Background: older adults suffer from diseases that can affect their functional, psychological and social parameters. The Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) is used as an evaluation tool for these parameters through the use of validated, simple and easy-to-apply instruments. Objective: to report the health status of older adults who attend a primary care center in an urban-marginal area of Guayaquil (Ecuador) through CGA, as a first step in order to establish a coordinated care plan in the areas studied. Material and methods: a cross-sectional assessment of 196 aged subjects with a median age of 70.9 years (83 % females) who attended a Primary Care Community Health Center in Guayaquil. Nutritional, social, demographic, functional, and cognitive variables were assessed. Results: participants had a mean age of 70.9 +/- 7.1 years. Demographic variables: 73 % were Afro-Ecuadorian, 69 % had basic education, and 57 % performed no physical activity. Clinical assessment: 47.4 % presented with vision impairment, and 37.8 % with hearing problems; 52 % had nutritional risk and 6 % malnutrition. Social valuation: 13 % had severe social deterioration; 40 % had some cognitive impairment, and 8.2 % had depression; 46.9 % were functionally dependent, and 16.8 % had dynapenia. Conclusions: CGA allows to identify major health problems in this population, which is why it is considered a practical and easy tool to apply in primary care centers in marginal urban populations as a first step to improve health status for this older population, which in recent years is growing significantly in developing countries such as Ecuador.

Background: Dynapenic obesity (DO) is the coexistence of excess adipose tissue/body weight and low muscle strength. This condition is associated with an increased risk of suffering from various chronic diseases and physical deterioration in older people.Aim: To analyze the association between DO phenotypes and physical performance in middle-aged women living in the community.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on middle-aged and older women (≥50 years) residing in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Dynapenia was diagnosticated by a handgrip strength (HGS) < 16 kg; obesity was determined based on body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m². Participants were categorized into four groups based on their dynapenia and obesity status: non-dynapenic/non-obesity (ND/NO), obesity/non-dynapenic (O/ND), dynapenic/non-obesity (D/NO) and dynapenic/obesity (D/O). Physical performance was assessed by the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB).Results: A total of 171 women were assessed. The median (IQR) age of the sample was 72.0 (17.0) years. Obesity and dynapenia were 35% (n = 60) and 57.8% (n = 99) of the participants, respectively. The prevalence of ND/NO was 25.1% (n = 43), O/ND 17% (n = 29), D/NO 39.8% (n = 68) and DO 18.1% (n = 31). The mean SPPB total score was 6.5 ± 3.2. Participants of D/NO and DO groups presented significantly lower mean SPPB scores (p < 0.001) compared to those of NO/ND and O/ND groups.Conclusion: Women with DO and D/NO exhibited significantly lower SPPB scores, indicating poorer physical performance. These findings emphasize the importance of incorporating a comprehensive assessment of muscle strength and obesity in middle-aged and older women.

To analyze the correlation between arm muscle area and handgrip strength among postmenopausal community dwelling low-income women in order to provide an easy anthropometric indicator to assess muscle mass quantity and quality. This was a cross-sectional study involving postmenopausal women (n = 171) from three urban-marginal communities of Guayaquil, Ecuador. Corrected arm muscle area was calculated using the Frisancho formula. Dynapenia was defined as HGS < 16 kg. Spearman's correlation coefficient was calculated at a 5% significance level to test the correlation between corrected arm muscle area and handgrip strength. Median (interquartile range: IQR) age of the sample was 72.0 years (17.0). The median of corrected arm muscle area was 34.8 cm² (20.7). The overall prevalence of dynapenia was 57.9% (n = 99). There was a significant decreasing trend with age regarding all anthropometric characteristics and handgrip strength, as well as a higher prevalence of dynapenia with age. For the whole sample, a statistically significant positive correlation was found between corrected arm muscle area and handgrip strength [r = 0.267; p < .001]. There was a significant yet weak positive correlation between corrected arm muscle area and handgrip strength in this postmenopausal sample. There is a need for additional research in this regard.

