Nutritional Health Status in Chronic Spinal Cord Injury: A Meta‐Analysis

Abstract

Despite an understating of accelerated aging attributed to changes in body composition and an increased risk of acquired chronic metabolic disease following spinal cord injury (SCI), the current status of nutritional health of those living with a SCI remains unknown. The objective was to investigate nutritional status in chronic spinal SCI and compare macronutrient and micronutrient intake to the recommended values by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. A MEDLINE/PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, and Web of Science literature search was performed, identifying 268 papers. All papers included were English‐language papers examining nutritional status in adults with chronic SCI. After applying the inclusion criteria, a meta‐analysis using a linear mixed effects model was performed on 11 papers to produce weighted averages and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Weighted averages for age, weight, and time since injury were 39.5 y (CI: 36.0, 43.1; N = 541), 77.4 kg (CI: 72.3, 82.6; N=175), and 12.3 y (CI: 9.3, 15.3; N = 525), respectively. Resting metabolic rate (1492 kcal/day; CI: 1414–1569) fell below the able‐bodied average, and total energy (1866 kcal/day; CI: 1666–2066) and fiber (16 g/day; CI: 13–19) intake were below USDA guidelines (Figure). Protein (315 kcal/day; CI: 288–342) and carbohydrate (953 kcal/day; CI: 824–1082) intake were above guidelines (Figure). Fat intake (675 kcal/day; CI: 596–755) was within USDA guidelines (Figure). Vitamins A, B5, B7, B9, D, E, potassium, calcium, and magnesium were deficient, while vitamins B1, B2, B3, B12, C, K, sodium, phosphorus, and copper were in excess according to USDA guidelines. Vitamin B6, iron, and zinc were within USDA guidelines. Findings indicate greater energy intake relative to energy needs in those with chronic SCI, and an imbalance in fiber intake and micronutrients compared to the USDA guidelines. Future research examining nutritional health status is needed in order to establish evidence‐based, SCI‐specific dietary guidelines.Support or Funding InformationNAThis abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.