Not too long ago, you were more active and had a higher metabolism to help overcome any dietary shortcomings. 

Fast forward into your senior years, you’re faced with some challenges.  Likely, you’re less active and your metabolism has slowed. You may have developed a chronic medical condition that can limit your food selections.

How can you maintain good senior nutrition with a restricted diet?  What foods are good for old age?  

Let’s take a look at the recommendations for a balanced senior diet. Once we know the basics, we’ll explore some common dietary limitations and work them into your senior nutrition program.

What is a Balanced Diet for Seniors?

It’s probably not surprising that a healthy weight and physical activity (within limitations) can help seniors to remain strong and reduce the risk of illness or disability.

In 2011, the USDA replaced their Food Pyramid with ChooseMyPlate, which graphically illustrates the updated, demographic-specific recommendations for daily food group portions.

Although the food group portions and ratios have changed slightly, the underlying goal of these USDA recommendations remains constant:

Select a variety of foods for your diet that provide the nutrients your body needs.

Proper nutrition can be maintained with a healthy variety of foods that support the special needs of aging adults.  Increases in calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, and fiber are recommended.  Also, reducing sodium, saturated fats, and trans fat will help ward off high blood pressure and heart disease. 

Senior Dietary Restrictions and Limitations 

Food allergies, chronic medical conditions, and disease prevention are the primary reasons that specific foods should be eliminated or limited in a senior diet. 

Let’s explore several dietary restrictions and how seniors can adjust their diets to overcome these limitations.

1. Break Up with Sugar 

There are many reasons for seniors to limit sugar intake, but perhaps the most compelling is that sugar provides absolutely no nutritional value!  

In addition, too much sugar contributes to or has been linked to:

• type 2 diabetes
• obesity
• high blood pressure
• high cholesterol
• high triglycerides
• tooth decay
• mild cognitive impairment

Key Point #1: Limit your sugar intake to help reduce problems with diabetes, obesity, and cognitive decline. One tip is to use an artificial sweetener instead.  

2. Avoid Anti-Inflammatory Foods To Stop the Swelling 

Arthritis and chronic inflammation are common senior health challenges.  Inflammation is a body’s response to cleanse itself of toxins. 

To help reduce inflammation and the pain that comes with it, seniors can avoid eating inflammatory foods and add more anti-inflammatory foods to their diets. 

Here are some foods in each category:  

Anti-Inflammatory Foods (Include)

Inflammatory Foods (Avoid)

Tomatoes & Broccoli

Sodas & Other High-Sugar Beverages

Fruits:  Strawberries, Blueberries, Oranges & Tart Cherries

Processed and Red Meats:  Hot dogs, Sausage, Beef

Nuts:  Almonds, Walnuts

Fried Foods:  French Fries, Fried Chicken

Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

Refined carbs:  White bread, white rice

Leafy Greens: Spinach, Kale, Collards

Margarine, Shortening & Lard

Fatty Fish:  Salmon, Tuna, sardines, mackerel

Foods with Artificial Trans Fats (link to Fats: The Good and the Bad Section)

Key Point #2: Avoid inflammatory foods like soda and fried food to help with pain from arthritis and inflammation. Eat more foods like fresh vegetables, fresh fish, and nuts. Discipline yourself to do this so you the quality of the life with your family is extended and improved.

3. Hold the Salt: Low Sodium Solutions

Doctors often ask their elderly patients to reduce their sodium intake, with good reason.

Recommendations for senior sodium intake for seniors varies between 1,200 to 1,500 milligrams.  The daily upper limit for healthy seniors is 2,300 milligrams of sodium. To put that in perspective,

One teaspoon of salt contains 2,325 milligrams of sodium.  

High sodium intake is associated with high blood pressure, a “modifiable lifestyle risk factor” for stroke or heart disease.  Additionally, high sodium levels (among other factors) can cause fluid retention in the body.

Sodium reduction can be extremely challenging in senior diets, particularly if meals consist of pre-processed foods.    

