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NUTRITION FOR SENIORS
New recommendations for seniors has just come out from Tufts University on nutrition for healthy people 70 and older. The new diet is designed to aid seniors to live healthier lives while slowing down the onset of medical problems associated with aging. They are recommending that seniors drink more water, eat foods that are richer in nutrients, and increase the amount of fiber in their diets. They now say that the traditional four basic food groups may be lacking part of the basics of good nutrition. Nutritionists now state that seniors need to modify the 1992-food guide pyramid. They have proposed for seniors a modified version of the food pyramid, which replaced the basic four, the milk group, meat group, bread/cereals and the vegetable and fruit group. The new pyramid includes roughly the same minimum number of daily servings as the original:
Six or more servings of bread and grains, two or more servings of fruit, three or more of vegetables, two or more servings of meat, three servings of dairy products, and a small amount of fat and sweets. Because older people need fewer calories, and generally eat less, the researchers at Tufts recommend a higher concentration of nutrients with each serving. Seniors should also consider eating more foods with a higher fiber content to keep their intestines healthy. One of their recommendations is to simply eat an apple instead of just drinking apple juice. This modified pyramid also stresses the need to drink enough water.
According to this study many seniors do not get enough calcium, because they drink less milk. They also cited the limited exposure to the sun, which can cut back on Vitamin D. The study does recommend that seniors should really take a look at their eating habits before making any changes. You might only need a minor change such as eating whole wheat bread instead of plain white bread. Another suggestion was to eat more vegetables. This new nutritional guide finished off with one final recommendation, and that was we might also consider vitamin supplements such as calcium and vitamin D and B-12.
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