Elderly told to 'stock up on cake' and 'fry instead of grill' to reduce malnutrition

We are always being told to cut down on sugary and fatty foods but new advice from nutrition experts sees the elderly being told to use cream instead of milk in their coffee and tea, fry instead of grill and stock up on cakes and biscuits.

The British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (Bapen) has issued the advice as part of the UK’s first malnutrition awareness week, which seeks to raise awareness of the ‘hidden’ problem of malnutrition in older people.

One in ten people aged over 65 in the UK, which equates to 1.3m, is malnourished or at risk of malnutrition.

Dr Simon Gabe, president of the British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (Bapen), said: “Malnutrition is a hidden problem in the UK, but awareness, prevention and detection are key to reducing its prevalence. For too long, the public have been given health messages focused on reducing levels of obesity and while obesity is a huge problem, for the malnourished, the best thing to do is ignore these messages entirely and seek professional advice.”

There is a misconception that older people will naturally lose weight when it can be a very visible sign of malnutrition, putting people at risk of illness, infections, low mood and exhaustion.

Dr Gabe added: “The general advice for those with malnutrition or for those at risk is to maximise their food intake.

“You can have cream in your coffee instead of milk, fry instead of grill, add butter to your scrambled eggs, give that chicken an extra brush of oil before putting it in the oven and stock up on cakes.

"This approach could help prevent thousands of people suffering the catastrophic health consequences of malnutrition and relieve significant pressure on the NHS and social care."

Diane Jeffrey, the chairman of the Malnutrition Task Force, called for friends and family to be vigilant, saying “look out for the subtle tell-tell signs such as loose rings, dentures and clothes. Alarm bells should be ringing if we see the people we care about lose significant amounts of weight unintentionally in later life - it's not normal to get thinner with age as people assume.”

• To see if you are suffering from malnutrition visit www.malnutritionselfscreening.org