Eating good nutritious food at every age is as important as exercise and sufficient rest. Eating healthy food becomes more important as we age because all our organs start degenerating. Obesity, hypertension and diabetes are some of the lifestyle diseases which affect the elderly. They can be prevented and controlled with the right kind of meal planning.
The physical activity of the elderly decreases bringing down their metabolism too. Therefore, smaller quantity of food is required to compensate the lack of usage of energy.
As the elderly have dental problems, due to which they are not able to chew their food properly, they may not be getting sufficient nutrition.
The digestive system of the elderly weakens and therefore, they are unable to digest their food properly they had always relished. The elderly commonly complain about heaviness in the stomach, gastric problems and acidity.
Meal planning for the elderly is different from the active youngsters and therefore, it is done keeping in mind their changed requirements.