Acceptability of thickened and protein enhanced food products for use in long term care facilities

Abstract: Dysphagia is prevalent in long-term care facilities (LTCs), and texture modification of food and beverages is a common approach to support safe swallowing for those living with dysphagia. Similar to the high incidence of dysphagia, recent studies have also found that wounds are prevalent in LTCs. Implementation of a variety of foods with high fluid content is a common practice in LTCs to improve hydration status among residents. As such, these three studies aimed to evaluate the sensory properties of food items that were protein enhanced, had a high fluid content, and were thickened. All studies tried to use ingredients that are regularly available in LTCs so as not to add costs for the facility. The first study will involve thickened ice cream with added whey protein. The second study evaluated the difference between different sources of protein (whey protein, hemp protein, soy protein) in the thickened ice cream. The third study investigated the different sources in another high fluid content food item, thickened soup. The protein addition to thickened food items did not affect the acceptability, but it did lead to different sensory properties in the product. Protein addition to thickened, high fluid content food products could be a strategy to increase protein and fluid intake while supporting safe swallowing.