The EU and partners declare to fight against malnutrition Nov 2011

Representatives from the European Parliament, the Polish Presidency of the EU and other groups concerned about health and nutrition have come together to raise awareness of the problems of disease related malnutrition across the EU and subsequent consequences on healthcare.  Disease related malnutrition affects around 20 million EU citizens per year at a cost of up to 120 billion Euros.

Four key actions have been highlighted to raise awareness of disease related malnutrition and identify strategies to deal with the problems.  The four areas cover routine nutrition risk screening, raising public awareness, reimbursement for treatment and appropriate medical education of health and social care professionals.

Malnutrition remains a key area of concern for BSNA and its members. Over 3 million people in the UK are either malnourished or at risk of being so, costing an estimated £13 billion to the NHS.  The issue of malnutrition has been recently highlighted by the Care Quality Commission and a recent report from the Patients Association, ‘Malnutrition in the community and hospital setting’, showed a lack of awareness of malnutrition, particularly how to prevent and treat it and where to seek advice.  Link to Patients Association news item here.

The full statement from the European Parliament can be accessed here (pdf 221 KB).

Previous news items from BSNA can be accessed here.