The Essential Guide to Senior Nutrition in Assisted Living Communities

It's estimated that 10% of seniors living at home don't eat enough, while as many as 33% frequently eat too much. Seniors face many challenges with nutrition as they age.

While some are biological, many can be circumstantial as well. For example, people living in rural communities might face food insecurity if they aren't able to travel to grocery stores.

One solution to this problem is joining assisted living communities that prioritize senior nutrition.

But what exactly are the key nutrients that seniors need to get? And how can assisted living meal programs help them get it? In this senior diet tips guide, we'll answer these questions so you can see how certain retirement communities and nutrition go hand in hand.

Why Is Nutrition So Important for Seniors?

Nutrition is important at any stage of life. That being said, there are some reasons why it's especially vital for seniors. As you age, your body begins to need less calories.

However, it still needs nutrients from food, as well as more protein. As this resource notes, some of the benefits of prioritizing nutrition as a senior include:

• More energy throughout the day
• Higher ability to control your weight
• Fights against age-related bone loss
• Prevents loss of muscle mass
• Can decrease the likelihood of diseases like cancer, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease

In short, nutrition not only protects you from certain conditions associated with aging, but it can also improve your quality of life.

With more energy and mobility you can make the most out of your day, enjoying your life, family, and friends.

What Challenges Do Seniors Face With Nutrition?

The solution to improving senior wellness might seem obvious: incorporate diets that are rich in nutrients. However, the answer isn't all that easy because of the variety of challenges seniors face when it comes to nutrition.

For starters, many seniors report feelings of low appetite as they age. This can lead to large amounts of unintentional weight loss and even malnutrition.

It's not uncommon for the elderly to lose some of their senses regarding taste and smell. This can also affect appetite levels. As people age, they also begin to develop health conditions.

Many of these, like heart disease, diabetes, and celiac disease require intense diet modifications. Some seniors might have a hard time adjusting to these changes.

As people age, they also tend to have less physically active lifestyles. This can result in fewer calories burned and unhealthy weight gains.

Lastly, some seniors lose the ability to shop for themselves. And if they live in rural areas they might be outside the range of food delivery companies.

Key Nutrients Seniors Need to Get

In order to find out what key nutrients seniors need we need to inspect the ones they're often deficient in. For many that starts with a calcium and Vitamin D deficiency.

That's an issue because both of these nutrients are vital for bone health. You can get calcium from things like dairy products and leafy greens.

However, it's important to also get Vitamin D from sunlight exposure as this is necessary for calcium absorption in your body. Other nutrients and foods for senior health you should prioritize include:

• Dietary fiber for digestive health (fruits, veggies, legumes)
• Iron for preventing anemia (meat and beans)
• Omega-3 fatty acids for brain and heart health (fish, seeds, and nuts)
• Magnesium for your nervous system health (avocados and seeds)
• Protein for muscle mass (lean meats, dairy products, and tofu)

If you aren't getting enough of these nutrients in your diet it's vital that you find a way to supplement them through multi-vitamins.

The Importance of Hydration

When most people think of nutrition, they tend to picture foods and diets. However, it's important to remember that the water we drink every day is also part of our nutrition.

In fact, as this study notes, it's arguably the most important nutrient of them all. It helps our bodies thermoregulate, maintains our blood pressure, creates biochemical reactions, transports nutrients, and removes waste from the blood.

As we age, it becomes harder for our bodies to conserve water. What's worse, a senior's sense of thirst can become less acute over the years. This can lead to dehydration.

And with dehydration comes a whole host of problems, including UTIs, digestive problems, and confusion. Seniors should drink water regularly throughout the day even when they aren't thirsty. Incorporate foods that are high in water content like:

• Cucumbers
• Mushrooms
• Watermelons
• Oranges
• Tomatoes

Limit the intake of alcohol and caffeinated beverages as these diuretics lead to water loss. Lastly, find ways to make drinking water fun. Flavor it with lemon, syrup, or fruit juices.

How Assisted Living Communities Help With Senior Nutrition

As we mentioned, many people struggle to have access to the diverse food sources they need to get a nutrient-heavy diet. And, even when they do have access to food, they might not know how to incorporate them into meals or prefer to eat in an unhealthy way.

Assisted living communities provide specialized diets to cover all of the important nutrition areas we discussed in this article. What's more, they offer them in a way that's delicious and healthy.

Many retirement communities can even cater to the nutritional needs of seniors with special conditions. For example, here at Oak Gardens Place, we offer proper diet programs for people with dysphagia.

Lastly, assisted living communities often offer wellness programs that allow people to exercise in an environment that is social and fun.

This helps them burn calories which can improve their appetite and provide a host of health benefits.

Ready to Make Senior Nutrition Easy? Visit Oak Gardens Place

We hope this guide helped you learn more about how assisted living communities can help provide senior nutrition. Here at Oak Gardens Place, we do everything we can to prioritize our residents' wellness through healthy eating for seniors.

From robust and nutritious meal offerings to fitness classes, we make sure you stay happy and healthy well into your retirement years. So if you want to learn more about our community, get in touch with us today.