Question 1

Which of the following factors is most likely to affect the nutritional status of an 82-year-old person?

Accepted Answer

Socioeconomic conditions frequently have the greatest effect on the nutritional status of the aging adult;these factors should be closely evaluated.Physical limitations,income,and social isolation are frequent problems and can obviously interfere with the acquisition of a balanced diet.

Question 2

When the mid upper arm circumference and triceps skinfold of an 82-year-old man are evaluated,it is important to remember that:

Accepted Answer

Remember that accurate mid upper arm circumerence and triceps skinfold measurements are difficult to obtain and interpret in older adults because of sagging skin,changes in fat distribution,and declining muscle mass.

Question 3

In teaching a patient how to determine total body fat at home,the nurse includes instructions to obtain measurements of:

Accepted Answer

Body mass index,calculated by using height and weight measurements,is a practical marker of optimal weight for height and an indicator of obesity.

Question 4

The nurse recognizes that which of the following persons is at greatest risk for undernutrition?

Accepted Answer

Vulnerable groups are infants,children,pregnant women,recent immigrants,persons with low incomes,hospitalized people,and aging adults.

Question 5

The nurse is evaluating patients for obesity-related diseases.Which one of the following would be at increased risk?

Accepted Answer

The waist-to-hip ratio assesses body fat distribution as an indicator of health risk.A waist-to-hip ratio of 1.0 or greater in men or 0.8 or greater in women is indicative of android (upper body obesity)and increasing risk for obesity-related disease and early death.

Question 6

A pregnant woman is interested in breast-feeding her baby,and asks several questions about the topic.Which information is appropriate for the nurse to share with her?

Accepted Answer

Breast-feeding is recommended for full-term infants for the first year of life because breast milk is ideally formulated to promote normal infant growth and development and natural immunity.

Question 7

When considering a nutritional assessment,the nurse is aware that the most common anthropometric measurements include:

Accepted Answer

The most commonly used anthropometric measures are height,weight,triceps skinfold thickness,elbow breadth,and arm and head circumferences.

Question 8

When assessing a patient's nutritional status,the nurse recalls that the best definition of optimal nutritional status is:

Accepted Answer

Optimal nutritional status is achieved when sufficient nutrients are consumed to support day-to-day body needs and any increased metabolic demands resulting from growth,pregnancy,or illness.

Question 9

The nurse is assessing a 30-year-old unemployed immigrant from an underdeveloped country who has been in the United States for 1 month.Which of the following problems related to his nutritional status might the nurse expect to find?

Accepted Answer

General undernutrition,hypertension,diarrhea,lactose intolerance,osteomalacia (soft bones),scurvy,and dental caries are among the more common nutrition-related problems of new immigrants from developing countries.

Question 10

If a 29-year-old woman weighs 146 pounds and the nurse determines her ideal body weight to be 120 pounds,how would the nurse classify the woman's weight?

Accepted Answer

Obesity is defined as greater than 120% of ideal body weight.For this patient,120% of her ideal body weight,120 pounds,is 144 pounds.Her current weight of 146 pounds is greater than 120% of ideal body weight.

Question 11

A mother and her 13-year-old daughter express their concern related to the daughter's recent weight gain and increase in appetite.Which of the following represents information the nurse should discuss with them?

Accepted Answer

After a period of slow growth in late childhood,adolescence is characterized by rapid physical growth and endocrine and hormonal changes.Caloric and protein requirements increase to meet this demand.Because of bone growth and increasing muscle mass (and,in girls,the onset of menarche),calcium and iron requirements also increase.

Question 12

A patient tells the nurse that his food just doesn't have any taste anymore.The nurse's best response would be:

Accepted Answer

With changes in appetite,taste,smell,or chewing or swallowing,the examiner asks about the type of change and when the change occurred.

Question 13

Which of the following best describes the technique for measuring frame size?

Accepted Answer

Instruct the person to extend the right arm forward,perpendicular to the body.Bend the elbow to a 90-degree angle with the palm of the hand turned laterally.Facing the person,place the calipers on the condyles of the humerus.Read the distance between the condyles.

Question 14

The nurse is performing a nutritional assessment on a 15-year-old girl,who tells the nurse that she is "so fat." Assessment reveals that she is 5 feet 4 inches and weighs 110 pounds.The nurse's appropriate response would be:

Accepted Answer

Because of adolescents' increased body awareness and self-consciousness,they are prone to develop eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia,conditions in which the real or perceived body image does not compare favorably to an ideal image.

Question 15

The nurse is seeing a patient for the first time who has no history of nutrition-related problems.The initial nutritional screening should include which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Parameters used for nutrition screening typically include weight and weight history,conditions associated with increased nutritional risk,diet information,and routine laboratory data.

Question 16

During a nutritional assessment,why is it important for the nurse to ask a patient what medications he or she is taking?

Accepted Answer

Analgesics,antacids,anticonvulsants,antibiotics,diuretics,laxatives,antineoplastic drugs,steroids,and oral contraceptives are among the drugs that can interact with nutrients,impairing their digestion,absorption,metabolism,or use.

Question 17

After completing a diet assessment on a 30-year-old woman,the nurse suspects that she may be deficient in iron.Laboratory studies to obtain to verify this condition would be:

Accepted Answer

The hemoglobin determination is used to detect iron-deficiency anemia.Hematocrit,a measure of cell volume,is also an indicator of iron status.

Question 18

Which of the following statements is true concerning the nutritional assessment?

Accepted Answer

The purposes of the nutritional assessment are to (1)identify individuals who are malnourished or are at risk for development of malnutrition, (2)provide data for designing a plan of care that will prevent or minimize the development of malnutrition,and (3)establish baseline data for evaluating the efficacy of nutritional care.

Question 19

The nurse is concerned about the skeletal protein reserves of a patient who has been hospitalized frequently for chronic lung disease.Which of the following measurements would be necessary to include in the assessment?

Accepted Answer

Mid arm muscle area is a good indicator of lean body mass and skeletal protein reserves.These reserves are important in growing children and are especially valuable in evaluating persons who may be malnourished because of chronic illness,multiple surgeries,or inadequate dietary intake.The equation for calculating mid arm muscle area includes mid upper arm circumference and mid-upper arm muscle circumference.

Question 20

The nurse needs to determine the body mass index of an 80-year-old man who is confined to a wheelchair.Which of the following is true in this situation?

Accepted Answer

Height measures may not be accurate in individuals confined to a bed or wheelchair or those over 60 years of age (because of osteoporotic changes).

Quiz 11: Nutritional Assessment