AFVOA Newletters of Year 2005

Page 56 of 75 advise we reproduce an article “Old Age and Changing Needs” as it appeared in the Publication of Reader’s Digest titled “ Foods that harm and Foods that heal ”, 1996 edition. We hope the readers would benefit. OLD AGE AND CHANGING NEEDS Although energy demands are reduced as you get older, people still require meals which are nutritionally sound. A well balanced diet is one of the best defences against the effects of time. 40. While ageing is inevitable, physical decrepitude is not. Many of the outward signs of growing old can be slowed – and life may even be prolonged – by maintaining a sensible approach to diet. Elderly people may be poorly nourished for several reasons. They may have difficulty chewing, and as the body ages it no longer digests or absorbs food so readily. Those living on their own do not always bother to prepare nutritious meals. And, as time blunts the senses of smell and taste, so the appetite fades. 41. Make meals colourful and avoid slipping into preparing repetitive ‘easy meals’. Attractive and varied food can revitalize a jaded appetite. Because age slows down physical activity – and sometimes leads to reduced mobility – energy requirements can decline by as much as 5 percent for each decade after the age of 40, but the need for nutrients for repair and regeneration does not. In fact, US research now suggests that the body’s demand for vitamins and minerals actually increases with age. Nutrient Deficiency 42. Both the body’s metabolism and its ability to absorb food become less efficient with age, as less stomach acid and other digestive secretions and enzymes are produced. Also the effects of long-term bad habits, such as smoking, start to materialize. It is known that smoking and drinking alcohol, for example, can sap the body’s stores of nutrients. A reduced intake of vitamins B6, B12, D and folate, and of the minerals calcium, magnesium and zinc, is particularly common among the elderly. When the body’s levels of these nutrients fall below the required daily level, health will almost certainly suffer. 43. Replenishing vitamins B12 can often help to reverse lapses of memory or problems of coordination and balance. This may be as simple as including plenty of fish, offal and pork, eggs, cheese and milk in your diet. But about 1 in every 200 elderly people in Britain, whose diets are low in vitamin B12, lack the gastric secretions necessary for its absorption and may need injections to make up the deficit. 44. Folate may also be lacking in the diets of the elderly due to a low consumption of fruit and vegetables. And, since many elderly people may have only limited exposure to sunlight, a dietary source of vitamin D is needed. Vitamin D enables calcium to be properly absorbed – without enough calcium, bones become thin and fragile. Other than Margarine and oily fish, there are few dietary sources of vitamin D and so it may be sensible to use a supplement. 45. After retirement, older people may feel they merit a few indulgences, such as cigarettes or an occasional drink. What is the point, their argument runs, in giving up such pleasures late in life? But smoking and excessive drinking deplete the body’s stores of vital nutrients as well as stimulating the production of potentially harmful FREE RADICALS. The benefits of a moderate alcohol intake, and of giving up smoking, should not be underestimated. A good diet can also help by supplying the vital nutrients known as ANTIOXIDANTS – found in fruit, vegetables and most nuts – which can ‘mop up’ the free radicals. 46. Elderly people, worried about bladder control, may drink too little, but their need for fluid is much the same as in youth, and the risk of dehydration is as high. Sipping six to eight glasses of water a day should be sufficient.