Effects of a Texture-Modified, Enriched, and Reshaped Diet on Dietary Intake and Body Weight of Nursing Home Residents with Chewing and/or Swallowing Problems: An Enable Study.

Abstract

This proof-of-concept study investigated the effects of an innovative nutrition concept, comprising texture modification, enrichment, and reshaping, on dietary intake and nutritional status of 16 nursing home residents with chewing and/or swallowing problems (mean age 86.5 ± 7.4 years) in a pre-test post-test design. During 6 weeks with usual texture-modified diet (P1) energy and protein intake were constant. After the implementation of the innovative diet, daily energy intake increased by 204.2 (median) [interquartile range 95.8-444.4] kcal (P = 0.011), and protein intake by 18.3 [9.9-26.3] g (P < 0.001) and remained constant during the following 6 weeks (P2). Body weight decreased during P1 (-0.5 [-1.4 to 0.2] kg), and increased during P2 (+1.1 [0.0 to 1.7] kg, P = 0.004). The present nutrition concept turned out to be a promising strategy for nutritional management of chewing and/or swallowing problems, however, the effects need to be confirmed in larger studies.