Elderly ladies laughing as one of them happily knits away.

Frailty & Disease Related Malnutrition

As people get older, they become more vulnerable and at increased risk of frailty. Frailty is defined by NHS England as "the group of older people who are at highest risk of adverse outcomes such as falls, disability, admission to hospital, or the need for long-term care"1. Frailty is often linked with malnutrition which is a condition that develops when a person's nutritional intake does not give them the right amount of energy (calories), protein and other nutrients.

Frail older adults are more sensitive to minor stressors

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Older adults may experience several overlapping conditions

All three conditions are characterised with a loss of body tissue, which can result in negative outcomes such as an increased risk of falls, poor quality of life and increased risk of mortality4.

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Malnutrition is common in older adults living in the community

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Identifying malnutrition is key to support older adult patients

Guidelines indicate the importance of identifying malnutrition in older adults. However, BMI alone may not be enough to identify this risk13. The BAPEN Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool ('MUST')14* combines 3 dimensions of risk: BMI score, unplanned weight loss score and acute disease effect score and is endorsed by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE)15.

Oral Nutritional Supplements can support malnourished older adults

Oral nutritional supplements (ONS) should be considered for older adults that are identified as being at risk of malnutrition. Fortisip Extra is the optimal ONS for malnourished older adults and also the best value high protein 200ml liquid ONS available in the community**.

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Discover more about Fortisip Extra

  1. NHS England. Frailty - what it means and how to keep well over the winter months, 2013. Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/blog/frailty [Accessed on July 2024]. 
  2. Clegg, et al. Lancet. 2013;381(9868):752-62. 
  3. Petermann-Rocha, et al. J Public Health (Oxf). 2022;44(2): e172-80. 
  4. AlMohaisen N, et al. PLoS One. 2022;17(12):e0278371. 
  5. Ashworth. Br J Nurs. 2021;30(21):S4-10. 
  6. Gingrich, et al. BMC Geriatr. 2019; 19(1):120. 
  7. Hickson, et al. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2022;35(1):145-53.
  8. Morris, et al. Geriatrics (Basel). 2020;5(1):6. 
  9. Coelho-Júnior, et al. Nutrients. 2018;10(9):1334 
  10. Severin, et al. Topics Geriatric Med 2019;35(1):79-87. 
  11. Roigk, et al. 2021. In: Interdisciplinary Nutritional Management and Care for older Adults. Springer. pp51-64. 
  12. Roberts, et al. Nutrients. 2019;11(4):808. 
  13. Gupta, B. et al. J Clin Med Res. 2010; 2(2):68-9. 
  14. ‘MUST’: Malnutrition Universal Screening tool. Available at: https://www.bapen.org.uk/pdfs/must/ must_full.pdf [Accessed July 2024]. 
  15. NICE. Nutrition support for adults: oral nutrition support, enteral tube feeding and parenteral nutrition (Clinical Guideline 32), 2006. Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg32 [Accessed July 2024].

*‘Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool’ (‘MUST’) is reproduced here with the kind permission of BAPEN (British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition). For further information on ‘MUST’ see www.bapen.org.uk’.

**Based on NHS dm+d data taken in June 2024 comparing Fortisip Extra 200ml to Altraplen Protein 200ml and Fresubin Protein Energy 200ml

^Product can be provided to patients upon the request of a Healthcare Professional. They are intended for the purpose of professional evaluation only.

Fortisip Extra is a Food for Special Medical Purposes for the dietary management of disease related malnutrition and must be used under medical supervision.

ONS = Oral Nutritional Supplement

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