Elderly people are called in many ways. They are known as “older adults”, “senior citizens”, “elders” or “aged”. What counts as old? There are actually no benchmark signals to a person becoming old. There are societal and governmental definitions which make one privileged, in the sense that they get to enjoy being prioritized and given some discounts. But no matter how we address them, I believe that much love, care and attention should really be given to them.
Are we aware that they often have limited reformative abilities and are more prone to diseases, syndromes, injuries and sickness than younger adults? Most want to remain healthy and independent, and they certainly do not want to be a burden to their children, other family members and friends. I for one am in my early 50’s and as much as possible, I try my very best to still do things on my own. You know, the usual things that you do when you were a lot younger. I may go slower now but at least, I can still get to do them.
Good nutrition and exercise are the most important health habits that can be maintained in order to avoid losing autonomy and independence. Just what exactly is a good nutrition for the older adults? It is not actually what they eat now or the nature’s perfect food that other people recommend. The nutritional status in old age is determined by the eating habits we have had throughout our lifetime. We should not forget that old age is not a disease, but recommendations of specific nutrients may vary during this age.
As we advance in technology and learn more on the effects of food on human functions, nutritional needs change over time. Our main goal in recommending nutrients in the elderly is to maintain a healthy body weight. Each of the nutrients plays an important role in normal, healthy aging and is often eaten in varied amounts. A good and easy guide to follow is the Plate Model. It is a simple way to show what an ideal meal should look like.
The plate is divided into four sections with each showing how much of each food group an individual should consume. Vegetables make up the largest part which provides vitamins and minerals. This is followed by grains which provides energy. Protein sources may include fish, shellfish, eggs, beans, peas, nuts, seeds and soy products in addition to meat.
Eating healthy as we age is a challenge. Though the elderly eat better than younger adults, they do not consume enough vitamin E, folic acid, calcium or magnesium to meet recommended intake level. Nutrition education is powerful when it comes to the elderly. Here are a few suggestions on eating healthy to improve nutrition.
- Follow a healthy dietary pattern: What the elderly eats is important. It is always best to consume the recommended amounts of nutrients every day. A nutritionist can provide the amount of nutrients appropriate for you considering your anthropometric measures and physical activities.
- Customize food choices: Our elderly should enjoy every meal. Each food item in the meal must include personal preferences. A nutritionist can help adjust and substitute food items to what our elderly would want to have.
- Eat nutrient dense foods: Nutrient-dense foods are foods that contain more of vitamins and minerals with just a small amount of calories. Some examples are greek yogurt that contains calcium necessary to keep the bones strong. Oranges are packed with Vitamin C that is essential for the proper functioning of the immune system. Carrots have high amounts of Vitamin A which is important for eye health. Cheese has Vitamin D, an important vitamin that facilitates the absorption of calcium into to the bones for optimum bone health.
- Limit food and drinks with added sugar, sodium, saturated fats: We should have a strong will to substitute food items that are less harmful, examples are, drinking water instead of soda or sugar based-juices, low fat milk instead of full cream milk, vegetable sticks instead of chips. We have to take advantage of our nutrition labels to help us choose healthier food and drinks.
We have to remember that “We are what we eat”. How we are now is a result of our faulty eating in the past. Today is not too late though to start. Let us eat healthy for a long and healthy life.
Let us know of thoughts about this. Please comment below.