Dietary Support in Elderly Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Abstract

Ageing of the human population has become a big challenge for health care systems worldwide. On the other hand, the number of elderly patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is also increasing. Considering the unique clinical characteristics of this subpopulation, including many comorbidities and polypharmacy, the current therapeutic guidelines for the management of IBD should be individualized and applied with caution. This is why the role of non-pharmacological treatments is of special significance. Since both IBD and older age are independent risk factors of nutritional deficiencies, appropriate dietary support should be an important part of the therapeutic approach. In this review paper we discuss the interrelations between IBD, older age, and malnutrition. We also present the current knowledge on the utility of different diets in the management of IBD. Considering the limited data on how to support IBD therapy by nutritional intervention, we focus on the Mediterranean and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension diets, which seem to be the most beneficial in this patient group. We also discuss some new findings on their hypothetical anti-inflammatory influence on the course of IBD.