How Do Your Nutritional and Dietary Needs Affect You Poll
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Healthwatch Brighton and Hove, Healthwatch East Sussex and Healthwatch West Sussex undertook a poll of local people on their experience of living with nutritional or dietary requirements. They heard from 166 people.
43.4% respondents had food allergies or intolerances, 33.7% experienced Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and 25.3% had Diabetes.
People highlighted the impacts on their life, with 47.9% lacking options when eating out, 28.8% struggling to source food for their dietary needs, and 28.2% unable to access support for their dietary needs.
The most common ways respondents found information about dietary conditions or nutritional needs were a general online search (74.1%), the NHS website (50%), and via their GP practice (27.7%).
32 respondents (19.3%) had used NHS nutrition or dietetic services recently. Experiences were generally positive, but the greatest challenges were lack of flexible appointment times and long waits for appointments. Other respondents had low awareness of these NHS services or how to access them.