Quadriplegics have special nutritional needs related to the increased risks associated with their medical condition. While no one diet works for everyone dealing with quadriplegia, some basic nutritional principles and goals can help you stay healthy. Complications such as diabetes, high blood pressure, constipation and osteoporosis occur more frequently in quadriplegics than other people. Talk to your doctor or dietitian about the ideal diet for your age, weight and physical limitations.
Calorie Intake
When your activity level declines, you gain weight. Losing the ability to move your lower and upper extremities not only decreases the amount of calories you burn each day but also results in muscle loss, according to Vickeri Barton, RD, CD, in a 2006 SCI Forum presentation. Fat takes the place of muscle, which burns fewer calories yet. Increased body mass increases the risk of diabetes, which in turn increases the risk of skin breakdown and infection. The more you weigh, the more difficult it is to move yourself, or to have others move you. Weight gain in paraplegics starts a vicious cycle that leads to numerous complications. Devising a diet based on calorie intake requires tailoring the calorie intake to your age, sex, current weight and activity level. Cutting your current intake by 500 calories per day results in a 1-pound loss per week.
Fiber
If you have quadriplegia, your bowel function slows. Like other muscles involved in quadriplegia, the bowel becomes weaker, losing the ability to propel food through the digestive tract. Constipation becomes a major problem for many quadriplegics. Getting enough fiber in your diet helps keep things moving, so to speak. While some clinicians recommend between 20 and 30 grams of fiber per day, the Consortium for Spinal Cord Medicine recommends at least 15 grams per day, adjusting the amount depending on bowel function. Drink adequate fluid, or excess fiber could worsen rather than improve bowel function; the Consortium recommends between 2 and 3 liters of fluid daily.
Protein
Pressure sores leak protein and raise your daily protein requirements. When your skin is free from pressure sores, you need around 0.8 grams of protein per 2.2 pounds of body weight per day, the same as the rest of the general population. If you have pressure sores, which occur more often in quadriplegics who are overweight or underweight, you need more protein to help with the tissue repair and healing process -- around 1.2 to 1.5 grams of protein per 2.2 pounds of body weight, according to the University of Washington.
Calcium Needs
If you're a quadriplegic, you have a higher risk of developing osteoporosis, or low bone density. Bones get stronger when they bear weight, so the inability to stand independently can increase bone loss. A fall from your chair carries a higher risk of fracture if you have osteoporosis. Adequate intake of both calcium and vitamin D help prevent osteoporosis. Women age 19 to 50 and men 19 to 71 need 1,000 milligrams of calcium per day. Women 51 and older and men over 71 need 1,200 milligrams per day. You also need 600 International Units of vitamin D to help you absorb calcium up to age 70 and 800 International Units over age 70, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Disease advises.
