Nutrition Management in COVID-19 Quarantine: Hospital-Based Study

Abstract

Background: This hospital-based study aimed to evaluate the nutritional status and dietary habits for COVID-19 patients, the amount of nutrients provided to the patients in the hospital and to detect the predictors of severity among COVID-19 patients in Jordan.

Methods: A hospital-based study (N = 367, mean age 42.3, SD 15.4, 66.0% men) was conducted between March 17th and July 25th, 2020 in Prince Hamza Hospital. Data about socio-demographic, anthropometric, dietary habits, and macro-and micronutrient were collected from the patients’ medical files and some missing data were collected by phone directly from the patients.

Results: The results of the linear regression only age was significantly and positively (ß=0.454, p-value=0.001) associated with severity of the disease among the study patients. Around 57% of the COVID-19 patients consumed three meals daily, while around 31-34% consumed one to two snacks daily. The majority (64%) of the patients drank more than five cups of water daily. About 24% of the patients complained of eating problems such as taste and/or smell loss, low appetite, and swallowing difficulty. The intakes of the vitamins B1, B2, B3, and B6 and vitamin C, as well as calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium and sodium, were within the recommended dietary allowances (RDA).

Conclusion: The servings of the five food groups as well as most of the macro-and micronutrient requirements were within the recommended intakes and RDA.