A balanced and healthy diet is important whether you’re an infant or an adult, and it becomes even more critical when you are a senior. Nutritional needs change over time as your body changes, but proper food and water intake remain just as critical to your quality of life, longevity and overall health. Unfortunately, many seniors do not get the right balance of nutrients in their diet and end up malnourished. What are the nutritional needs of seniors?
Our Bodies Change Over Time
Our bodies change in a myriad of ways over time, including:
- Sensory changes, including diminished taste and smell abilities that can lead to a decrease in appetite. This means that many seniors are naturally attracted to foods with stronger sweet or salty flavors which are often unhealthy, and that their appetite for fruits and vegetables might decrease.
- Energy levels over time also decrease alongside your basal metabolic rate and physical activity, which lowers the amount of calories needed during the day.
- Body function can change as we age, including changes in distribution of fat and body composition and alterations in the nervous system.
- Dental changes occur as seniors receive dentures or have more dental work that can make eating uncomfortable or unpleasant. Dental issues can also impact what foods and drinks are comfortable to eat.
Malnutrition
Malnutrition can be found in many elderly populations, and it can arise because of nutrient deficiencies, imbalances or undernutrition. These often snowball due to some of the side effects of these conditions including a lack of interest in their physical wellness, malaise or the loss of their appetite. Malnutrition can also arise due to a lack of medical care and health insurance, fear, financial difficulties, a lack of interest in cooking or eating to the loss of friends and family members.
4 Ways to Improve Nutrition
- Make sure that your loved one understands how much and what types of foods they should be eating every day.
- Limit oils, solid fats, added sugars and processed foods.
- Increase the amount of fruits, vegetables and healthy low-fat dairy foods that they consume.
- Work with your loved one’s doctor to ensure that their meal plan and eating habits are appropriate for any diseases or conditions that they have.
Explore Medicare Insurance Plans with Ritter Client Services
Explore what Medicare insurance plans are available so that your loved one never needs to avoid medical care. Ritter Client Services is proud to be Medicare insurance and dental care problem solvers for thousands of patients throughout Central Pennsylvania. There is no cost to use our services and take advantage of our wealth of Medicare program knowledge. To have your Medicare insurance or health insurance questions answered by our knowledgeable team, contact Ritter Client Services today by calling 877-588-7166 (TTY: 711).