Health-promotion theories in nutritional interventions for community-dwelling older adults: a systematic review

To identify theories applied in interventions promoting healthy nutrition among community-dwelling older adults and determine the efficacy of theories in changing knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors.

The PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, and ERIC databases were searched for English articles from January 1990 to December 2015. Mono or multicomponent randomized controlled trial studies were included, whereas research on nutritional interventions related to acute or chronic diseases were excluded.

Eight articles satisfied the inclusion criteria. Only three articles referred explicitly to health promotion theories. Nutritional programs varied in terms of contents, outcomes, lengths of interventions and follow-up. Pooling the results and identifying the most effective theories were therefore impossible.

Although researchers and practitioners recognize the significance of theoretical models in guiding the health-promoting interventions, referring to a theoretical model for such interventions is still relatively recent.