3 Nutrition Considerations for Mature Adults
We know mature adults like yourself want to live like you are young. Life gets richer and better as you age, and we believe that feeling should never end. But the older you get, the harder it is to live like you are young. Your physical abilities change, it becomes difficult to learn new things, you become stuck in your ways, and you forget what freedom feels like. For some, keeping up with things like diet and exercise are no longer important or it just becomes too exhausting.
Health, nutrition, and exercise are important for everyone to pay attention to, especially seniors. As you get older, there are a lot of factors that contribute to healthy aging. Preventative measures that you incorporate into your life, such as the things you eat, how often you exercise, and the medications you take can help you stay healthy as long as possible.
This month is National Nutrition Month. Created by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the goal is to help people focus their attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits.
Keep reading to learn three things mature adults should take into consideration when thinking about their health.
1 - Family History
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, your family history is a huge part of staying healthy and can help your doctor decide what screening tests or other treatments you might need. For adults, having one or more family members with a chronic disease can make you more likely to get that disease.
Here is a brief family health history checklist from the CDC:
Talk to your family and gather any information for blood relatives that should be included in your history. Parents, brothers and sisters, children. Then grandparents, uncles and aunts, nieces and nephews, and half-brothers or sisters.
Ask questions about chronic illnesses, other serious diseases, family ancestry, etc.
Record the information and keep it updated.
Share your family health history with your doctor.
2 - Diet
Your diet is arguably the most important contributor to your overall health. Regardless of your age, a well-balanced diet can help you age much more comfortably. However, a lot changes as you get older. According to Healthline, there are a few habits that may change with age.
Calories
You’ll likely need fewer calories to maintain a healthy weight as you get older. Seniors often require less energy from calories because they are more limited in the physical activities they do each day and they naturally develop a slower metabolism.
Appetite
It is completely normal for people to experience a loss of appetite with age. According to the National Library of Medicine, loss of appetite can be caused by a lot of different factors, such as a change in environment, changes to the digestive system, hormonal changes, disease, pain, and more.
Medical Conditions
It’s no secret that with age comes a higher chance of chronic health problems. Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, high cholesterol, and many other conditions are all issues mature adults might deal with at some point in their life.
Eating a healthy diet and making sure you’re getting enough nutrient-rich foods can help increase your quality of life and make the aging process much easier. For a list of nutrient-rich foods, check out this article from Healthline.
3 – Exercise
Getting exercise is important for people of all ages, but as a senior, knowing what exercises to do, how often to do them, and what exercises not to do can contribute health while protecting from injury.
According to the National Institute on Aging, older adults should get at least two and a half hours of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise a week. This includes things like walking, dancing, and water aerobics.
If you’re new to exercise, it is important to start out slow. Here are some tips from the NIA on how to reduce your risk of injury:
Begin with low-intensity exercises.
Warm up and cool down before and after each workout.
Stay hydrated.
Wear appropriate clothing and shoes.
Discuss your physical activity plan with your healthcare provider.
Did you know that, according to the CDC, 27.5% of adults aged 50 years and older are inactive? This greatly increases the risk for diseases like arthritis, cancer, coronary heart disease, depression, diabetes, and stroke. There are a lot of benefits to daily exercise, even if it’s just for 30 minutes a day.
Live Like You Are Young in an Aspenwood Community
At The Aspenwood Company, we know mature adults want to live like you are young. Life gets richer and better as you age, and we believe that feeling should never end.
But it’s easy for adults to forget what freedom feels like. For doctors, artists, educators, and business owners, the things you’ve acquired on your life’s journey – your home and all the things you own – can become a weight that holds you in place.
You can pursue and experience freedom like never before. It’s time to experience the laughter, the energy, the activity, the friendly faces, and the caring people of The Aspenwood Company. It’s time to live like you are young.
Ready to start living like you’re young?