NUTRITION AND HYDRATION WEEK

Thave never been more spaces in the calendar filled with awareness days or national events seeking to promote a certain area of interest or expertise. You only need to read the news or have a look on social media to regularly see days, weeks, or even months dedicated to an area of interest. And why not? Whichever specialist area you are working in, you are bound to want an opportunity to promote it, share expertise and best practice, and get more people involved.

Therefore, the focus of this article is going to be Nutrition and Hydration Week, which is running this year from 13 - 19 March. The purpose of Nutrition and Hydration Week is to bring people together to create energy, focus and fun around the role of food and drink in maintaining health and wellbeing in health and social care settings, and to educate people on this integral part of health and social care.

One of the great things about Nutrition and Hydration Week is that anyone can take part. Whether you work in an acute or community setting, in teaching or in the industry – there are various resources available to you on the Nutrition and Hydration Week website: NutritionAndHydration Week.co.uk/resources

WHY DO WE HAVE NUTRITION AND HYDRATION WEEK?

Nutrition and hydration are essential parts of the care provided in health and social care settings, such as in hospitals, in care homes and in support of people living in their own homes. The reasons for this are multifactorial; what and how we eat has the potential to impact on every area of our lives and can play a part in the prevention, management, and treatment of certain conditions. We also mustn’t forget the importance of considering the social impact of eating well. Various research studies and core clinical guidelines recommend eating with others as an intervention that can help to prevent malnutrition, particularly among older adults (1,2,3). This doesn’t have to be complex. A simple, inexpensive way to positively impact nutritional intake among older adults who are living in their own homes but are reliant on care packages, is to recommend that family members or caregivers eat with them if possible.

Perhaps the most pressing nutritional issue for occupational therapists to be aware of, particularly those working with older and vulnerable adults, is malnutrition. Malnutrition is a major public health issue in the UK, and one that does not receive the focus it requires, despite it being incredibly costly to the health service and largely preventable (4). There are approximately three million people living in the UK who have been identified as either ‘at risk’ of malnutrition or are already meeting this clinical definition. Of these people, over 90% of them are living in their own homes and older adults are disproportionately affected (5).

Malnutrition is a complex condition with many signs, symptoms, causes, and treatment methods to be aware of. OTs can play an important part in supporting their patients and clients to prevent or treat malnutrition, and as always, collaboration with dietitians and other healthcare professionals is important. Readers can learn more from reputable resources such as the British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (BAPEN).

MAKING A DIFFERENCE EVERY DAY – HOW CAN OTS HELP?

One of the key messages from Nutrition and Hydration Week this year is “making a difference every day”. OTs are well placed to support this message as they often have regular contact with the patients and clients that they support. One of the main signs of malnutrition is weight loss. This can present itself through subtle changes that happen over a period of weeks, months or even years. Looser clothing, poorly fitting dentures and jewellery can all be signs that someone is losing weight and may be struggling with their nutrition. If as an OT you’re concerned about your patient’s or client’s nutrition, there are some things you can do, including:

Open a discussion with the individual about their nutrition. You could ask if they have any concerns, have unintentionally lost weight recently or have lost interest in food.

Make a referral to a dietitian, who can provide a full nutritional assessment and a personalised Make some recommendations around improving their nutrition. Using

REFERENCES:

a food-first approach and recommending nutrient-dense foods can be very effective and is usually the first step in managing malnutrition. The British Dietetic Association outlines some ideas in their invaluable fact sheets, which can be found on their website: BDA.uk.com

There are also several initiatives that run during Nutrition and Hydration Week that allied health professionals can take part in alongside their organisations. One of the most popular ones is the Global Afternoon Tea. All the organisations taking part in Nutrition and Hydration Week are invited to join in, and this not only shows commitment to nutritional care and helps to improve nutritional intake for your patients and clients, it’s also a great way to bring people together and create some fun around food and drink. Nutrition and Hydration Week is a great opportunity to share best practices on nutrition and hydration in your area of work and talk to people about simple yet effective tactics for improving nutritional care. See the website for more information and happy Nutrition and Hydration Week 2023!

WiltshireFarmFoods.com

1. Besora-Moreno M, Llauradó E, Tarro L, Solà R. Social and Economic Factors and Malnutrition or the Risk of Malnutrition in the Elderly: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies. Nutrients. 2020 Mar 11;12(3):737. doi: 10.3390/nu12030737. PMID: 32168827; PMCID: PMC7146387.

2. Volkert D., Beck A.M., Cederholm T., Cruz-Jentoft A., Goisser S., Hooper L., Kiesswetter E., Maggio M., RaynaudSimon A., Sieber C.C., et al. ESPEN guideline on clinical nutrition and hydration in geriatrics. Clin. Nutr. 2019;38:10–47. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2018.05.024.

3. Locher JL, Robinson CO, Roth DL, Ritchie CS, Burgio KL. The effect of the presence of others on caloric intake in homebound older adults. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2005 Nov;60(11):1475-8. doi: 10.1093/gerona/60.11.1475. PMID: 16339337; PMCID: PMC2276563.

4. Stratton, R, Smith, T, and Gabe, S on behalf of British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (BAPEN) (2018). Managing malnutrition to improve lives and save money. (online). Available: www.bapen.org.uk/pdfs/reports/ mag/managing-malnutrition.pdf last accessed 22/2/2023

5. BAPEN (2018). Introduction to malnutrition. (online). Available at: www.bapen.org.uk/malnutrition-undernutrition/ introduction-to-malnutrition?start=4 last accessed 22/2/2023