Aging is a natural and individual process, which causes a series of physiological,
metabolic, anatomical, social and psychological changes, which manifest themselves in
structural and functional changes. The aim of this study was to assess the nutritional
status, through the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) and the Body Mass Index (BMI),
in a group of elderly women who attended at the Municipal Health Unit (UMS) in Guamá
in Belém, Pará. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study and the research was conducted
in August 2019 after being approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the Federal
University of Pará (UFPA). Data collection was performed with 16 elderly women with
a mean age of 72.18土8.47 years; the results found in the MNA were 56.25% (n=9) of
the elderly were in normal nutritional status, 37.5% (n=6) were at risk of malnutrition and
6.25% (n=1) were malnourished. The results of the BMI were 37.5% (n=6) were
underweight, 31.25% (n=5) eutrophic and 31.25% (n=5) overweight. As conclusion, there
is an importance of studies in this area, because the role of nutrition in this stage of life is
to maintain the proper functioning of the body, maintenance of health and nutritional
needs, and better quality of life.
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