Fruit and vegetable intake among low income elderly in the city of São Paulo, Southeastern Brazil.

Objective: To estimate the socioeconomic and sociodemographic factors associated with the daily intake of five servings of fruit and vegetables by elderly individuals living in low income areas, identifying the main fruits and vegetables which compose the diet of this population.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional population-based study with 2,066 low income elderly individuals (> or =60 years) living in the city of São Paulo, Southeastern Brazil, in 2003-2005. To assess the fruit and vegetable intake a Food Frequency Questionnaire was administered. The answers were transformed into daily intake and compared with the recommendations of the World Health Organization (five or more servings per day). The relationship between recommended fruit and vegetable intake and socioeconomic variables was analyzed using logistic regression models.

Results: Of the participants, 60.5% were women and 39.5% were men. Approximately one third of the elders (n=723; 35.0%) did not consume any kind of fruit or vegetable on a daily basis and 19.8% reported a daily intake of five or more servings of fruits and vegetables. This intake was positively associated with income and years of schooling.

Conclusions: The fruit and vegetable intake of low income elderly individuals in the city of São Paulo was insufficient according to the recommendations of the World Health Organization and is associated with unfavorable socioeconomic conditions.