2025 Volume 74 Issue 1 Pages 43-52
Nutrition forms the foundation of individual health and well-being and is a critical component of sustainable development and economic growth. At the Tokyo Nutrition for Growth Summit 2021, the Tokyo Compact on Global Nutrition for Growth was issued to promote policies to achieve the World Health Assembly's Global Nutrition Goal 2025, the United Nations Decade of Action for Nutrition (2016?2025), and the Sustainable Development Goals, with the goal of “eradicating all forms of malnutrition.” In line with this declaration, the Government of Japan has committed to advancing inclusive nutrition policies domestically. Against the social backdrop of an aging population, efforts to address the protein-energy malnutrition of older adults and promote enjoyment of eating have accelerated. As part of these initiatives, Nutrition Care and Management (NCM) based on multidisciplinary collaboration among medical institutions, long-term care facilities, and facilities for individuals with disabilities has been introduced and promoted. This paper summarizes the philosophy of NCM and the development of its institutional design within the medical insurance, long-term care insurance, and disability welfare service systems. We also discuss the outcomes of research on the nutritional status of older adults and patients and the health and economic effects of nutritional care as background for the introduction of NCM. A significant milestone was the 2000 revision of the Dietitians Act, which expanded registered dietitians' responsibilities and highlighted nutrition management services for patients, enhancing insurance services of NCM. Furthermore, in the aging society, strengthening medical and long-term care coordination within community-based comprehensive care systems and developing skilled professionals for NCM are important issues. Japan's initiatives in these areas offer valuable insights for designing and implementing nutrition policies in other aging societies globally.
