Influencia de la composición corporal en la calidad de vida de adultos mayores del cantón Riobamba - 2023

Abstract

This research work had as a main objective to determine the influence of body composition and quality of life of senior citizens in Riobamba. To achieve this, a non- experimental cross-sectional study was carried out. It focused on a sample of 696 participants who were selected through random sampling. The study collected data on general characteristics, body composition and perception of quality of life, using bioelectrical impedance and the GENCAT scale. The results highlighted greater participation of females, low level of education, high prevalence of weight deficiency; however, the body compartments demonstrated excessive adiposity and limited musculature. They also showed high prevalence of "good quality of life" in the majority of the population. On the other hand, in order to test the hypothesis, a correlation matrix and Kruskal Wallis test were used. The purpose was to contrast variables of interest. Statistical significance was identified between quality of life and body composition components (p<0.005), more specifically, adiposity showed direct relationship with quality of life (r=0.200) while muscle mass indicated the existence of an inverse relationship (r=0.097). As a conclusion, body composition does influence the senior citizens’ quality of life since individuals with a high quality of life demonstrated higher alterations in their corporal compartments. For this reason, it is recommended to contrast these results with other tools to measure quality of life such as IWQOL, which has demonstrated reliability when analyzing the impact of obesity on quality of life.