The influence of a greenwall on residents' eating habits in a long-term care facility dining room
Date
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Residents in Long-Term Care (LTC) facilities often experience poor mood and malnutrition concurrently, both of which can be exacerbated by an inadequate dining experience. A growing body of research suggests that natural environments can improve mental well-being and plants alone might enhance the dining experience. This research hypothesized that a plant wall could influence residents’ length of stay at the dining table and consequently improve food and drink consumption. Nutritional intake and length of stay data were collected before the installation, during and post-installation of a greenwall. Data were analyzed using a series of paired t-tests. Analysis revealed that residents who directly faced the greenwall had a statistically significant increase in fluid intake (p=0.03) and a non-statistically significant increase in food intake (p=0.21). Results suggest that enhancements to the dining room can influence eating habits among residents.