Aging & Dieting

Dietary needs change at every stage of life. Just as a child’s needs are different from a teen’s, so are the nutritional requirements of a mature adult. As we age, our metabolism slows down. As a result, our need for calories decreases, but our nutritional needs increase. The goal then is to find ways to get more quality out of a smaller quantity of food. Eating too much and exercising too little is also a common problem as people age. One can gain as much as a pound a year after age 35. Keeping active, which helps boost the metabolism, and eating well not only help maintain weight, but may also help stave off certain illnesses that become increasingly common with aging, such as colds and the flu. The National Institutes of Health says that exercise and maintaining proper weight are among the five key components to increasing one’s life span, along with getting enough sleep, not smoking and having regular physical check-ups.