Dietetics After Spinal Cord Injury: Current Evidence and Future Perspectives

Following a spinal cord injury (SCI), individuals are at high risk for obesity and several chronic cardiometabolic disorders due to a deterioration in body composition, hypometabolic rate, and endometabolic dysregulation. A proper diet for individuals with SCI should distribute carbohydrates, protein, and fat to optimize a lower energy intake requirement and should stress foods with low caloric yet high nutrient density. The purpose of this article is to present available evidence on how nutritional status after SCI should advance future research to further develop SCI-specific guidelines for total energy intake, as it relates to percent carbohydrates, protein, fat, and all vitamins and minerals, that take into consideration the adaptations after SCI.

• 1
  Energy intake in persons with SCI ranges from 1250 to 2112 kcal/day, although this is contingent on the frequency and reporting accuracy of the dietary recall questionnaires used to asses caloric intake.
• 2
  Several studies indicate that the consumption of fruits and vegetables is below the recommended intake for persons with SCI; in their place, simple carbohydrates are frequently consumed.
• 3
  Studies have demonstrated that individuals with SCI ingest levels of dietary fat that approach or surpass recommended guidelines.