PD151 - PROVIDING A DIET WITH MORE PROTEIN DENSE PRODUCTS INCREASES DAILY PROTEIN AND ENERGY INTAKE IN PATIENTS DURING HOSPITALIZATION

PD151

PROVIDING A DIET WITH MORE PROTEIN DENSE PRODUCTS INCREASES DAILY PROTEIN AND ENERGY INTAKE IN PATIENTS DURING HOSPITALIZATION

M. M. Köhlen^1,2,*, M. E. Weijzen¹, M. E. Dassen², S. Beijer², L. J. van Loon¹

¹Department of Human Biology, Institute of Nutrition and Translational Research in Metabolism (NUTRIM), Maastricht University Medical Centre+, the Netherlands, ²Department of Dietetics, Maastricht University Medical Centre+, the Netherlands, Maastricht, Netherlands

Rationale: In hospitalized patients, daily energy and protein intake typically remain below ESPEN requirements for patients and healthy adults. Providing a diet with more protein dense products may increase daily energy and protein intake in hospitalized patients. The current study evaluated whether consumption of a more protein dense diet increases daily energy and protein intake of patients during their hospitalization.

Methods: In an experimental design, patients admitted to Maastricht University Medical Centre+ received usual care(n=59) or a diet with more protein dense products(n=64). In this diet, meals and snacks provided at least 400kcal with 25g protein or 150kcal with 5g protein, respectively. Both meals and snacks were provided three times a day. All food provided and not consumed was weighed and recorded throughout 2-7 days of hospitalization. Daily energy and protein intake were calculated by subtracting the leftovers from the provided food. Data were analyzed by independent T-Tests with P<0.05 considered as statistically significant.

Results: Providing patients with a more protein dense diet resulted in a higher energy intake(1750 ±520kcal/d) when compared to the usual care group(1415±546kcal/d;P<0.001). In addition, daily protein intake was 24% higher in the group receiving a more protein dense diet(1.06±0.36g/kg/d) when compared to the usual care group(0.85±0.45g/kg/d;P=0.007). More patients achieved ESPEN protein intake requirements of at least 1.2g/kg BW/d when consuming a more protein dense diet(28%) when compared to the usual care group(12%).

Conclusion: Providing a diet with more protein dense products forms an effective strategy to increase daily energy and protein intake in hospitalized patients. Healthcare facilities should consider implementing diets with more protein dense products during hospitalization to improve the nutritional status of their patients.

Disclosure of Interest: M. Köhlen: None declared, M. Weijzen: None declared, M. Dassen: None declared, S. Beijer Grant / Research Support from: Research grants on the impact of nutrition on patient outcomes from Fresenius Kabi and Nutricia Danone., L. van Loon Other: Received research grants, consulting fees, speaking honoraria, or a combination of these for research on the impact of exercise and nutrition on muscle metabolism. A full overview on research funding is provided at: https://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/l.vanloon. This study was performed in collaboration with Daily Fresh Foods. This entity provided the more protein dense foods, meals, and snacks, but had no role in the design, execution, data analysis, or interpretation of the current study.