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Nutritional considerations for bereavement and coping with grief
1School of Nutrition & Dietetics, Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada. shanthi.johnson@acadiau.ca
The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging
|March 12, 2002
Summary
Bereaved individuals face moderate nutritional risks, regardless of grief counseling. Dietary challenges include food access, preparation, and social influences, highlighting the need for integrated support.
Area of Science:
- Nutrition Science
- Psychology
- Sociology
Background:
- Bereavement significantly impacts an individual's life, including their nutritional status.
- Grief resolution interventions may not adequately address the complex dietary needs of bereaved individuals.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess nutritional risk in recently bereaved individuals (with or without grief counseling) and compare it to coupled individuals.
- To identify specific dietary issues encountered by bereaved and coupled individuals.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the Determine Checklist to evaluate nutritional risk.
- Conducted focus group interviews to explore dietary challenges.
- Collected background information via questionnaires from 22 participants across three groups.
Main Results:
- Bereaved individuals, with or without grief counseling, exhibited moderate nutritional risk (score >3).
- Coupled individuals presented the lowest nutritional risk (mean score 1.43).
- Key dietary issues for bereaved individuals included food acquisition, preparation, consumption, meal timing, social network influence, and information access.
Conclusions:
- Bereavement counseling does not appear to reduce nutritional risk.
- There is a critical need to integrate food and nutrition support into grief resolution interventions for bereaved populations.