Old People and Diet
Just what are your food requirements as you grow older? Basically you need the same essential nutrients that you have always needed, except that you face special problems. You need to:
• Select food more carefully to eat adequate proteins, vitamins, and
minerals—while cutting down on calories.
•
Get the most nutritious food for the least money and make the most of what
you buy.
•
Avoid eating habits—make mealtime a pleasure rather than a chore.
•
Learn new techniques to stretch meals, use leftovers, and substitute lower-priced
items with the same nutritional value for higher-priced foods. In other
words, learn how to shop well.
Now that it’s out of the way, the next question is: how can you get the essential nutrients? A good rule is first to eat recommended servings from the Basic Four Food Groups. Then, eat other foods that you like, as long as they do not go over the recommended daily calorie intake. The average man in the 55-to-75 year age group should consume 2,200 calories a day; the average woman in the same age group, 1,600 calories a day.
This is a drop of between 500 and 600 calories a day from what was needed at age 25. As you grow older, your physical activity decreases and your metabolism slows, causing body fats to build up at a much faster rate and making you more prone to hardening of the arteries and certain heart conditions.
Here are the Basic Four Food Groups:
Meat Group
Two or more servings from this group of foods are recommended daily. A serving is two or three ounces of cooked meat, fish or poultry; two eggs; occasionally one cup of cooked dry beans or peas; one-half cup peanut butter; or one cup cottage cheese.
Dairy Group
Dairy food requirements may be satisfied by two cups of milk or its equivalent in cheese, ice cream, etc. A one-third ounce slice of cheddar-type cheese or one scant pint of ice cream is equivalent to one cup of milk.
Vegetables and Fruits
The daily vegetable and fruit requirement consists of four or more servings. A serving is one-half cup. Include one serving of citrus fruit each day and dark green vegetables every other day,
Bread and Cereal Group
Each day have four or more servings of whole grain, enriched, or restored products such as breads, cereals, rice, hominy grits, noodles, or macaroni. One serving is a slice of bread; one-half to three-fourths cup cooked cereal, pasta, or rice; one medium potato.
Consume other foods such as sweets, baked goods, or desserts to complete
meals and treat the sweet tooth. But remember to count the calories. Nutritionists
have found out that skinny animals live longer than fat ones, and this seems
to be true of people too.