Making the most of every mouthful

When we are young, we are all aware about the importance of healthy nutrition to allow us to grow and develop. What a lot of people do not realise is that it is just as important as we get older. It is estimated that one in ten people over the age of 65 are at risk of malnutrition.

This can be due to several reasons:

•  Long term medical conditions such as COPD, cancer, dementia can have influenced your nutrition
• Social factors such as bereavement, loneliness and isolation.
• Financial factors –lack of money.
• Confusing Public Health messages being given in middle age about the risk of being overweight, but not realising that as people age, they may become malnourished.

Older people with poor nutrition are more likely to visit the GP and have an increased risk of infection & hospitalisation.

If you start to notice that rings are falling off, dentures are becoming loose and clothes are getting too big, these could be indicators that the person could be at risk of malnutrition.  If you notice these signs please contact the surgery for a weight check and further advice.

Your body needs energy and protein to ensure you have a nutritionally adequate diet with will help you

• to regain weight lost due to illness or surgery
• to help your body fight infection
• to maintain muscles and prevent weight loss
• to help keep skin healthy and help wounds or pressure sores to heal.

Please CLICK HERE to open the printable PDF  ‘Making the Most of Every Mouthful’  which gives you practical advice on ways to make your meals and snacks more  nutritious.