11 Dietary Secrets for a Long Life for Seniors
A healthy diet is beneficial for the longevity of the elderly. So, how should the elderly eat healthily? What should they pay attention to in their diet? Let's find out below.
Smaller Portions
The daily saliva secretion of the elderly is one-third of that of young people, and gastric acid secretion also decreases to one-fifth of their youth. Therefore, eating even a little too much can lead to bloating and indigestion. Thus, the elderly should reduce their food intake per meal by about 10% compared to their younger years, while ensuring they eat smaller, more frequent meals.
Better Quality
Protein plays an important role in maintaining the normal metabolism of the elderly and enhancing the body's resistance. For the average elderly person, 1 gram of protein is needed per kilogram of body weight, and it should mainly come from high-quality protein sources such as fish, poultry, eggs, milk, and soybeans.
More Vegetables
Eating more vegetables is very beneficial for protecting the cardiovascular system and preventing cancer. The elderly should eat at least 250 grams of vegetables daily.
Less Salty
The taste function of the elderly diminishes, often making food seem bland. They tend to prefer heavily seasoned foods to stimulate their appetite, which inadvertently increases their salt intake. Excessive salt can burden the kidneys, may reduce the barrier function of oral mucosa, and increase the chances of cold viruses surviving and spreading in the upper respiratory tract. Therefore, the elderly should control their daily salt intake to about 5 grams and eat less cured meats and other salty foods.
A Greater Variety
One should balance meat and vegetables, and mix coarse and fine grains; the more variety, the better. The number of main and side dishes (excluding seasonings) should not be less than 10 per day.
More Fragrant
The "fragrance" here does not refer to using more salt, MSG, and other seasonings, but rather adding more ingredients like scallions and ginger to the dishes. The five senses are interconnected, and one can use the sense of smell to compensate for a diminished sense of taste. The smell of fragrant food is sure to whet the elderly's appetite.
Warmer Food
Most raw and cold foods are considered "cold" in nature, and eating too much can affect the spleen and stomach's digestion and absorption, causing even damage. Therefore, the elderly should try to avoid raw and cold foods, especially during the harsh winter.
Softer Food
Converting rice into congee (porridge) is not only soft, palatable, and easy to digest, but it also has the effect of strengthening the spleen and nourishing the stomach, promoting the production of body fluids and moistening dryness, which is beneficial for a long life. However, the elderly should not drink congee for every meal. After all, congee is mostly water and has very little "solid" nutrition. In the case of the same stomach capacity, a portion of congee of the same volume is much less nutritious than steamed buns or rice. Over the long term, this could lead to malnutrition.
Eat Slower
Chewing slowly and thoroughly can easily create a feeling of fullness, preventing overeating and allowing for better food digestion.
A Better Breakfast
Breakfast should account for 30% to 40% of the total daily calories. Its quality and nutritional value should be high and refined, but it should not include greasy, fried, hard, or highly stimulating foods.
An Earlier Dinner
"When the stomach is not harmonious, the night is not peaceful." Eating dinner too late not only affects sleep and leads to fat storage but can also easily cause urinary tract stones. The peak time for the body to excrete calcium is 4-5 hours after a meal. If dinner is eaten too late or if one often has a late-night snack, the peak time for calcium excretion may occur when the elderly are already asleep. The best time for an elderly person's dinner is around 6 or 7 PM, and they should avoid or eat very few late-night snacks.