Wageningen: Frail community-dwelling elderly people take oral nutritional supplements (ONS) to prolong their independence, whereas the main motive for frail elderly people in care homes is to achieve small improvements in quality of life. These are the conclusions of researchers from Wageningen UR Food & Biobased Research, based on personal interviews with elderly ONS users. The results will help GPs, nutritionists and pharmacists to give personal advice to the elderly, and improve consumption of these oral nutritional supplements.
Researchers from Wageningen interviewed 40 elderly people in their own
environment about their consumption of ONS. Half of those interviewed
(average age of 81 years), lived independently and the other half
(average age of 83 years) lived in a care home.
“Previous
research on ONS often concentrated on the features of the product
itself, such as taste and volume, and the way in which the drink was
consumed, for example out of a glass or directly from the container
using the accompanying straw. We didn’t know much about people’s
personal motives for taking ONS, although this seems an important aspect
of whether or not they take it on a daily basis”, says Louise den Uijl,
PhD candidate at Consumer Science & Health.
ONS
In
cases where regular nutritional advice and supplements are not enough,
ONS can sometimes improve the nutritional condition, and therefore the
quality of life, of elderly people. In principle, ONS can be used as a
meal replacement, but the elderly people in this study used it as a
‘snack’. They considered the product to be a food rather than a
medicine, and took it either because they felt the benefits or because
it had been prescribed by their GP or nutritionist, who they saw as an
authority or person they could trust.
Independent and active
Elderly
people want to live independently and lead an active life for as long
as possible. At the same time, malnourishment is a serious problem among
the group of frail elderly people. ONS can help them to recuperate and
ward off malnourishment. This study shows that if you want to exert a
positive influence on elderly people’s eating habits, it is important to
ascertain their personal motives before giving them professional
advice. “We can imagine that elderly people would be more inclined to
take their ONS if the healthcare professional concerned were able to
point out the benefits in their personal situation. This could be
staying healthy enough to be able to stay in their own home, or
providing them with sufficient
