Eat yourself healthy

As we age, our daily diet increasingly needs to not only help us maintain a healthy weight, but to deliver vital nutrients to stay strong and fit for as long as possible. So discover how you can give your body a helping hand

RIGHT from the very first days of our life, our bodies are constantly evolving: from those early years when we grow from a tiny infant, through childhood and into adulthood, to the later stages of life, when hormonal changes and age-related issues begin to have an impact, we undergo a number of physical changes, both internally and externally. Of course, when we’re young, we’re dependent upon others to ensure we eat well, but as we get older it’s up to us to make sure our diet is well balanced and delivers all we need to stay healthy. And it stands to reason that, as our bodies change, those needs change.

Of course, whatever stage of life we are in, we all need basic nutrients on a daily basis, and a varied diet – taking in protein, starchy foods, healthy fats and a range of essential vitamins and minerals through fresh produce – is key to overall wellbeing and helping avoid lifestyle-related disease.

OUR CHANGING BODIES

But, as we age, we all have evolving dietary needs that mean we sometimes have to look beyond our regular daily meals to ensure we get the right nutrients. And, while many of us have focused on being slim for much of our lives, it’s important that we maintain a healthy body weight – being underweight or overweight can be bad for your health. It’s easy to gain weight as our body composition changes over time: we lose muscle and gain fat tissue, and often become more sedentary, meaning our energy needs drop. Hormonal changes as we age can also mean fat settles around our middle, putting increased pressure on vital organs.

Conversely, some people suffer a marked drop in appetite over the years: as their sense of taste and smell changes, their enjoyment of food can diminish. So, it’s important to avoid bland meals and add varied flavour, colour and texture to our daily menu to stimulate the taste buds.

NOURISH YOUR BODY

Eating a nourishing, balanced diet helps to keep our strength up – a strong body means a healthier body, able to stay active and fend off illness and disease for longer. If you find you are putting on weight, consider lighter, but nutrient-rich, alternatives to traditional favourites, perhaps using courgetti (thin strips of courgette) instead of spaghetti, or substituting gluten-free noodles for classic ones.

We all need cholesterol in our body to help it function properly, but monitoring levels is important, as too much, in the form of ‘bad cholesterol’ (Low Density Lipoproteins/LDLs) can compromise the function of our arteries and increase the risk of heart disease. Your GP can advise on dietary and lifestyle changes to help lower cholesterol levels – sometimes foods and dietary supplements containing plant sterols can support your endeavours.

Avoiding processed foods and ingredients such as refined sugars and saturated fats has been clinically proven to reduce risk of heart disease, certain cancers and type 2 diabetes, so keep ready meals, confectionery and fried foods in check. And look at our tips for more ways to help ‘eat yourself healthy’: small changes to your diet can make a big difference to your wellbeing.