Here are some of the most common suggestions that seniors can adopt to reduce their sodium intake:

• Use salt substitutes with caution. They can raise potassium levels, which can cause potentially fatal heart issues in seniors.  
• Keep the salt shaker off the table. Try no-salt herb or spice blends instead.
• Check Nutrition Fact labels for sodium amounts per serving.  Buy low- or no-salt canned and packaged foods instead.
• Rinse canned foods (like beans, vegetables or tuna) before preparing.  
• Get out the apron!  The Mayo Clinic provides free access to delicious recipes with less than 140 milligrams per serving.  
• When dining out, select fresh, lower-sodium options and request that your meal be prepared without added salt. 

Key Point #3: Avoid processed foods to reduce sodium intake to help lower blood pressure and deter fluid retention.

4. Fats: The Good and the Bad

You’ve learned that not all fats are created equally.  But, it can be confusing to distinguish between good and bad fats. 

Bad fats are to blame for extra pounds or high cholesterol (high LDL) which is a risk factor for heart disease. 

When your doctor suggests a low-fat diet to lower your bad cholesterol (LDL) levels, the approach is two-fold:  reduce “bad” fats and concentrate on eating more “good” fats.

So, what’s the difference between dietary fats?

Good Fats

Bad Fats

Monounsaturated Fats

Natural and Artificial Trans Fats

Polyunsaturated Fats and Omega-3s

Saturated Fats

Recommended: For good dietary fat food suggestions, see Choosing Healthy Fats.

Key Point #4: Avoid trans fats and saturated fats to lower cholesterol (HDL) and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Importance of Nutrition: Challenges for Senior Eating

When it comes to nutritional concerns for the elderly, it’s not just about what they eat.  Physical conditions such as an inability to chew or swallow may impact the diet for an elderly person and their overall health.  Some medications may interfere with the absorption of nutrients from foods, causing deficiencies in essential vitamins and minerals.

Let’s take a look at some common eating challenges that seniors can face.   

5. Counting Calories: Too Many or Not Enough?

Fact:  Seniors need fewer daily calories than they did when they were younger.

For some seniors, it may be a challenge to maintain a healthy diet with a limited number of calories.  The recommended reduction in daily caloric intake is cause for older adults to make wiser food choices that’ll support their senior nutrition needs and fend off weight gain.

On the other hand, a lack of appetite or changes in taste buds can cause seniors to consume fewer calories than they need, resulting in a lack of nutrients to keep them healthy.

To make foods more appealing and encourage a higher intake:

• Add color with a variety of healthy vegetables and fruits
• Expand food flavors with low sodium spice blends or herbs
• Offer several smaller nutritious meals and snacks throughout the day
• Avoid empty calorie foods (junk foods) that don’t provide nutrients
• Strive to include high-calorie, highly nutritious foods into each meal.  

Recommended: Need advice on ramping up the nutrients in your diet?  See How Can I Eat More Nutrient-Dense Foods?   

Key Point #5: Choose nutrient-rich foods to fulfill lower senior daily caloric requirements. Make foods more appealing for those who need to consume more calories by adding color or spice blends. 

6. Just Add Water 

Water sustains life.  We all know that we need it.

Dehydration happens when the body is not getting enough water to allow our bodies to function properly. 

Seniors are prone to get dehydrated because of decreased thirst or kidney function, side effects of certain medications (diuretics, for example), or they may simply avoid liquids to reduce the need to urinate more frequently.

Senior bodies store less water, so dehydration can occur more quickly.

Some strategies to maintain good hydration in the elderly would be:

• take small sips of water throughout the day
• keep water or other favorite beverages within reach
• avoid alcohol and high protein drinks that have a diuretic effect
• Encourage liquids with every meal
• Don’t skip meals
• Limit water before bedtime to reduce night time continence concerns.  
  
  Recommended: Explore this list of 19 water-rich foods to add to your senior meal plans.

Key Point #6: Maintain good hydration by drinking water and eating water rich foods to keep bodily systems functioning properly.

7. Fiber is Your Best Friend

Most seniors have… “bathroom troubles” from time to time. 

Seniors can adopt a high-fiber diet to help counteract constipation and the malabsorption of nutrients that results from slowed intestinal motility, common in older adults. High fiber foods consumed with plenty of water can help to stimulate intestinal motility.  

