain objectively measured
data. Little is known about the associations between self-reported and
measured weight and height in older adults. METHODS: Participants in
congregate and home-delivered meal programs in a rural Wisconsin county
recorded their height and weight on a questionnaire as part of a study on
nutritional risk and quality of life. Objective measurements of height and
weight were made on the same day. Data for 131 subjects, ranging in age
from 62-92 years, were analyzed to evaluate associations between
self-reported and measured weights and heights. RESULTS: Correlation
coefficients between self- reported and measured values suggested that
self-reported weight was somewhat more valid than self-reported height in
this population. However, self-reported weight was misreported by 10 pounds
or more in 20% of the sample. CONCLUSIONS: More data are needed to evaluate
the utility of self-reported data for weight and height in groups of older
people. Judging from this study, self-reported height and weight data, if
used at all for older adults, should only be used as a continuous variable
rather than for classifying subjects into relative weight categories.
