Obesity is associated with the frailty syndrome in older women in cross-sectional data. This association remains significant even when multiple conditions associated with frailty are considered. Prospective studies are needed to confirm this finding.

Frail women are more likely to have relatively low serum carotenoid and micronutrient concentrations and are more likely to have multiple micronutrient deficiencies. Future longitudinal studies are needed to examine the relationships between micronutrient concentrations and frailty in older women.