要介護高齢者施設における食物形態の実態とその物性評価

摘要

要介護高齢者施設で提供されている食物形態の実態調査と，粥，肉料理．卵料理，水分補給ゼリーの物性評価を行い，次の結果を得た．（1）食物形態の実態調査したところ，食物形態の決定は管理栄養士・栄養士の判断が最も多く，ついで看護師の判断，本人の希望，介護職員の判断であった．これに対し，食事形態が適正であるか否かの判断は，日常的に喫食者の食事場面を担当している者の観察によるものが多かった．%We conducted a survey on the forms of food served in nursing homes for the elderly and evaluated their physical properties by measuring the texture. The forms of food were mostly determined according to the observations of such experts as dietitians and registered dietitians. The suitability of the forms of the food was mostly assessed by care providers. We observed that the nursing homes provided 4.0 + 2.5 forms of major staples and 4.4 ± 2.3 forms of side dishes as averages. The meat dishes served at the nursing homes had been cooked to be sufficiently soft according to the requirements specified by the universal design food table. The hardness of rice gruel and mixed rice gruel met the requirements applied to foods for people with difficulty in swallowing as specified by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, although the adhesiveness was too high to meet the requirements. The texture of chawan-mushi satisfied the Level III allowance, but the adhesiveness of steamed egg custard exceeded the Level III allowance. The hardness and adhesiveness of the rehydrating jelly drink met the Level II or III allowance, and its degree of cohesiveness was between 0.2 and 0.6. These results indicate that the forms of food served in nursing homes are suitable and safe for consumption by the elderly.