Malnutrition

What is a dietitian?

Dietitians work within a variety of settings and can help support you to achieve your nutritional needs from foods and drinks.

Follow this link to watch the ‘BDA What is a dietitian’ video on YouTube

Some dietitians work specifically within the area of malnutrition and can help assess a person’s risk of malnutrition and can help prevent/treat this.

What is malnutrition?

Malnutrition is the term used when your body is not getting the balance of nutrition that it needs to stay healthy. This can be caused by an insufficient dietary intake or by reduced absorption of nutrients. This can lead to weight loss and poor health, making it harder to fight infections.

There are many reasons why it may be difficult to eat or drink as well as normal. These could include having difficulty accessing food, family or friends not being able to help prepare or assist with meals, changes to your appetite, swallowing difficulties, low mood or financial worries.

People who are malnourished are more likely to visit their GP and are more likely to be admitted to hospital.

It is therefore important to be able to identify/treat malnutrition as soon as possible to improve outcomes for patients.

Should I be concerned/what should I look out for?

There may be a risk of malnutrition if you or someone you care for:

has a poor appetite
are struggling to eat enough
are underweight or have recently experienced unplanned weight loss

If you are concerned, then you can carry out a self-assessment to see if you are likely to be at risk. You can access a self-assessment tool using the following links:

Nutrition checklist for patients

MUST (Malnutrition Screening Tool) Calculator

What should I do if I think I’m at risk?

If you feel that you or someone that you care for might be at risk, speak with your GP. The GP will be able to carry out further assessments to identify risk, give first line advice to help improve dietary intake and refer to the dietitian if required.

If you are referred to a dietitian you could be assessed in one of our outpatient clinics or via the telephone. Home visits can also be arranged where necessary i.e. for those who are housebound.

If your relative is in a care home, they can be assessed at the home. Ask the care home to screen for malnutrition and refer via the GP if appropriate.

Tips for increasing intake

Small, frequent meals may be easier to manage if your appetite is poor
Choose full fat versions of products e.g. milk, yoghurts
Include snacks between meals e.g. custard, thick and creamy yoghurts, rice pudding
Aim for 2-3 nourishing drinks per day e.g. milkshakes, milky hot chocolate/coffee
Try fortifying milk with dried milk powder to increase calories/protein
Try fortifying your meals with higher calorie products e.g. butter, cheese, cream

Where can I get further information?

Malnutrition Overview and Webinars – Patientwebinars.co.uk

Making the Most of your Food – Malnutritionpathway.co.uk

Eating Well in Later Life - Malnutritiontaskforce.org.uk

Eating, drinking and ageing well - British Dietetic Association (BDA)

Spotting and treating malnutrition - British Dietetic Association (BDA)

Hydration in older adults - British Dietetic Association (BDA)

Prevention and management of pressure injuries - British Dietetic Association (BDA)

Difficulty shopping/cooking?

If cooking/shopping is difficult, supermarket deliveries could be a useful option. Most supermarkets offer a home delivery service if you can shop online. If you are unable to do online ordering some supermarkets will take an order over the phone.

If cooking is difficult, you could try using home delivery services which offer pre-prepared meals.

Meal delivery producers such as Wiltshire Farm Foods and Oakhouse Foods can be helpful if you are finding making meals difficult.

Follow this link to the Wiltshire Farm Foods website

Follow this link to the Oakhouse Foods website

Financial concerns?

If financial concerns/budgeting is a problem the following links may be useful:

Eat well, spend less - British Dietetic Association (BDA)

Basic Store Cupboard Ideas – British Dietetic Association (BDA)

Eating healthily on a budget | British Nutrition Foundation

Eating healthy on a tight budget: 6 top tips – British Heart Foundation (BHF)

Eating Well Affordably – Age UK

Food banks can also be accessed to supply emergency food at times of crisis. The Trussell Trust can help you find your local food bank and give advice on how to access this.

https://www.trusselltrust.org/get-help/emergency-food/

Tel: 01722 580 180