What should older people eat

Co powinni jeść starsi ludzie

What should older people eat – these are the questions many people ask themselves. It is worth knowing that what seniors eat every day has a huge impact on their health. Experts emphasize that the diet of an elderly person should meet their basic needs. It often happens that the menu of the elderly is very bad, which causes them to experience a number of very unpleasant ailments. Their well-being deteriorates, which is a very bad thing. To enjoy life even after 60, you need to take care of yourself.

One of the basic elements that must be remembered is the implementation of a proper diet. The positive effects of changing the menu can be observed really quickly. In the following article, we discuss in detail what a healthy diet should be for seniors. We invite you to read.

Why is a healthy diet so important?

A healthy, balanced diet is really important at any age. What we eat every day has a huge impact on our overall well-being – whether it’s a teenager or an elderly person. Unfortunately, many people believe that healthy eating is impossible to achieve. However, this is not true. It is worth deciding to change the way of eating, because then we have a chance to protect ourselves from dangerous diseases such as atherosclerosis, diabetes, hypertension, etc.

What should distinguish the optimal diet in the elderly? Nutrition specialists indicate that the primary goal of the seniors’ diet is to cover the body’s needs for a number of nutrients that will stop the natural aging processes. At the same time, it is very important that the food you eat contributes to reducing the occurrence of food-related diseases. If a senior’s diet is optimal, test results improve, and thus – an elderly person simply feels better.

Menu for seniors

When designing a menu for a senior in a nursing home, it should be remembered that the daily menu must contain meals that will simply taste good, and at the same time will not cause difficulties with digestion or absorption of nutrients by the body. The need for nutrients in the elderly is exactly the same as in the case of young people. The only difference, however, concerns the proportions.

The point is that seniors have much less energy requirements. The lower value of the basal metabolic rate results from lower lean mass and lower physical activity than in the case of young people. It is worth noting, however, that the demand for valuable nutrients in seniors is very often increasing. Therefore, a healthy, fully balanced diet for the elderly plays a very important role.

Easily digestible diet – why is it worth it?

Nutritionists argue that one of the most effective diets for the elderly is an easily digestible diet. This is due to the fact that the body’s efficiency decreases significantly over time. The efficiency of the organs deteriorates and the cells are unable to regenerate in a timely manner. However, the body still needs energy resources to function, to fight infection.

The use of an easily digestible diet for seniors is a very good solution, because you should know that in the elderly there is a significant decrease in saliva production and a lower amount of digestive enzymes. Peristalsis of the intestines and esophagus deteriorates, so many seniors struggle with annoying constipation and indigestion. The domain of the elderly is also a decline in metabolism – fats are less absorbed, the need for simple carbohydrates is reduced. Thus, the body of an elderly person has a much lower energy requirement. At the same time, there is an increase in the demand for valuable nutrients in seniors.

The principles of a light diet

Every elderly person who wants to enjoy health should test an easily digestible diet. Of course, the exact shape of the senior’s menu should depend on his individual preferences. A good solution is also to conduct appropriate consultations and research. It is worth going to a specialist who will conduct appropriate tests and tell an elderly person what their diet should look like so that they can enjoy health and well-being.

What are the basic principles of an easily digestible diet? The basic issue concerns giving up processed and high-calorie products. The changes also apply to the method of preparing meals and the dates of their consumption. If we remember these rules, metabolism and digestion in an elderly person will improve. The basic principles of an easily digestible diet are as follows. First of all, every day you should eat about 5-6 easily digestible meals at regular intervals of about 3-4 hours.

The dishes must be fresh, they should not be reheated. All foods should be chewed thoroughly. Eating in a hurry is unacceptable. Fruits and vegetables must be peeled. The last meal of the day must be eaten at least three hours before bedtime.

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