Many studies have shown that people whose body mass index is at the upper limit of the ideal range are more likely to live longer. According to the recommendation of the World Health Organization, the ideal weight range of adults should be between 19.5-24.9 according to the body mass index. For us in China, it may be more ideal to control the body mass index between 19.5-23.5. Combining these two sets of data, middle-aged and elderly people who can keep their body mass index between 23.5 and 24.9 all the year round may be healthier and live longer. The weight loss of the elderly is often related to their natural decline and suffering from some chronic diseases, such as:
1. The chewing ability of food is decreased due to oral diseases and tooth loss, which affects the eating ability and food selection range of the elderly;
2. The sensory functions of taste, smell and vision decline, which leads to the decline of the elderly's interest in eating and also affects their appetite when eating;
3. Weakening of digestive ability often leads to loss of appetite and satiety in the elderly, which in turn affects eating habits and absorption of nutrients;
4. Effects of various chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, liver diseases and kidney diseases; Some diseases themselves affect eating ability, while others are caused by excessive dieting in order to control diseases;
Due to some factors, the time and frequency of elderly people eating alone have increased, which will also affect their appetite for eating and absorption of nutrients.
How can we improve the diet nutrition of the elderly and improve their disease resistance and longevity? From the perspective of diet, we should pay attention to the following points:
1, adhere to the food diversification strategy. Diversification of food is the premise to ensure adequate nutrition. Adults eat 12 different foods every day, especially the elderly. 1-2 staple food, meat, eggs and milk are indispensable; Others include vegetables, fruits, nuts and bean products. ,, and should all be involved;
2, try to cook soft food. Hard food can be broken into powder or fine particles, and the cooking time can be appropriately extended, which is conducive to overcoming the problem of chewing and digestive function decline of the elderly;
3. Some elderly people will reduce the number of meals each time, which can be compensated by eating less. The number of snacks and midnight snacks can be appropriately increased between meals to meet the nutritional needs of a day;
4. It is especially necessary to protect high-quality protein foods, such as milk, eggs, peeled poultry, fish, shrimp, lean meat, etc., which is conducive to maintaining human muscle tissue and improving immunity.
In addition to strengthening diet, everyone should also increase the daily physical activity. On the one hand, increasing activity and reducing sitting and lying time will help to increase appetite and get more nutrition; On the other hand, participating in physical exercise is conducive to improving physical fitness and increasing muscle strength, which is a very good way to prolong life. Of course, the most important thing for the elderly to participate in physical exercise is to do what they can, step by step and persevere.