Research Article | | Peer-Reviewed

Association Between Nutritional Scores and BMI Among Elderly in Shanghai Communities: A Community Health Survey

Received: 21 November 2025     Accepted: 21 November 2025     Published: 22 November 2025
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Abstract

Background: Population aging intensifies the public health challenge of malnutrition among the elderly, who face both undernutrition and overnutrition. The relationship between BMI and nutritional status in urban Chinese elderly remains underexplored. Objective: This study aimed to examine the association between Body Mass Index (BMI) and Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short-Form (MNA-SF) scores among community-dwelling elderly in Shanghai. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from January 2019 to January 2023, involving 106 elderly residents aged ≥60 years. Data on demographics, BMI, and MNA-SF scores were collected. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and simple linear regression. Results: The mean age was 70.89 ± 6.56 years, with 75.5% females. Mean BMI was 22.85 ± 3.13 kg/m²; 30.2% were overweight and 7.5% underweight. The mean MNA-SF score was 12.23 ± 1.50, with 29.2% at risk of malnutrition. A significant positive correlation was found between BMI and nutritional score (r = 0.504, p < 0.001). Linear regression showed BMI positively predicted nutritional score (β = 0.243, p < 0.001), with the equation: Nutritional Score = 6.679 + 0.243 × BMI (R² = 0.254). Conclusion: BMI is positively associated with nutritional scores among Shanghai community-dwelling elderly. However, reliance solely on BMI may overlook hidden malnutrition risks in overweight individuals. Community health strategies should integrate comprehensive nutritional assessments for targeted interventions.

Published in American Journal of Health Research (Volume 13, Issue 6)
DOI 10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11
Page(s) 294-300
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Nutritional Status, Body Mass Index, MNA-SF, Elderly, Community Health

References
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[5] Chapter 5.3 Ensuring Good Nutrition for Vulnerable Population Groups suchas Elderly and Hospitalized Individuals in Affluent Societies [M]//KRAEMER K, CORDARO J B, FANZO J,l. Good Nutrition: Perspectives for the 21st Century. S. Karger AG. 2016: 0.
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[7] CAMINA-MARTíN M A, DE MATEO-SILLERAS B, MALAFARINA V, et al. Nutritional status assessment in geriatrics: Consensus declaration by the Spanish Society of Geriatrics and Gerontology Nutrition Work Group [J]. Maturitas, 2015, 81(3): 414-9.
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Ke, Z., Ji, P., Zhao, Y., Lu, J., Luo, X., et al. (2025). Association Between Nutritional Scores and BMI Among Elderly in Shanghai Communities: A Community Health Survey. American Journal of Health Research, 13(6), 294-300. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11

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    ACS Style

    Ke, Z.; Ji, P.; Zhao, Y.; Lu, J.; Luo, X., et al. Association Between Nutritional Scores and BMI Among Elderly in Shanghai Communities: A Community Health Survey. Am. J. Health Res. 2025, 13(6), 294-300. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11

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    AMA Style

    Ke Z, Ji P, Zhao Y, Lu J, Luo X, et al. Association Between Nutritional Scores and BMI Among Elderly in Shanghai Communities: A Community Health Survey. Am J Health Res. 2025;13(6):294-300. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11,
      author = {Zhui Ke and Peng Ji and Yini Zhao and Jingyi Lu and Xinpei Luo and Xuemin He and Zhuqing Liu and Min Yuan and Xianling Guo and Qing Xu},
      title = {Association Between Nutritional Scores and BMI Among Elderly in Shanghai Communities: A Community Health Survey
    },
      journal = {American Journal of Health Research},
      volume = {13},
      number = {6},
      pages = {294-300},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajhr.20251306.11},
      abstract = {Background: Population aging intensifies the public health challenge of malnutrition among the elderly, who face both undernutrition and overnutrition. The relationship between BMI and nutritional status in urban Chinese elderly remains underexplored. Objective: This study aimed to examine the association between Body Mass Index (BMI) and Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short-Form (MNA-SF) scores among community-dwelling elderly in Shanghai. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from January 2019 to January 2023, involving 106 elderly residents aged ≥60 years. Data on demographics, BMI, and MNA-SF scores were collected. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and simple linear regression. Results: The mean age was 70.89 ± 6.56 years, with 75.5% females. Mean BMI was 22.85 ± 3.13 kg/m²; 30.2% were overweight and 7.5% underweight. The mean MNA-SF score was 12.23 ± 1.50, with 29.2% at risk of malnutrition. A significant positive correlation was found between BMI and nutritional score (r = 0.504, p p < 0.001), with the equation: Nutritional Score = 6.679 + 0.243 × BMI (R² = 0.254). Conclusion: BMI is positively associated with nutritional scores among Shanghai community-dwelling elderly. However, reliance solely on BMI may overlook hidden malnutrition risks in overweight individuals. Community health strategies should integrate comprehensive nutritional assessments for targeted interventions.
    },
     year = {2025}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Association Between Nutritional Scores and BMI Among Elderly in Shanghai Communities: A Community Health Survey
    
    AU  - Zhui Ke
    AU  - Peng Ji
    AU  - Yini Zhao
    AU  - Jingyi Lu
    AU  - Xinpei Luo
    AU  - Xuemin He
    AU  - Zhuqing Liu
    AU  - Min Yuan
    AU  - Xianling Guo
    AU  - Qing Xu
    Y1  - 2025/11/22
    PY  - 2025
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11
    T2  - American Journal of Health Research
    JF  - American Journal of Health Research
    JO  - American Journal of Health Research
    SP  - 294
    EP  - 300
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2330-8796
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhr.20251306.11
    AB  - Background: Population aging intensifies the public health challenge of malnutrition among the elderly, who face both undernutrition and overnutrition. The relationship between BMI and nutritional status in urban Chinese elderly remains underexplored. Objective: This study aimed to examine the association between Body Mass Index (BMI) and Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short-Form (MNA-SF) scores among community-dwelling elderly in Shanghai. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from January 2019 to January 2023, involving 106 elderly residents aged ≥60 years. Data on demographics, BMI, and MNA-SF scores were collected. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and simple linear regression. Results: The mean age was 70.89 ± 6.56 years, with 75.5% females. Mean BMI was 22.85 ± 3.13 kg/m²; 30.2% were overweight and 7.5% underweight. The mean MNA-SF score was 12.23 ± 1.50, with 29.2% at risk of malnutrition. A significant positive correlation was found between BMI and nutritional score (r = 0.504, p p < 0.001), with the equation: Nutritional Score = 6.679 + 0.243 × BMI (R² = 0.254). Conclusion: BMI is positively associated with nutritional scores among Shanghai community-dwelling elderly. However, reliance solely on BMI may overlook hidden malnutrition risks in overweight individuals. Community health strategies should integrate comprehensive nutritional assessments for targeted interventions.
    
    VL  - 13
    IS  - 6
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Critical Care Medicine, Xiangshui County People's Hospital, Xiangshui, China

  • Department of Critical Care Medicine, Xiangshui County People's Hospital, Xiangshui, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

  • Department of Oncology, The Tenth People's Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China

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