Thanks to the advancements in the medical field, the general life expectancy has enhanced manifolds today. But even if you live longer, what’s the fun if you suffer constantly and the quality of your life gets hampered. With age, your senses gradually weaken, the metabolism slows down and you are more likely to develop a serious ailment, but not to worry. With some intelligent decisions and some healthy eating choices you can ensure your overall well-being over time. If you choose to adhere to a healthy diet it will help to retain everything from your pearly whites and your body functionalities to your mental health and memory.
Here an attempt is made to bring forth some of the diet dos and don’ts for the elderly or the senior citizens. Just read on.
Diet Dos
- Have Apples – The apples are beneficial fruits for those who want to retain their dental health and are struggling to bring down their high levels of cholesterol and high blood sugar levels. The soluble fibre contained in apples helps to slow down the glucose uptake as well as lowers the cholesterol. Apples also consist of the antioxidants, potassium and vitamin C.
- Include Moderate Amount of Protein in Your Diet – Ensure that each meal you take consists of a moderate amount of protein like fish, meat, eggs, lentils and cheese. You should have fish twice per week. In order to have omega-3 fats you should choose an oily fish for one of these meals. The oily fish include canned salmon and sardines, mackerel, fresh tuna (not canned), herring, salmon and trout.
- Leafy Green Vegetables Are a Must – The leafy greens like kale, spinach and turnip greens as well as veggies like broccoli have been linked to their cognitive decline as people get older.
- Ensure You Drink Enough Liquids – One of the common conditions that develops as we age is poor bladder control. This results in elderlies choosing to drink less so that they don’t have to urinate often. But you should keep it in mind that being dehydrated can have its consequences over your skin, your mental ability as well as your body cells. The symptoms of constipation are also reduced by drinking more liquid.
Diet Don’ts
- Avoid Soft Cheese – The soft cheeses like Camembert, Brie, chevre and blue cheese are generally unpasteurised as a result of which they let the bacteria to breed in large amounts. You should keep it in mind that these soft cheeses may not be of much harm for the younger people but for the elderly with delicate stomach or compromised immune system, they can be dangerous. Nevertheless, you should keep it in mind that cheese happens to be quite a good source of vitamin D and the elderlies can get the health benefits by opting for cheese varieties like Monterey Jack, cheddar and Swiss rather than the soft varieties.
- Reduce the Fatty and Sugary Foods – By this it means that you should have less amounts of biscuits, cakes, snacks as well as candies and ice creams. Instead of the ghee or butter that consists of harmful saturated fats, your food should be cooked with oils that contain unsaturated fatty acids like olive, rapeseed (canola), corn or sunflower oil.
- Stay Away from Raw Meat – Some raw meats like steak tartare, Carpaccio (which consists of silvers of beef raw materials) can be really delicious but it is best for the elderlies to avoid these. The primary reason for this is that these foods are uncooked, and the bacteria present in the meat are still there. This can make the seniors ill and lead to developments of the secondary conditions. Instead you should switch to regular portions of high quality seafoods and lean white meat for example chicken for supporting the optimal functioning of the brain and the healthy joints.
- Minimize the Table Salt Consumption– Your sense of taste declines with age. More often you will want to enhance the taste of the dishes with the salt for increasing the flavour. But consuming too much salt can increase your blood pressure level that can lead to heart ailment, kidney disease and strokes. So limit your sodium consumption to around 2000 milligrams per day.
The above are some of the diet dos and don’ts for the senior citizens. Apart from the above you should also go for timely appointments with your doctor and the dentist at the best dental clinic so that any abnormalities can be detected beforehand and treated ensuring that you can lead a better life.
This article is intended for informational purposes only. If you have any questions or are considering any recommendations, please consult your health practitioner.
