Developing and Testing Delicious and Nutritious for the Old People

University of Copenhagen

Status: Completed

Conditions: Physical Performance; Quality of Life; Nutritional Deficiency

Treatments: Other: Sensory optimized meals

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03133364

H-17002835

Details and patient eligibility

About

Meals-on wheels may play a major role in contributing to better nourishment and quality of life in older people, thus delaying costly hospitalisation. Still, dwelling, old adults who receive meals-on-wheels are a population at risk of undernutrition leading to a decreased quality of life.

Hypothesis Offering nutritious ELDORADO meals as meals-on-wheels to nursing home residents in 3 months is an effective way to increase quality of life.

Aim To improve quality of life and functional abilities in nursing home residents by offering nutritious ELDORADO meals.

Full description

Intervention The intervention group (n=50) will receive an optimized menu (in both sensory and nutritious aspects) for 12 weeks. In cooperation with the Copenhagen house of food and sensory staff, 19 main meals and 12 between-meals have been optimized based on nursing home residents' evaluations of sensory aspects. On a daily basis the menu will consist of 1 optimized main meal and 1 optimized between-meal, served for dinner. There will be no selective choice for the elderly. If a participant does not want the daily meal, he will receive another meal from the ordinary menu from the kitchen.

Control In comparison, the control group (n=50) will receive the same menu as the intervention group, however, the meals are not optimized on sensory and nutritious aspects. On a daily basis this menu also includes 1 main meal and 1 between-meal in 12 weeks. If a participant does not want the daily meal, he will receive another meal from the ordinary menu from the kitchen.

Enrollment: 52 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 65+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Living at Skovhuset, nursing home in Hillerød municipality, Denmark.
• Collecting the "energy-dense diet" "ældrekost" with 40 % fat, with a main meal and a dessert/starter.
• Able to understand and follow instructions for the procedures of the study.
• Above 65 years.

Exclusion criteria

• Have chewing or swallowing difficulties.
• Have acute disease or acute change in chronic disease.
• Living after special nutritional standards e.g. vegetarian, have any food allergies, or if a participant is excluding common foods from their diet because of other reasons.
• Not able or willing to give informed consent.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Triple Blind

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52 participants in 2 patient groups, including a placebo group

Sensory optimized meals

Active Comparator group

Description:

Intervention group is receiving: Popular dishes selected from hospital and meal service menus optimized by sensory experts. Optimization is done with respect to taste, texture and appereance and on nutritional composition of the meals with focus on protein content.

Treatment:

Other: Sensory optimized meals

Control

Placebo Comparator group

Description:

Control group is receiving: Popular dishes selected from hospital and meal service menus, NOT optimized by sensory experts.

Treatment:

Other: Sensory optimized meals