[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 161 (Friday, September 28, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1338]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      MALNUTRITION AWARENESS WEEK

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. SUZANNE BONAMICI

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 28, 2018

  Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, this week is Malnutrition Awareness Week, 
a week when advocates, healthcare professionals, and communities around 
the country will focus on the issue of malnutrition and hunger. As the 
cofounder of the Elder Justice Caucus, and as a caregiver, I know how 
important proper nutrition is for aging Americans to stay healthy. 
Malnutrition can lead to greater risk of chronic disease, frailty, and 
increases in healthcare costs. Unfortunately, malnutrition often goes 
undiagnosed in seniors because healthcare providers and family members 
do not know how to identify and treat it. We can, and must, do more to 
protect vulnerable populations who suffer from malnutrition, and I am 
committed to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
support efforts to reduce hunger and malnutrition. I also encourage the 
federal agencies tasked with combating hunger to do all they can to 
reduce malnutrition. I urge the Department of Health and Human Services 
to include malnutrition screening measures in their national health 
surveys of older adults, and to include malnutrition among the national 
key health indicators for older adults. Additionally, I am calling on 
the Departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture to work 
together to include dietary guidance for the prevention and treatment 
of older adult malnutrition in the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for 
Americans.
  I applaud the work of the advocates at Defeat Malnutrition Today, a 
coalition of eighty organizations and stakeholders who are committed to 
ending malnutrition through rigorous screening and intervention 
initiatives, and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, an 
organization of food and nutrition professionals who are spearheading 
efforts to reduce hunger worldwide. Together, we can reduce 
malnutrition and strengthen outcomes for our senior population.

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