Warning signs of poor nutritional health
The Nutrition Screening Initiative, a multifaceted national health initiative led by the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Dietetic Association, and the National Council on the Aging, has developed a screening tool to identify signs of malnutrition in older adults. Some of the risk factors are the following:
- • Eating too little or too much
- • Tooth or mouth problems that make it hard to eat
- • Poverty (not enough money to buy food)
- • Eating meals alone (social isolation)
- • Taking three or more different prescription or over-the-counter drugs a day
- • Involuntary weight loss/gain (ten pounds in the last six months)
- • Alcohol abuse (three or more drinks almost every day)
- • Acute/chronic illness or recent hospitalization
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The following comments are not guaranteed to be that of a trained medical professional. Please consult your physician for advice.