5 * DOES COLOURED CROCKERY INFLUENCE FOOD CONSUMPTION IN ELDERLY PATIENTS IN AN ACUTE SETTING?

Abstract

Background: Malnutrition is problematic in elderly hospital inpatients (Russell CA, Elia M: BAPEN, 2009) and the cognitively impaired (Incalzi RA, Capparella O, Gemma A. Age Ageing 1998;27:303-310). It has negative impacts on mortality, complication rates and wound healing (Stratton RJ, Green C, Elia M. Oxford: CABI, 2003).A study of residential home dwellers with dementia demonstrated increased food intake using red crockery, attributed to increased visual contrast (Dunne TE, Neargarder SA, Cipollini PB. Clinical Nutrition, 2004;23:533–538).Innovation: To evaluate the impact of coloured crockery on food consumption, 2 acute elderly wards (intervention and control) were observed over 3 weeks. The control used white crockery throughout, whilst the intervention used white crockery in week one and blue in weeks two and three. Weight of food consumed at lunchtime was measured excluding any pre-packaged food.Evaluation: 476 meals were weighed on the intervention ward and 243 on the control ward. This represented 95% of eligible meals. Both wards were demographically similar.Blue crockery was associated with a 33% increase in median weight of main course consumed (152 g intervention ward, 114 g control ward, p = 0.0002). Median weights of starter and dessert eaten increased, but did not reach statistical significance. On the intervention ward, patients ate 36% more during the second two weeks than in the first (152 g vs 111.5 g, p = 0.0005). Patients reported to be confused ate significantly less on white crockery than those who were not confused (90 g vs 150 g, p = 0.0001). Blue crockery was associated with an increase in food consumption of a third in these patients (120g vs 90g, p = 0.01).Conclusion: Blue crockery was associated with increased food intake in our patients, including those reported to be confused. As a result of our findings, blue crockery is being introduced as standard across the trust.