TITLE:
Weight Management of Young Women with Down Syndrome: C-ICAN Meal Plan
AUTHORS:
JuliSu DiMucci-Ward, Stephan L. Brown
KEYWORDS:
Down Syndrome, Obesity, Weight Management, C-ICAN, Glycemic Load
JOURNAL NAME:
Case Reports in Clinical Medicine,
Vol.10 No.11,
November
30,
2021
ABSTRACT: Primary care physicians are in a unique position to provide a holistic and individualized care to their patients with Down Syndrome. These patients share common medical problems with general population; however, they often are medically complex and present with cardiac, orthopedic, and endocrine challenges such as overweight-obesity and related comorbidities that occur with more frequency in this unique population. The prevention of overweight-obesity is an important public health issue for both the general population and for the population of individuals with Down Syndrome. If abnormal weight gain is treated early and effectively many secondary comorbidities can be prevented or ameliorated. This case report discusses the impact of implementing a Consistent Individualized Carbohydrate controlled Anti-inflammatory Nutrition plan (C-ICAN) as part of the treatment plan for a young woman with Down Syndrome (DS). The C-ICAN meal plan is a low glycemic load meal plan with 30% to 35% calories from fat, 20% to 25% calories from protein, 40% to 45% calories from carbohydrate, and goal of 25 gm fiber per day. The C-ICAN meal plan combines the Mediterranean diet because of its well-established anti-inflammatory, and cardiovascular benefits, with a high protein and low glycemic-load meal plan to improve satiety and glycemic control. In this case the patient and her caregivers adjusted to a structured meal pattern well, weight balance resulted, and mealtime stress was reduced.