Excerpt: Maintaining a healthy, stable weight can be challenging for older adults due to factors such as a slowing metabolism, reduced calorie needs and changes in sense of smell and taste. Eating frequent smaller meals, choosing nutrient-dense foods, and dining with others can increase the appetite of seniors trying to gain weight. Exercising regularly, shifting to healthier food choices, and reducing portion sizes can be helpful in reducing excess weight.
January is National Healthy Weight Awareness Month*. For older adults, it can be challenging to maintain a healthy, stable weight due to age-related weight gain or weight loss.
A Nature Medicine study found that the rate at which fat in fat cells is removed decreases with aging*, which helps to explain why some older adults gain weight, even if they don’t eat more, or exercise less than before. As well as having slower metabolisms, seniors may gain weight because they tend to be less active*, according to Healthline.
Some older adults, on the other hand, may lose weight due to reduced calorie needs*, loss of appetite from diminished smell and taste, difficulties in chewing and swallowing, depression, social isolation, forgetting to eat, and medication side effects, according to Harvard Medical School. In the case of sudden, unintentional weight loss*, it’s important to consult with a healthcare professional to determine if there is a medical cause, advises the National Institutes of Health.
Maintaining a healthy weight is an important part of healthy aging. Losing excess weight helps to reduce the risks of heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and type 2 diabetes*. For underweight seniors, gaining weight appropriately lowers the risks of osteoporosis, anemia, malnutrition, low immunity, and frailty*.
Here's how seniors can maintain a healthy, stable weight:
- Eat frequent, smaller meals. If you’re underweight, you may feel full faster. Try eating five or six smaller meals* – sometimes nutritious snacks – rather than two or three large meals, advises Mayo Clinic.
- Stay active to boost appetite. Regular moderate exercise* can increase appetite to replenish calories burned.
- Choose nutrient-dense foods. While calorie needs may decrease with aging, you can get the nutrients you need and gain weight by eating more nutrient-dense foods* with higher amounts of vitamins, minerals, and fibre per calorie. These include whole grains, milk, yogurt and cheese, seafood and lean meats, poultry and eggs, fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
- Use herbs and spices to enhance flavour. If your sense of taste and smell has changed, using herbs and spices to add flavour* to foods can help trigger your appetite and make meals more appealing, according to Canada’s Food Guide.
- Make meals an enjoyable social activity. Eating with others increases food intake significantly*, reported a Physiology and Behavior study.
- Walk briskly to burn more calories. A daily brisk walk* helps you burn more calories and lose body fat, while promoting heart health, improving balance and coordination, and strengthening your bones and muscles.
- Make healthy food swaps. Small shifts in food choices* can make a big difference in achieving or maintaining a healthy weight. Try shifting to whole grains from refined grains, fresh fruit from fruit products with added sugars, and healthy oils from solid fats.
- Adjust portion sizes. Reduce portion sizes* to lose excess weight rather than sacrificing healthy components of a balanced meal.
*The following sources provide references for this blog, in order of appearance:
- enspire. "Healthy Weight Awareness Month"(2022), Online: https://enspiremag.com/2022/01/healthy-weight-awareness-month/
- ScienceDaily. "Why people gain weight as they get older"(2019), Online: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/09/190909193211.htm
- healthline. "Why Your Metabolism Slows Down With Age"(2018), Online: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/metabolism-and-age
- Harvard Health Publishing. "Healthy eating for older adults"(2019), Online: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/healthy-eating-for-older-adults-2019062016868#:~:text=Overcoming%20barriers%20to%20healthy%20eating%201%20Aim%20for,and%20during%20the%20day%2C%20compared%20to%20evening.%20
- National Institute on Aging. "Maintaining a Healthy Weight"(2022), Online: https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/maintaining-healthy-weight
- National Institute on Aging. "Maintaining a Healthy Weight"(2022), Online: https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/maintaining-healthy-weight
- healthline. "6 Health Risks of Being Underweight"(2017), Online: https://www.healthline.com/health/underweight-health-risks
- MAYO CLINIC. "What's a good way to gain weight if you're underweight?"(2023), Online: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/underweight/faq-20058429#:~:text=Here%20are%20some%20healthy%20ways%20to%20gain%20weight,products%3B%20lean%20protein%20sources%3B%20and%20nuts%20and%20seeds.
- healthline. "16 Ways to Increase Your Appetite"(2019), Online: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/16-ways-to-increase-appetite
- National Institute on Againg. "How Much Should I Eat? Quantity and Quality"(2022), Online: https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/how-much-should-i-eat-quantity-and-quality#foodshifts
- Government of Canada. "Canada's food guide. Healthy eating for seniors"(2022), Online: https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/tips-for-healthy-eating/seniors/#section-1
- ScienceDirect. "Situational effects on meal intake: A comparison of eating alone and eating with others"(2006), Online: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0031938406001879#:~:text=Intake%20was%20significantly%20greater%20under%20both%20conditions%20of,TV%2C%20or%20eating%20with%20others%20%28familiar%20and%20unfamiliar%29.
- MAYO CLINIC. "Walking: Trim your waistline, improve your health"(2021), Online: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/in-depth/walking/art-20046261
- National Institute on Againg. "How Much Should I Eat? Quantity and Quality"(2022), Online: https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/how-much-should-i-eat-quantity-and-quality#foodshifts
- Harvard Health Publishing. "Healthy eating for older adults"(2019), Online: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/healthy-eating-for-older-adults-2019062016868#:~:text=Overcoming%20barriers%20to%20healthy%20eating%201%20Aim%20for,and%20during%20the%20day%2C%20compared%20to%20evening.%20