The Effect of Culinary Medicine to Enhance Protein Intake on Muscle Quality in Older Adults

Study Summary

Aging is associated with a decline in muscle mass, strength, and physical function, leading to sarcopenia and frailty. This deterioration of muscle and physical capabilities impacts an individual's functional independence and quality of life. Dietary protein stimulates muscle protein synthesis. Therefore, nutritional interventions that recommend higher protein intakes may enhance muscle protein synthesis. Food intake, including protein-rich foods such as red meat, has been shown to decline with age. Barriers to consuming protein-rich foods include reductions in taste and smell, dentition and dexterity, and changes in living situations. Therefore, nutritional interventions that can effectively improve eating behaviors and diet quality while stimulating muscle protein synthesis in older adults are necessary to help prevent, manage, and promote recovery of sarcopenia. To reduce potential barriers of red meat consumption in community-dwelling older adults, an additional beneficial strategy may be the use of cooking demonstrations, or culinary medicine, by imparting knowledge about healthy cooking to improve the dietary habits of individuals who are at risk of sarcopenia. In this approach, people will be educated about age-appropriate, healthy eating behaviors and equipped with basic cooking skills to incorporate nutritious food into their daily diet. A systematic review concluded that culinary interventions such as cooking classes effectively improved attitudes, self-efficacy, and healthy eating in children and adults. A recent study using cooking videos to encourage the consumption of calcium-rich foods showed that the subjects gained knowledge and were motivated to consume calcium-rich foods, and video demonstrations were accepted as an effective communication channel to impart cooking skills. Additionally, it is suggested that cooking at home improves adherence to healthy nutrition, thereby reducing chronic illness risks. Older adults may not be aware of their changi

Primary Outcome

The Diet History Questionnaire III (DHQ III) is a comprehensive FFQ that will be used to measure the subjects' protein intake and healthy eating index (HEI) for diet quality. The HEI uses a scoring system to evaluate a set of foods. The scores range from 0 to 100. An ideal overall HEI score of 100 reflects that the set of foods aligns with key dietary recommendations and dietary patterns published in the Dietary Guidelines.

Interventions

• BEHAVIORAL Control
• BEHAVIORAL Culinary Medicine