P584 - SMALL VOLUME, GREATER CHALLENGE: A CROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS OF MEAL INTAKE AMONG HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS

P584

SMALL VOLUME, GREATER CHALLENGE: A CROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS OF MEAL INTAKE AMONG HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS

J. H. Hundebøll^1,*, N. S. Sjøberg¹, N. Groth¹, I. Wessel^1,2, A. Rytter¹

¹Department of Transplantation and Digestive Diseases, Rigshospitalet, Clinical Nutrition Center, ²Department of Clinical Medicine, Copenhagen University, Copenhagen, Denmark

Rationale: Patients frequently consume insufficient food during hospitalization; however detailed data on consumption at the individual meal level are scarce. This study investigates actual food intake—defined as the difference between food served and plate waste—to provide a data-driven foundation for meal planning that better meets patient needs while reducing food waste.

Methods: Data were collected over 20 days via the hospital’s buffet-style meal service for lunch and dinner, totaling 392 recorded meals. Six departments at Rigshospitalet, a tertiary referral hospital in Denmark, participated on a rotating basis, representing specialties including hematology, urology, plastic surgery (including burns treatment), orthopedic surgery, and nephrology. Each individual meal component was weighed before serving and after consumption, enabling a detailed analysis of actual intake and plate waste. Energy and protein intake were calculated accordingly. Beverages were not included in the analysis.

Results: The median food intake was 205 g (IQR: 119–286), corresponding to 250 kcal (IQR: 135–358) and 10 g of protein (IQR: 5.8–15.6). No statistically significant differences were found between departments (P = 0.20). Only 18% of patients met the regional minimum recommendation for energy intake (400 kcal), and 10% met the recommendation for protein (20 g). On average 50% of patients used the buffet.

Conclusion: This study demonstrates that hospitalized patients’ food intake is limited, with a substantial majority failing to meet basic nutritional recommendations. This challenge appears consistent across departments and patient groups. The findings underscore the need for individualized and intake-aware hospital meal strategies to improve nutrition and reduce food waste in clinical settings.

Disclosure of Interest: None declared