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The older adult population is growing faster than any age group, which increases their risk of frailty. Studies conducted among older adult are relatively scarce in Malaysia, especially among Chinese postmenopausal women, who have the longest life expectancy. Thus, the present study aimed to determine the prevalence of frailty and its associated factors among Chinese postmenopausal women. A total of 220 eligible respondents were recruited, with information on sociodemographic background, comorbidities, dietary intake and lifestyle behaviour were obtained using a structured questionnaire, while anthropometry indicators were assessed according to standard protocol. Fasting blood was withdrawn for the analysis of serum 25(OH)D. Multinomial logistic regression was used to determine factors that predict pre-frailty and frailty. Prevalence of pre-frailty and prevalence of frailty were 64.5 and 7.3%, respectively, and most of the respondents presented with weak handgrip strength. Pre-frailty was prevalent among the younger population. Dietary quality was unsatisfactory among the respondents, and the majority of them presented with a high percentage of body fat. An increased dietary quality index (DQI), poor sleep and low muscle mass were factors that contributed to frailty. In conclusion, nutritional factors should be considered in developing health-related policies and programs in reducing and delaying the onset of frailty.

Introduction: Recognising the limitations of present dietary assessments method, recent attention had been drawn to image-based food record (IBFR) to assess dietary intake of the population. Thus, the present study aimed to compare nutrient intake assessed using IBFR with 24-hour diet recall (24DR) among nutrition and dietetics student. Method: There were 46 nutrition and dietetic undergraduates participated in the study, and information on the socio-demographic background and acceptability toward IBFR were obtained. Respondents were trained to complete one-day IBFR, and they were interviewed by researchers on the following day for their 24DR. Result: The mean age of respondents was 21.4±1.7 years old. The present study revealed that there were significantly higher protein and beta-carotene, but lower vitamin C reported by IBFR compared to 24DR. Medium to strong correlations were found between IBFR and 24DR for energy and nutrients intakes. The Bland-Altman analysis demonstrated a good level of agreement between IBFR and 24DR for energy and macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein and fat), respectively. The mean differences between IBFR and 24DR were -36 kcal for total daily energy intake, while mean differences of -12.24g, 0.79g, and 1.52g were reported for carbohydrates protein, and fat, respectively. Moderate level of agreement toward acceptability was demonstrated, and most of them (67.4%) preferred IBFR method. Conclusion: The present study revealed that IBFR showed a good level of agreement with 24DR in assessing nutrient intake. However, more extensive works should be considered to improve IBFR in assessing the energy and nutrients intake for the general population.

Frailty is defined as a decline in physiological condition and immunity against stressors events, which is common among the elderly population. Mounting evidence shows frailty among older person is highly associated with higher risk of cardiovascular and cardiovascular-related diseases, fall, physical disability, poor quality of life, increased mortality and morbidity. With the increase of proportion of older person in Malaysia attributed to longevity, it is expecting that frailty will continue to rise. Chinese female, with the longest life expectancy among different ethnicities in Malaysia, is expected to have a higher prevalence of frailty. Recognizing the importance of identifying factors associated frailty in promoting healthy ageing, the present study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of frailty and factors contributing to the risk of frailty among free-living postmenopausal Chinese women in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. A total of 220 postmenopausal Chinese women were recruited from seven affiliates under Kuala Lumpur and Selangor branch of National Council of Senior Citizen Organisation (NACSCOM). Frailty status was ascertained based on five assessments, namely unintentional weight loss, self-reported exhaustion, slow gait speed, weak handgrip strength and low physical activity level. Respondents with one to two components was classified as pre-frailty, while those with at least three components were classified as frailty. Several anthropometry assessments (weight, height, waist circumference (WC), percentage of body fat (PBF)) and blood pressure (BP) were performed according to standard protocols while skeletal muscle mass was computed accordingly. Sociodemographic background (age, duration of menopause, duration of education and education level, marital status, occupation and monthly household income) of respondents were obtained through self-administered questionnaire, while sleeping quality, smoking behaviour, sedentary time were determined using Pi