Nutritional supplementation for older people

TY - JOUR

T1 - Nutritional supplementation for older people

AU - Lambert, M. A.

AU - Potter, J.M.

AU - McMurdo, M.E.

N1 - Copyright 2011 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

PY - 2010/11/1

Y1 - 2010/11/1

N2 - Malnutrition is common in older people and is associated with a number of adverse outcomes. We review the evidence for the effectiveness of nutritional supplementation for older people in the community, in institutional care and following discharge from hospital. Studies in these settings are scarce, often include only small numbers of participants and are of variable quality. The interventions used are heterogeneous and difficult to directly compare. Oral nutritional supplements (sip feeds), dietary fortification, educational programmes, exercise, flavour enhancement and meal setting have all been studied. Evidence for use of oral nutritional supplements as sip feeds in undernourished community-dwelling and institutionalized older people and in those discharged from hospital is currently insufficient to recommend routine use. Flavour enhancement and more sociable meal environments may be beneficial. Further, more methodologically robust research is needed to clarify the effect of these interventions.

AB - Malnutrition is common in older people and is associated with a number of adverse outcomes. We review the evidence for the effectiveness of nutritional supplementation for older people in the community, in institutional care and following discharge from hospital. Studies in these settings are scarce, often include only small numbers of participants and are of variable quality. The interventions used are heterogeneous and difficult to directly compare. Oral nutritional supplements (sip feeds), dietary fortification, educational programmes, exercise, flavour enhancement and meal setting have all been studied. Evidence for use of oral nutritional supplements as sip feeds in undernourished community-dwelling and institutionalized older people and in those discharged from hospital is currently insufficient to recommend routine use. Flavour enhancement and more sociable meal environments may be beneficial. Further, more methodologically robust research is needed to clarify the effect of these interventions.

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/79951856678

U2 - 10.1017/S0959259810000262

DO - 10.1017/S0959259810000262

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:79951856678

SN - 0959-2598

VL - 20

SP - 317

EP - 326

JO - Reviews in Clinical Gerontology

JF - Reviews in Clinical Gerontology

IS - 4

ER -