Nutrition plays an important role in maintaining the health of elderly people; persons aged 60 years and above; as well as in their aging process. The increasing prevalence level of malnutrition among the elderly people is becoming a concern globally. In Kenya, there is limited data on nutrition status of the elderly persons especially in the rural areas such as Kilgoris. This study was therefore done to assess socio-economic characteristics of the elderly people,dietary patterns, nutrient intake and nutritional status in Kilgoris Kenya. A crosssectional study with analytical component was conducted among 221 elderly respondents who met the study criteria. The questionnaires were deployed through Open Data Kit (ODK) on mobile devices. Data on background characteristic, dietary patterns and nutrient intake was collected using socio-economic characteristics, a single 24-Hour dietary recall, and Dietary Diversity Score (DDS) and food consumption frequency for various food items. The anthropometric measurements of weight and height were used to compute Body Mass Index to assess nutritional status. Data analysis was carried out using SPSS version 23 software and MicrosoftExcel for graphical presentations. The results showed that there were slightly more females (50.2%) than males. Those who were married were 89.7%and 65.6% were illiterate. The levels of illiteracy were significantly high among women (81%) than males (70%) (p value=0.022). The majority of the respondents were also unemployed (72.4%) but sale of animals (42.1%) was the main sources of income reported. Diabetes (65%), hypertension (64%), and teeth problems (62% ) were major health issues that affected the wellbeing of elderly persons.Further, the prevalence’s of overweight and underweight were 13% and 26%, respectively. Nevertheless, a positive association was additionally found between nutritional status and DDS (pvalue=0.008) while many did not meet the Recommended Daily Allowances for energy, calcium and other micronutrients. The factors that significantly associated with overweight were high wealth index (OR =2.82, P-value =0.046), receiving pension (OR =0.14, P-value =0.001), owning means of transport (OR =1.78, P-value =0.013) and education attainment (OR =0.33, P-value =0.008). On the other hand, immobility (OR =0.94, P-value = 0.065) and loss of memory (OR =0.00, P-value =0.006), significantly associated with underweight. In conclusion, the elderly people in Kilgoris have poor nutritional status compounded by poor dietary intakes that lead to not meeting the Recommended Daily Allowances for most nutrients. High morbidities, lifestyle behaviours and low socio-economic status also affect the wellbeing and health of the elderly. Provision of pension or cash transfer to all elderly people, creation of income generating activities, provision of geriatrics services and adequate drugs to the elderly people are some of intervetions that can be prioritized.

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