Help the Aged: Good nutrition equals good health
Friday, 08 Feb 2008 14:17
Good nutrition in hospitals is essential to improving people's health, Help the Aged has said.
The charity's comments follow a report by two leading medics in the BMJ that claims malnutrition is undiagnosed in up to 70 per cent of patients.
Charlotte Potter, senior health policy officer at Help the Aged, said this figure is "very worrying".
"Older people make up around two thirds of patients in hospital, and can be particularly at risk from malnutrition," she explained.
"There could be a host of reasons why older people in hospital are malnourished - lack of appetite due to ill health, loss of taste, poor dental health, unappealing food or sheer neglect."
Ms Potter added: "Good nutrition is essential for good health. Falling to ensure that patients, especially older patients, are well nourished undermines much of the treatment they receive in hospital and prolongs ill health.
"The government needs to ensure that older people are given a choice of appropriate meals and given support with eating when they need help - last year's inpatient survey from the Healthcare Commission reported that 20 per cent of people did not receive enough help from staff to eat their meals."
