{"id":25480,"date":"2020-09-25T09:09:19","date_gmt":"2020-09-25T13:09:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev-gordon-food-service-canada.pantheonsite.io\/ideas\/5-ways-to-reduce-the-risk-of-malnutrition-during-a-health-crisis\/"},"modified":"2023-01-25T18:03:44","modified_gmt":"2023-01-25T23:03:44","slug":"5-ways-to-reduce-the-risk-of-malnutrition-during-a-health-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/5-ways-to-reduce-the-risk-of-malnutrition-during-a-health-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Helping seniors eat better requires a coordinated effort across the continuum of care.<\/h2>\n<p>Seniors and people with disabilities are often more isolated and at heightened risk for malnutrition. Since COVID-19 ushered in an era of limited contact, that danger has increased. And it\u2019s something healthcare foodservice providers and those who work in community-based services can address.<\/p>\n<p>A poll by the University of Michigan shows <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurekalert.org\/pub_releases\/2020-09\/mm-u-lda091120.php\">loneliness more than doubled<\/a> among older adults during the first few months of COVID-19. This raises the risk of malnutrition, which typically increases with social isolation and loneliness, resulting in these negative impacts:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Reduced enjoyment of food<\/li>\n<li>Loss of appetite, reducing the number of meals eaten daily<\/li>\n<li>Diminished diet quality, with a lower intake of protein, fruits and vegetables<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The picture is expected to get worse before the end of the year. According to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.fao.org\/3\/ca9692en\/online\/ca9692en.html\">The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, 2020,<\/a> the pandemic could add 83 million to 132 million people to the undernourished category.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>What can you do about it?<\/h3>\n<p>Helping seniors eat better requires working with them across the continuum of care, especially when discharging them from an inpatient setting. Make sure to address these five categories:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Groceries. <\/strong>People need to be able to eat well after discharge.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ask whether they will have enough groceries when they get home.<\/li>\n<li>Ask who does the shopping and provide guidance.<\/li>\n<li>Make sure expired\/spoiled foods in the fridge are discarded.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Meal preparation.<\/strong> Having the right food is only the first step.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Can they prepare their own meals?<\/li>\n<li>If not, has help been arranged\u2014a loved one or home meal delivery\u2014until they are able?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Diet recommendations. <\/strong>The food they once ate may not be best for nutrition and\/or recovery.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Does their food need therapeutic or consistency modifications?<\/li>\n<li>Do they need training on a new diet?<\/li>\n<li>Does this affect grocery shopping and\/or meal preparation?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Adaptive equipment.<\/strong> Make eating easy and appetizing.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Do they need special seats, trays, plates, utensils or drinkware to consume food?<\/li>\n<li>Do they know these items exist and where to get them? Help with referrals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Food insecurity.<\/strong> Often associated with poverty, this can affect anyone.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Do they have access to food (especially important during this pandemic)?<\/li>\n<li>Explain about community food programs, such as Meals on Wheels.<\/li>\n<li>If a program is unavailable consider starting <a href=\"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/care-feeding-why-how-start-healthcare-home-meal-program\">a meals-to-go program<\/a> of your own.<br \/>\n&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Helping seniors eat better requires a coordinated effort across the continuum of care. Seniors and people with disabilities are often more isolated and at heightened risk for malnutrition. Since COVID-19 ushered in an era of limited contact, that danger has increased. And it\u2019s something healthcare foodservice providers and those who work in community-based services can [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":26784,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[69,111],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25480","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-running-your-business","category-healthcare"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.9 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis | Gordon Food Service<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/5-ways-to-reduce-the-risk-of-malnutrition-during-a-health-crisis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Helping seniors eat better requires a coordinated effort across the continuum of care. Seniors and people with disabilities are often more isolated and at heightened risk for malnutrition. Since COVID-19 ushered in an era of limited contact, that danger has increased. And it\u2019s something healthcare foodservice providers and those who work in community-based services can [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/5-ways-to-reduce-the-risk-of-malnutrition-during-a-health-crisis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gordon Food Service\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/GordonFoodService\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-09-25T13:09:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-01-25T23:03:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Malnutrition-Idea-Center-Image_0.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"760\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Cody Rivers\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@cody.rivers@gfs.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@GFSDelivers\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Cody Rivers\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis | Gordon Food Service","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/5-ways-to-reduce-the-risk-of-malnutrition-during-a-health-crisis\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis","og_description":"Helping seniors eat better requires a coordinated effort across the continuum of care. Seniors and people with disabilities are often more isolated and at heightened risk for malnutrition. Since COVID-19 ushered in an era of limited contact, that danger has increased. And it\u2019s something healthcare foodservice providers and those who work in community-based services can [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/ideas\/5-ways-to-reduce-the-risk-of-malnutrition-during-a-health-crisis\/","og_site_name":"Gordon Food Service","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/GordonFoodService\/","article_published_time":"2020-09-25T13:09:19+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-01-25T23:03:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":760,"height":400,"url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Malnutrition-Idea-Center-Image_0.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Cody Rivers","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@cody.rivers@gfs.com","twitter_site":"@GFSDelivers","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Cody Rivers","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/"},"author":{"name":"Cody Rivers","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#\/schema\/person\/ac2dd585b10d08ce15daca230d897374"},"headline":"5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis","datePublished":"2020-09-25T13:09:19+00:00","dateModified":"2023-01-25T23:03:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/"},"wordCount":401,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Malnutrition-Idea-Center-Image_0.jpg","articleSection":["Running Your Business","Senior Living &amp; Healthcare"],"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":["WebPage","CollectionPage"],"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/","url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/","name":"5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis | Gordon Food Service","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Malnutrition-Idea-Center-Image_0.jpg","datePublished":"2020-09-25T13:09:19+00:00","dateModified":"2023-01-25T23:03:44+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Malnutrition-Idea-Center-Image_0.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Malnutrition-Idea-Center-Image_0.jpg","width":760,"height":400},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/fr-ca\/ideas\/cinq-facons-de-reduire-le-risque-de-malnutrition-pendant-une-crise-sanitaire\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"5 Ways to Reduce the Risk of Malnutrition During a Health Crisis"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#website","url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/","name":"Gordon Food Service","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#organization","name":"Gordon Food Service","url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GFS-EN-Logo-og-image.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/GFS-EN-Logo-og-image.png","width":1200,"height":630,"caption":"Gordon Food Service"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/GordonFoodService\/","https:\/\/x.com\/GFSDelivers","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/gordonfoodservice\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/gordon-food-service\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#\/schema\/person\/ac2dd585b10d08ce15daca230d897374","name":"Cody Rivers","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a9b81a7281ffd8fc2d52ce39faf1be6f131db67bdc3ed5914928324e202f21f7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/a9b81a7281ffd8fc2d52ce39faf1be6f131db67bdc3ed5914928324e202f21f7?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Cody Rivers"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/cody.rivers@gfs.com"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25480","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25480"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25480\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25480"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25480"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gfs.ca\/en-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25480"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}