LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTION OF ELDERLY PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY ABOUT THE VEGETARIAN DIET: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY (Atena Editora)

Abstract

The human being can follow different types of eating patterns and in the current context, it is known that the vegetarian population is increasing every day in society. The way people eat is intrinsically related to health, cultural aspects, environment and life habits. For these reasons, the objective of the present study was to investigate in a population of elderly people their knowledge and perception related to a vegetarian diet. In general terms, the main question of the research is to understand the level of this knowledge and how they associate this diet with health and quality of life. This is an exploratory descriptive cross-sectional study with qualitative and quantitative methodology, applied through a questionnaire. 117 individuals participated, between 62 and 90 years old, where, 112 follow the omnivorous food pattern and 5 the ovo-lacto vegetarianism. The research found that there is a lack of knowledge on the part of this population related to vegetarianism, even by individuals who follow this diet, on the other hand, the interest of a large part of the population studied about this theme is notorious. Thus, the present work detected the need to offer knowledge to this population about this type of food and how it can be beneficial for health and a better quality of life if carried out with professional guidance, in addition to observing the lack of literature on the subject. vegetarianism associated with the health of the elderly. even by individuals who follow this diet, on the other hand, the interest of a large part of the population studied about this theme is notorious. Thus, the present work detected the need to offer knowledge to this population about this type of food and how it can be beneficial for health and a better quality of life if carried out with professional guidance, in addition to observing the lack of literature on the subject. vegetarianism associated with the health of the elderly. even by individuals who follow this diet, on the other hand, the interest of a large part of the population studied about this theme is notorious. Thus, the present work detected the need to offer knowledge to this population about this type of food and how it can be beneficial for health and a better quality of life if carried out with professional guidance, in addition to observing the lack of literature on the subject. vegetarianism associated with the health of the elderly.