October 30, 2003

Prairie Fare: Healthy Eating as We Get Older

By Julie Garden-Robinson, Food and Nutrition Specialist
NDSU Extension Service

The other day I was watching my older brother and sister play with my young children just as our aunts and uncles played with us as children. Looking back, we always thought of our aunts and uncles as "old."

As I watched my siblings, I came to a realization: we are the same ages our aunts and uncles were when they played with us.

Getting older means that natural changes are continuing to occur to our bodies. The extent of the changes due to aging varies widely from person to person, but the senses -- vision, smell, taste, touch and hearing -- are often affected.

Overall these changes can affect daily activities and nutrition. For example, vision often worsens, and arms aren’t quite "long enough" to position newspapers to the point where they can be easily read. Reading recipes, food prices or food labels can become more difficult, too.

As we age, our sense of smell declines and the number of taste buds often decreases. Food may not smell or taste the way it "used to." If teeth are lost, chewing can become more difficult. Our sense of thirst can diminish over time due to medications being taken, putting us at risk of dehydration.

While I’ve just painted a somewhat glum scenario, healthy eating habits and regular physical activity as we age can help keep us healthy. Overall we need fewer calories as we get older, but those calories need to be from "nutrient dense" foods. These are some of the nutrients of concern as we age:

• Calcium is needed to maintain bone health, but it also plays a role in heart health and reducing our risk for colon cancer. Osteoporosis, the condition of weakened, fragile bones, affects both women and men. Eating at least three servings of calcium-rich foods such milk, cheese and yogurt goes a long way in meeting the 1,000-milligram daily recommendation for adults age 19 to 50 and the 1,200-milligram-per-day recommendation for adults age 51 and up. Broccoli, pinto beans and fortified juice and cereal are other calcium-containing foods.
• Vitamin D goes hand in hand with calcium in maintaining strong bones. A chemical in the skin can be converted to active vitamin D by sunlight, but depending on the sun for vitamin D gets tricky in cold climates. It’s a good thing milk is fortified with vitamin D. If you’re not a milk drinker, be sure any calcium supplements or calcium-fortified foods you eat also contain vitamin D.
• Fiber is a mainstay in maintaining good digestive function and helping to maintain healthy blood cholesterol levels. The goal is to eat 20 to 35 grams of fiber daily. Whole grain foods like oatmeal and whole wheat bread and fruits and vegetables provide dietary fiber. Look for "whole wheat" or "whole grain" as one of the first ingredients on a food ingredient label, and read nutrition facts labels for fiber content.
• Ample fluids are needed daily even if you don’t feel "thirsty." When you’re thirsty, you’re already partly dehydrated. Aim for eight cups of fluids daily. Any kind of fluid is hydrating, but some of the best choices are water, 100 percent fruit juice, milk, soups and fruits.

Here’s a high-calcium, hydrating beverage that contains some fiber. It’s quite tasty, too.

Fruit and Pudding Milk Mixer

4 cups low-fat milk
1 package (4 servings) instant pudding
1 banana
1/2 cup strawberries

Directions: Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth,

Makes 4 servings. Each serving contains 225 calories, 1 gram fat, 47 grams carbohydrate, 1.2 grams fiber and 300 milligrams calcium.

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Source: Julie Garden-Robinson, (701) 231-7187, jgardenr@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu

[Editors: We’ve updated the illustrated column identifier for Julie Garden-Robinson’s Prairie Fare column. If you’re using an older version or if you would like to use the identifier, please download this printable EPS file. Prairie Fare (142 Kb eps file)]