As a bonus, a high fiber diet may also help to reduce cholesterol and regulate blood sugar levels, which reduces risks for heart disease and type-2 diabetes.  Fiber can also help with weight reduction because it makes you feel full. 

Foods choices that are rich in fiber are:

• Whole grains
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Legumes

Recommended: High Fiber Foods offers some additional information and advice for adding fiber to your diet.

Key Point #7: Add fiber into your diet from whole grains and legumes to help reduce cholesterol and ward off constipation.

8. Get Vitamins from Foods, Not Pills

Diet may not be the sole reason for common vitamin, mineral and protein deficiencies in seniors, but avoidance of certain foods may be a contributing factor.

Perhaps the most prevalent dietary deficiency in American seniors is vitamin D.  The “sunshine vitamin” is produced in our bodies when it’s exposed to sunlight, but seniors typically don’t get enough sunlight. 

Lacking sun exposure and need some vitamin D?  Consider food sources like:

• fatty fish (salmon or canned tuna)
• egg yolks
• fortified foods like cow or soy milk, orange juice and cereals

Consult the advice of a physician before making any radical changes to your diet.  Excessive intake of some vitamins or minerals (in food or supplement form) can be detrimental to seniors’ health.

Recommended: Wondering about vitamin needs for seniors over 65 or 70? Read: Do Older Adults Need Vitamins, Supplements?

Key Point #8: Try to get essential vitamins, minerals and protein from food instead of supplements and pills.

9. Keeping Food Safe: Tips to Reduce Risks

Did you know that older adults are at a higher risk for hospitalization and death due to foodborne illnesses? 

Seniors who prepare food for themselves or others who prepare food for seniors should take these steps to ensure safe food preparation (Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill):

• Wash hands, utensils, cutting boards and countertops often
• Keep raw meat, chicken, seafood, and eggs separated to prevent the spread of bacteria to other foods
• Cook food until the internal temperature is high enough to kill illness-causing germs
• Refrigerate foods as quickly as possible.  Food-poisoning bacteria multiply the fastest between 40℉ degrees and 140℉.  
• Follow the “when in doubt, throw it out” approach with questionable food quality.
  

Key Point #9:  Follow food safety recommendations by washing your hands and utensils while making sure food is stored and cooked at its proper temperature. Seniors are more susceptible to foodborne illnesses.

10. Have Lunch with a Friend

A study of 600 American seniors who lived alone showed that many faced challenges with eating well, particularly due to the lack of sharing mealtime experiences with others. Other challenges, like cooking or shopping for one person, and eating three balanced meals each day were noted.

Social isolation can increase the risk of senior malnutrition, weight loss, and depression.

Assisted living facilities and nursing homes offer nutritious, restaurant-style meals for their residents in a social atmosphere that encourages better eating habits.

If your loved one is not a resident of a senior community and lives alone, look for ways to help encourage socialization into some meals. The following precooked meal delivery or preparation services can provide in-home socialization opportunities with volunteers:

• Meals on Wheels
• Administration on Aging Nutrition Services Program
• Chefs for Seniors 

       
Recommended: For more ideas to encourage social eating, read National Eat With a Friend Day.

Key Point #10: Find opportunities for seniors to share mealtime experiences with others to encourage healthy eating.

Fuel For Thought: Plan Your Plate! 

Food is our fuel. 

Proper senior nutrition can be challenging due to many factors.  How can the elderly improve nutrition when habits, living situations, medications, chronic medical conditions or aging body requirements make it difficult to get all the nutrients they need?

The simplest advice comes from ChooseMyPlate: Aim for a colorful, balanced plate: one-half fruits and veggies, the other half whole grains & lean proteins. But, as we’ve discovered, it’s not that easy when you have limitations. 

The next time you meet with your doctor or dietician, ask for their guidelines for meals for seniors that includes a variety of healthy foods to eat, aimed to improve the quality of nutrition in your senior diet.   

“You are never too old to set another goal or dream a new dream.”  ...C. S. Lewis

This content should not be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinicians.