Dietary Intake, Diet Quality, and Mealtime Experiences of Community-Dwelling Older Adults in The Netherlands: A Systematic Review

Background/Objectives: Most older adults in The Netherlands prefer to age in place, which makes adequate nutrition central to preventing malnutrition and maintaining independence. Evidence specific to community-dwelling older adults (≥65 years) in The Netherlands is limited. This systematic review synthesises the evidence on their dietary intake, diet quality and mealtime experiences. Methods: PubMed, Scopus and EBSCOhost/CINAHL were searched with a SPIDER-guided strategy (September 2026) for studies with data collected from January 2015 onward. Two reviewers independently screened, extracted and appraised the studies, using Joanna Briggs Institute checklists, and findings were synthesised narratively. Results: Fifteen publications on thirteen independent study populations were included: thirteen quantitative studies on dietary intake and diet quality and two qualitative studies. Across studies, a substantial proportion of participants had protein intakes below recommendations, dietary vitamin D intake was consistently low and supplement use often fell short of the national guideline. Intake of fish, dairy and meat (alternatives) was frequently suboptimal, vegetable intake was mixed and fruit intake relatively adequate. Where assessed, overall diet quality was reasonable but suboptimal. The qualitative studies pointed to ingrained habits, limited awareness of protein needs and reluctance to change. Conclusions: Dietary intake of community-dwelling older adults in The Netherlands appears suboptimal, most notably for protein and vitamin D, while their own experiences of food and mealtimes remain poorly understood. Nutritional guidance may be more acceptable when it builds on existing habits through small adjustments. Contemporary, nationally representative intake data, including adults aged 80 years and older, and further qualitative research are needed.