Provincial Differences in Long-Term Care Menu Variety and Food Intake for Residents who Consume a Regular Texture

Purpose: To determine regular-texture menu variety offered in Canadian long-term care (LTC) homes and its association with residents' food intake. Methods: Twenty-nine LTC menus from Alberta, Manitoba, New Brunswick, and Ontario were analyzed. Items offered during the regular-texture menu cycle were categorized according to Eating Well with Canada's Food Guide food groups and variety scores were calculated per day and per week. Residents' food intake was assessed by weighing and observing intake over 3 nonconsecutive days. Diet quality was determined using a mean adequacy ratio score (MAR) for regular and soft and bite-sized consumers (n = 394). Results: Average daily and weekly menu variety scores were 24 ± 5.8 and 78 ± 17.2, respectively, with significantly higher scores in Ontario (29 ± 2.7 and 102 ± 11.7). Of all the food groups, only the variety score for the "Other" food category was positively associated with protein intake. No associations were observed between variety and energy intake or MAR score. Conclusion: This study is the first in Canada to assess LTC menu variety. Although there was variability between provinces in menu variety, this was not associated with resident diet quality or intake.