Nutritional status of older people in long term care settings: current status and future directions

Despite being preventable and treatable, in the 21st Century, malnutrition remains a problem in the developed world and the nutritional needs of many older people in long-term care settings are not met. The UK government has pledged to provide high-quality care for this sector of the population, including minimum standards to ensure adequate nutrition. However, research is still needed into the detection, prevalence, cause and effects of malnutrition and maintenance of optimum nutrition; and to address the lack of training and education among those caring for older peoples. In the interim, simple measures such as monitoring older people's weight regularly need to be implemented as a surveillance measure of nutritional status. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.