Background: Nutritional status assessment is the cornerstone of the Nutrition Care Process, guiding diagnosis, intervention, and monitoring. The classical ABCD model (Anthropometry, Biochemical, Clinical, Dietary) has been widely applied; however, it presents limitations in addressing current nutritional and epidemiological challenges. Objective: This narrative review aims to synthesize and update the scientific evidence on the expanded nutritional assessment model, known as ABCDEFG, which incorporates the Ecological–microbiota (E), Functional (F), and Genomic–nutrigenomic (G) approaches. Methods: A narrative review of the literature was conducted through PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, covering publications from 2013 to 2025. Articles were selected based on relevance to at least one of the seven assessment domains. Findings were synthesized descriptively and critically, highlighting applications, strengths, and limitations. Results: The ABCDEFG framework offers a multidimensional perspective of nutritional assessment. While anthropometric, biochemical, clinical, and dietary methods remain essential, the inclusion of ecological dimensions (gut microbiota, environmental influences), functional measures (e.g., muscle strength, physical performance), and genomics enables a more sensitive and personalized evaluation. This integrative approach supports better clinical decision-making and research innovation in nutrition and health sciences. Conclusions: The seven-method model broadens the scope of nutritional assessment, bridging traditional and emerging tools. Its application enhances the capacity to identify nutritional risks, design targeted interventions, and advance precision nutrition.

Revista de Nutrición Clínica y Metabolismo

Background: Cardiometabolic risk is increasingly observed in young adults, particularly during university years, and is not limited to individuals with elevated body mass index. Emerging evidence highlights the presence of normal weight obesity—characterized by excess adiposity and unfavorable body composition despite normal BMI—which may confer early metabolic vulnerability. Dietary diversity is often promoted as a marker of dietary adequacy; however, its relationship with adiposity, body composition, and muscular health remains inconsistent, particularly in Latin American populations. Moreover, few studies have directly contrasted dietary diversity indicators with empirically derived dietary patterns in relation to cardiometabolic and functional outcomes. Objective: To examine the associations between dietary diversity, dietary patterns, and indicators of adiposity, muscular strength, and relative muscle mass in Ecuadorian university students. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 349 undergraduate students aged 18–26 years enrolled in health sciences programs in Ecuador. Dietary intake was assessed using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Dietary diversity was quantified using the Food and Agriculture Organization’s Individual Dietary Diversity Score, while dietary patterns were identified through principal component analysis followed by k-means clustering. Outcomes included excess body weight, relative muscle mass assessed by bioelectrical impedance analysis, and handgrip strength. Multivariable Poisson and linear regression models were fitted, adjusting for age, sex, academic program, physical activity level, and pre-existing conditions. Results: Despite their young age and low prevalence of diagnosed disease, approximately one-third of the participants exhibited markers of early cardiometabolic risk, including excess body weight and central adiposity. Higher dietary diversity was independently associated with a higher prevalence of excess body weight (adjusted prevalence ratio per one-unit increase in IDDS: 1.17; 95% CI: 1.06–1.30) and with greater relative muscle mass (adjusted β = 0.13; 95% CI: 0.05–0.22), whereas no association was observed with handgrip strength. In contrast, dietary patterns derived from multivariate analysis showed no significant associations with adiposity, muscular strength, or relative muscle mass after adjustment. Conclusions: In this young adult population, dietary diversity captured aspects of overall dietary exposure associated with both increased adiposity and greater lean mass, but not with muscular strength. Empirically derived dietary patterns demonstrated limited discriminatory capacity, likely reflecting dietary homogeneity within the cohort. These findings indicate that dietary diversity alone does not necessarily reflect diet quality and underscore the importance of interpreting diversity metrics alongside indicators of food quality, energy density, and body composition when evaluating early cardiometabolic risk in contemporary food environments.