The "Eleven Points" for a Long and Healthy Life for Seniors
As people age, the functions of various organs gradually weaken, teeth begin to fall out, and digestive and absorption capacities slowly decline, leading to a naturally poorer appetite. In the face of reduced food intake, ensuring the quality of your diet can follow these 11 principles:
Portions a Little Smaller.
Daily saliva secretion in the elderly is one-third of that in young people, and gastric juice secretion also drops to one-fifth of its youthful level. Therefore, eating even a little too much can cause bloating and indigestion. So, the amount of food an elderly person eats per meal should be reduced by about 10% compared to their younger years, while ensuring they eat smaller, more frequent meals.
Quality a Little Better.
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.
Food a Little Blander.
The sense of taste in the elderly is somewhat diminished, and food often seems tasteless, leading them to prefer heavily seasoned foods to stimulate their appetite. This unintentionally increases their salt intake. Excessive salt can burden the kidneys and may reduce the barrier function of oral mucosa, increasing the chances of cold viruses surviving and spreading in the upper respiratory tract. Therefore, an elderly person's daily salt intake should be controlled to around 5 grams, and they should eat less cured meat 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 staple and non-staple foods (excluding seasonings) should not be less than 10 per day.
Food a Little More Aromatic.
The "aroma" here does not refer to using more salt, MSG, and other seasonings, but rather adding more aromatics like scallions and ginger to the dishes. The five senses are connected, and smell can compensate for a diminished sense of taste. The aroma of delicious food is sure to whet an elderly person's appetite.
Food a Little Warmer.
Raw and cold foods are often considered "cold" in nature, and eating too much can affect the spleen and stomach's digestive functions, causing damage. Therefore, the elderly should try to avoid raw and cold foods, paying special attention during the harsh winter.
Grains a Little Softer.
Making rice into congee (porridge) is not only soft, easy to chew, and digestible, but it also often has the effect of strengthening the spleen and nourishing the stomach, promoting the production of body fluids and moistening dryness, which is beneficial for longevity. However, the elderly should not drink congee for every meal. After all, congee is mostly water with very little "solid" food. In the same stomach volume, the nutritional content of congee is much less than that of steamed buns or rice. Over the long term, this could lead to malnutrition.
Eat a Little 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 energy intake, with higher quality and nutritional value. However, it should not include greasy, fried, hard, or strongly stimulating foods.
Dinner a Little Earlier.
"An unsettled stomach leads to an unsettled night." 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 there are frequent late-night snacks, the peak calcium excretion time may arrive when the elderly person is 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.