A recent study of the French Agency for Food Safety (AFSSA) highlights the scale of a poorly understood phenomenon: the undernutrition of the elderly. Assessment of nutritional needs for people ageesEvaluation nutritional needs in the elderly The notice given by AFSSA and recently released focuses specifically with evaluation of nutritional needs in the elderly or frail patients with certain diseases in order to define of nutritional references to adapt their nutritional management. Some elderly people do not eat enough to meet their nutritional needs. Certainly, food intake decreases linearly during life. And the elderly, even in good health and weight stability period, have a sensation of appetite, fasted, lower than that of young subjects and a feeling of satiety after a meal higher standard..
But in some cases, less appetite becomes a real undernutrition. This has serious consequences in terms of health: muscle loss, exhaustion, fall hazards, vulnerability to infectious diseases and worsening of chronic diseases. The stakes are very far from negligible. AFSSA considers that the phenomenon of undernutrition affect, in UK, nearly 400,000 people aged over 65 living at their home and 20 to 30 % of frail elderly living at home or in institutions. In its opinion, AFSSA considers more particularly on the situation of the elderly (over 70), fragile (which often results from undernutrition) or with certain diseases. The objective is to adapt accordingly their nutritional care, a home or establishment. From a detailed review of all scientific literature on the subject, the opinion of the AFSSA defines values of energy and protein intake necessary to prevent or correct nutritional deficiencies in elderly persons concerned.


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