Malnourished people have the right to effective care
09.09.2022 11:35
More than 1.5 million people in Germany are affected by malnutrition. People with certain illnesses, such as cancer, dementia or diseases of the digestive organs, are considered to be particularly at risk. The key to effective prevention and treatment of this disease-associated malnutrition is qualified nutritional care in the clinic. It has been proven that it can significantly improve the prognosis of patients, but is still not provided for in many clinics. In order to draw attention to the problem of malnutrition and the potential of nutritional management, the German Society for Nutritional Medicine e. V. (DGEM) works with over 75 international organizations.
In a statement, they call on policymakers, medical associations and organizations worldwide to take urgent action against disease-associated malnutrition.
Inflammation, cancer, diseases of the digestive organs, side effects of medications – various diseases and factors can impair patients' appetite and nutrient absorption to such an extent that there is a risk of deficiency. “Many people who are treated in hospital for an acute or chronic illness are often in poor nutritional status. This particularly affects older people,” says Professor Dr. med. Matthias Pirlich, President of the German Society for Nutritional Medicine. V. (DGEM). According to the DGE nutrition report, almost a third of patients in hospital show signs of malnutrition. With fatal consequences: “A chronic lack of energy and nutrients can have a negative impact on healing processes and further worsen the prognosis of those affected. Malnutrition is associated with an increased rate of complications and an increased risk of death,” said the expert.
The DGEM has been demanding for years that screening for malnutrition and nutritional care should be an integral part of clinical treatment. “The fact that individual nutritional treatment effectively supports the recovery of hospital patients has been proven by a large number of studies,” says Pirlich, who works as a specialist in internal medicine, endocrinology, gastroenterology and nutritional medicine with a focus on malnutrition at the Kaiserreich practice in Berlin. However, many clinics still do not provide standard screening for malnutrition nor do they have enough dietitians available.
At the 44th ESPEN Congress on Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism in Vienna, the DGEM President, as representative of the specialist society, signed a declaration stating that people with malnutrition must have the right to effective care: “Nutritional Care is a Human Right” . Other signatories include the international professional societies for clinical nutrition ESPEN, ASPEN, FELANPE and PENSA, the European Association of Dietitians, the European Patient Forum and over 75 associations from all over the world. “With this declaration we would like to raise awareness of the importance of disease-associated malnutrition and point out the lack of nutritional care for people with chronic and acute illnesses and call for urgent action,” says Pirlich.
The full statement can be accessed at the following link:
https://www.dgem.de/sites/default/files/PDFs/Vienna%20Declaration%20%20FINAL%205_2022.pdf
Sources:
- https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/pdf/10.1055/s-0029-1239944.pdf
- German Society for Nutrition (ed.): 14th DGE Nutrition Report – Publication Chapter 2. Bonn (2019): https://www.dge.de/fileadmin/public/doc/ws/dgeeb/14-dge-eb/14-DGE-EB-Vorveroeffentlichung-Kapitel2.pdf
- Norman et al. Prognostic impact of malnutrition. Clinical Nutrition 2008; 27:5-15