15 Jan 2020

Aged care residents at risk of malnutrition, study shows

From Summer Report, 7:27 am on 15 January 2020

A new study has found that more than half of aged care residents are not eating enough food and are at risk of malnutrition.

The Otago University research, which has been published in the British Medical Journal Open, shows that most residents are not getting enough protein or other key nutrients.

This increases their risk of malnutrition, which can lead to more falls, pressure sores and infections.

Leigh-Marama McLachlan spoke to the lead author Wathsala Nanayakkara, who studied the nutritional intake of 54 people at a resthome in Christchurch.