The Health Belief Model (HBM) will be used as a base to design nutrition education program for older adults to increase their knowledge and consumption of fluid. The Health Belief Model was developed in the 1950s. It is one of the first and well known theories that used to understand health behavior. The main idea of the HBM is people’s beliefs affect their behaviors (Contento, 2016). It is recommended to use the HBM in nutrition education because it increases the effectiveness of educational programs (Naghashpour et al., 2014). Therefore, providing older adults with information about hydration may help improve their fluid intake. To achieve that, it is suggested to increase their awareness and motivation about hydration, and decrease their …show more content…
The combination of perceived severity and perceived susceptibility called perceived threat and it indicates if the person is ready to take an action. In this report, older adults are at high risk to become dehydration because of several factors. First, older adults have less body water compared to other ages because of their losing in muscle mass, changing in metabolism and kidney function, and reducing in thirst sensation (Juan & Basiotis, 2002). In general, older adult men’s total body fluid is 52% of body weight compared to 60% in adult men, and in older adult women is 46% compared to 52% in adult women (as cited in Mentes, 2006). In addition, older adults tend to eat and drink less than other ages due to disabilities, diseases, or medications (mayo Clinic, …show more content…
In this report, consuming the recommended amount of fluid is vital for life. Hydration helps in cellular homeostasis and body’s temperature control (Popkin, D 'Anci & Rosenberg, 2010). Also, it helps to maintain optimal cognitive functioning since a study found that when the body loss 2% or more of its water, the cognitive performance decreases (Riebl & Davy, 2013). Moreover, hydration may relieve headache from dehydrated people and prevent and relieve constipation (Blau, Kell & Sperling, 2004; Murakami et al., 2007). In addition, it may prevent kidney stones (NIDDK,