Blog - Specialist Nutrition Rehab

Blog

24 Feb 2021

Medication-induced weight gain

  Many clients gain significant amounts of weight after a catastrophic injury, particularly a brain injury or spinal cord injury. 1, 2  There are many reasons for this, including reduced levels of physical activity and/or changes to body composition which results in a reduced metabolic rate.  Both of these situations cause a person to burn […]
Read Article
27 Jan 2021

Bladder stones, catheters, spinal cord injuries…and diet

  Bladder stones (also called bladder calculi or urolithiasis) and other types of bladder problems, are common after spinal cord injury.  Thirty-six percent of patients with indwelling catheters have been found to develop bladder stones within 8 years and this can lead to catheter blockages and/or autonomic dysreflexia.1   There are four main causes of […]
Read Article
25 Nov 2020

Save money on food

  People spend an average of £38.50 per person per week on food (consumed both at home and away from home).1   COVID-19 has had a massive impact on people’s income over the last several months and as a result, I have been receiving more queries on how to eat a nutritious diet while on a […]
Read Article
29 Oct 2020

Nonunion, orthopaedic injuries….and nutrition

  Nonunion, referring to a broken bone which shows no evidence of healing within a specific time frame, is a massive deterrent to rehab and recovery after a complex orthopaedic trauma.  There are several contributing factors to nonunion, such as infection, poor blood supply, the type of fracture (eg. open fractures) and the energy force […]
Read Article
24 Sep 2020

Diet & Pain – a surprising connection

  When people have chronic pain after a catastrophic injury, the most common pain-management solutions tend to be pharmaceutical pain relief (such as NSAIDS, opioids, antiseizure, and/or anti-spasticity medication), medicinal cannabis, botox injections and/or psychological treatments (eg. biofeedback, cognitive behaviour therapy).(1, 2) However, a growing body of research is showing a strong link between what […]
Read Article
26 Aug 2020

Slow healing wounds? Consider nutrition!

  If you have a client with a Grade 3 or Grade 4 pressure sore and/or other wound which is slow to heal, have they ever been reviewed by a dietitian? This may sound like an unusual or surprising suggestion, but there is a massive link between someone’s nutritional status and their body’s ability to […]
Read Article
29 Jul 2020

Dietetic video sessions continue & tech-tip to solve poor internet connections

  Don’t let a poor internet connection prevent you from providing the most helpful and productive online therapy sessions possible.  No one wants to freeze or get cut off in the middle of an important conversation or meeting – it’s frustrating for everyone.  So if you or your clients are struggling to get a reliable […]
Read Article
24 Jun 2020

Weighing wheelchair-bound, bedbound and bariatric clients

  Monitoring a client’s weight regularly (eg. monthly) after a catastrophic injury is essential.  Clients are often discharged from hospital and rehabilitation settings weighing significantly less than their “pre-injury” weight.  This is due to drastic changes to muscle mass (as a result of inflammation and immobility), clients often not liking institutional food and/or frequent periods […]
Read Article
27 May 2020

Alcohol intake and COVID-19

  Are your clients drinking more or less alcohol during lockdown? Alcohol Change completed a survey in April 2020 which showed that 21% of individuals in the UK were drinking more as a result of the lockdown, while 33% were drinking less or had stopped altogether.1  Why the difference?  While they didn’t specify in the […]
Read Article
23 Apr 2020

Bored? Lonely? Unfit? (during lockdown) — Toolkits, links & resources to help clients manage

  We’ve got at least another 2 weeks of lockdown to go! What’s going well for you (and your clients) during the lockdown? What’s the #1 challenge? What new habit have you (or your clients) developed that you want to continue after the lockdown is over?   Based on the challenges people have shared with […]
Read Article