Knowledge of Nutrition and Dietary Practices on Healthy Aging Among Older Adults in Ilorin South Local Government Area, Kwara State.

With the global trend towards an increasing aging population, there is an increase in the health problems and the number of people that will need health care, especially in developing countries including Nigeria, which motivated this study. Five objectives of the study examined the knowledge of nutrition and dietary practices in healthy aging among older adults in Ilorin south local government area, Kwara state, Five research questions and one hypotheses was formulated and tested at 0.5 level of significance. A descriptive survey research design was adopted and the population comprised of 2,496 older adults aged 50years and above. Using multi-stage sampling technique, 8.02% of the population was selected to obtain a sample size of 200. The instrument used was a questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.844. Data was analysed using frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation. Findings revealed that older adults recognize the importance of nutrition, their dietary practices often deviate from optimal recommendations. Barriers of high cost, limited mobility, lack of nutritional knowledge, and influence of advertising. The result of the hypotheses revealed that nutrition significantly influences the prevention and management of chronic disease in older adults (p < 0.05). The study concludes that promoting healthy dietary practices among older adults requires multifaceted strategies, including nutrition education, affordability interventions, improved access to fresh produce, and supportive social environments, It was therefore recommended that dietary quality should be improved, especially in elderly-only households, by increasing availability and access to fruits, vegetables, meat and milk throughout the year.