I would like to invite you to this issue of Kompass Nutrition & Dietetics. This time, our focus is on Nutrition in Vulnerable Populations, a broad topic but of great importance.
In 2023, we celebrated 75 years since the foundation of the World Health Organization with a full year designated to ensuring Equal Access to Health for All [1]. In 2024, we are invited to consider that when access to health is not a constitutional right, at least 4.5 billion people (more than half of the world’s population) are not receiving full health coverage [2]. This issue of Kompass Nutrition & Dietetics looks to the nutritional challenges associated with vulnerability.
Vulnerability is a broad term covering all those at greater risk of a poor physical and social health status [3]. This encompasses a vast range of people, with the most obvious being children living in and out of care, senior citizens, people experiencing homelessness, those living with disabilities and mental illnesses, as well as immigrants, ethnic minorities, and of course those experiencing deprivation. With regard to vulnerability, we must also consider women and girls – especially in situations where their constitutional rights are not properly protected, the LGBTQI+ community, people in prisons or those previously convicted, as well as those struggling with addiction [4, 5].
It follows that vulnerability, as a permanent or transient state, concerns a great proportion of the population. In terms of nutrition, the most immediate concern linked to vulnerability is nutrition security, i.e., ensuring access to sufficient and suitable food to support a healthy diet. Although currently 8% of the European population experiences food insecurity [6], the issue was not considered a priority until the 2008 economic crisis [7].
In the current issue, we visit the role of dietitians in measuring and addressing food insecurity. We examine the prevalence of food insecurity in Europe, existing measures such as welfare policies, the FEAD program, as well as food assistance programs. We dive deeper into the experiences of specific countries such as Poland or immigrant communities in Spain, and we also aim to obtain knowledge from long-lasting programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in the USA. Finally, we attempt to visit vulnerability in a more clinical manner [8] and discuss the nutritional needs of people living with disease that reduces their ability to receive nourishment or significantly impacts their access to sufficient and suitable food. On this topic, we will discuss whether plant-based diets are a suitable option for those living with Parkinson’s disease, the role of diet in inflammatory bowel disease, the safety and efficacy of specific dietary patterns in type II diabetes, as well as the role of the dietitian in ensuring food security in people with upper gastrointestinal tract cancer. Finally, this issue would not be complete without a forward planning article on the role of technology and artificial intelligence as a tool for dietitians to address food insecurity.
I hope you enjoy this issue and embrace the invitation to see dietetic practice as a way of ensuring and promoting food security. As part of the nutritional care process, we dietitians are frontline workers in identifying and addressing food insecurity in both clinical and community settings [9], and this issue wishes to help readers feel more empowered to embark in this journey.
