Dietary inadequacies observed in homeless men visiting an emergency night shelter in Paris.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the dietary intake and the nutritional status of homeless men.

SETTING

A night emergency shelter in Paris, France.

DESIGN

Dietary survey (48-h) including alcohol intake and a questionnaire on age, duration of homelessness, smoking habits. Subjects were also weighed and measured.

SUBJECTS: Ninety-seven men aged 18-72 years (mean 43.3), of whom 54% were homeless for more than 18 months, 82% were smokers and 53% were regular and/or excessive drinkers.

RESULTS

The BMI distribution was shifted towards low values, the percentage of wasted persons being four times higher than in the reference population. The mean total energy intake was 2376 kcal and included a high and highly variable percentage of energy derived from alcohol (12.0% Among drinkers, the mean ethanol intake was 90 g and there was a significant negative correlation between ethanol and non-alcoholic energy intakes. The median intakes of potassium, calcium, zinc, vitamins B1, B2, and niacin were lower than European Population Reference Intakes but only the mean intake of vitamin B1 was significantly lower. Eighty percent of non-alcoholic energy was provided by charitable organisations. For most nutrients, the nutritional density of the shelter ration was not significantly different from the density of the foods purchased by the homeless.

CONCLUSIONS

These data suggest that the content of some nutrients should be increased in existing food assistance programs for homeless people in France.