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Temporal Dietary Patterns and Frailty in Korean Older Adults: Evening-Skewed and Morning–Evening Eating Patterns Associated with Frailty Risk

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Meal timing has emerged as a potential determinant of healthy aging; however, evidence linking temporal dietary patterns (TDPs) with frailty remains limited. We aimed to identify distinct TDPs among older adults and examine their associations with frailty and its components. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 4184 adults aged ≥ 65 years from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2016-2018) were analyzed. Temporal energy-intake trajectories from 24 h recalls were clustered using dynamic time warping-based kernel k-means. Frailty was defined using a modified Fried phenotype, and diet quality was assessed employing the Healthy Eating Index. Survey-weighted logistic regression and mediation analyses were performed. RESULTS: = 420, 10.2%). Among these, the evening-skewed (characterized by a disproportionate concentration of energy intake in the late evening; adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.48, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03-2.10) and morning-evening (characterized by higher energy intake in both the morning and evening; OR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.01-2.03) patterns were associated with higher frailty risk than the balanced pattern. Mediation analysis showed that higher total energy intake had a protective role in the evening-skewed pattern; however, this benefit was offset by the adverse impact of late-night eating, resulting in increased frailty risk. In the morning-evening pattern, both a direct association with frailty and an indirect pathway mediated by lower energy intake and poorer diet quality contributed to the increased frailty risk. CONCLUSIONS: Older adults with evening-skewed or morning-evening TDPs had greater frailty risk than those with balanced eating patterns. Optimizing meal timing-by reducing late-day energy loading and ensuring adequate overall intake and dietary quality-may represent a feasible chrono-nutrition strategy for frailty prevention.

Source: Nutrients

DOI: 10.3390/nu18040701

Authors: Han Byul Jang, Sarang Jeong, Min-Ju Kim, Hyun-Joung Lim, Kyung Eun Lee

Institutions: Chungbuk National University, Korea National Institute of Health, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Dongduk Women's University

Language: English

Topic: Frailty in Older Adults

Subfield: Geriatrics and Gerontology

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Zero hunger

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,499