Institutions aimed at feeding the elderly have become more numerous, and few studies are conducted at these sites. We hypothesize that the manner in which feeding is held at these places can adversely affect the emotional relationship the elderly has with food. OBJECTIVES: To understand the meaning and the affective component of feeding in the lives of seniors who attend a day care center directed to feeding; to identify the situational aspects that involve the feeding behavior of these elderly. METHODS: We studied people aged 60 or more years attending a Day Care Center in eastern São Paulo city, through a semistructured interview using the Collective Subject Discourse. The guiding questions of the interview were: Why do you eat here? How does eating feel here? Tell me how was your food before going into day care center and now. Were there any changes? What is the importance of food in your life? Do you think that food can help making friends? RESULTS: The hypothesis initially established has not been proven, and we noticed the presence of a new living situation for the elderly, which seemed nice and disconnected from past events. Respondents in this study did not show much relationship with the previous feeding. CONCLUSIONS: places that offer food service to the elderly have shown to be important for social support, facilitate socialization and acquisition of food for older people living in disadvantaged situations.
Aging; Health of the Elderly; Elderly; Feeding behavior; Collective feeding; Health promotion
