Nutrition and meals — preventing malnutrition in the elderly.

Meals are rarely just nutrition. For many of the citizens you help, it is the most important social event of the day – something to look forward to in a daily life that might otherwise be quiet or lonely. But meals are also one of your best chances to observe whether everything is as it should be.

The Danish Health Authority distinguishes between healthy elderly and weakened or small-eating elderly. Healthy elderly generally follow the Danish Food Agency's official dietary advice, while sick, weakened or small-eating elderly should be offered energy and protein-rich food to prevent weight loss and loss of function. In addition, a daily supplement of vitamin D and calcium is recommended for all over 70 years and for all elderly in care facilities and home care – regardless of age (source: Danish Health Authority, 'Recommendations on Nutrition for Elderly Over 70 Years').

In a frail elderly person, even a small, unplanned weight loss can negatively affect functionality and thus reduce quality of life and increase the risk of complications. This is one of the reasons why you as a carer play an important role: you see the citizen eat — or not — far more often than a dietitian or doctor ever does.

• 01Involuntary weight loss—clothes that suddenly fit loose.
• 02Reduced appetite or interest in food for several days.
• 03The citizen eats only a small portion of what they usually eat.
• 04Increased fatigue or weakness that may be related to reduced intake.
• 05Dry mucous membranes or other signs of insufficient fluid.

You can do a lot to support a good meal without having to decide the diet plan yourself. Create calm around the table, sit down if there is time, and make the food inviting. If the citizen is a picky eater, you can in collaboration with the kitchen or nurse offer smaller, more frequent, and more energy-dense portions instead of three large meals. Most importantly, you observe and pass on what and how much the citizen actually eats and drinks – not just what is served.

A good meal is about more than calories – it is about dignity joy and community. When you combine care for the atmosphere with an alert eye for what is actually eaten you make a real difference to the citizen's health and well-being.