20 May 2018

Pilot week for the VODG food and drink audit

Do you know whether the people you support eat a healthy diet? Do they drink enough?

This week (21 to 25 May) a group of VODG members and some of the people they support will be piloting an audit tool designed to measure the nutritional value of people’s food and drink. Participants will record everything a person eats and drinks on any one weekday.

The data will be analysed by Professor Chris Hatton and colleagues at the University of Lancaster. Each organisation will receive overall feedback on people’s nutritional intake compared with national recommendations on eating healthily and achieving a balanced diet.

This is part of a broader VODG initiative aimed at tackling the health inequalities faced by disabled people. A healthy diet is central to a healthy life and reducing the risks of a wide range of health problems.

The pilot will be used to test and refine the mechanisms we are using to collect and analyse people’s food and drink intake. Our findings and the final version of the food and drink audit tool will be freely available later this year.