Componentes básicos y sus símbolos

Factors Influencing Nutritional Risk of Older New Zealanders

Rose Carr

The interviews

During 2006, 51 people aged between 80 and 85 years living in the

community in North Shore City answered a questionnaire which

asked about three aspects of their life, namely:

§ Social networks;

§ Abilities to carry out activities of daily life; and

§ Food and eating behaviours.

Less structured interviews were conducted with five people who had

experienced different types of nutrition support, namely:

§ Meals on Wheels

§ Lunch club

§ Frozen meals

§ Advice from a Public Health dietitian

§ Home care assistance with meal preparation

Findings

Social networks

A high proportion of participants had strong support networks

amongst family, friends or the wider community. This can have a

positive influence on people’s nutrition. Older people without such

networks generally need to initiate the use of formal support

Nutrition risk

Overall, just over two-thirds of participants had adequate nutrition,

however nearly one-third of participants were found to be at nutrition

risk (for malnutrition). These people had dietary habits or food-

related behaviours that, over time, have been shown to be

associated with poor nutrition status. These factors were discussed

with participants individually immediately following the interview.

The level of nutrition risk in this group of community living older

people is comparable to levels found in overseas studies.

Personal wellbeing

Self-rated health can be seen as an overview of a person’s

wellbeing. Half the participants rated their health as excellent or very

good; nearly one-third rated their health as good; and one-fifth rated

their health as fair. A key finding of this study was that those who

perceived their health to be fair or poor were more likely to be at

high nutrition risk.

Nutrition support

The interviews about different types of nutrition support highlighted

the importance of social contact. It seemed that people’s nutrition

needs were being met by the different services in a number of

different ways.

Nutrition for older people – key tips

Older people need less energy (calories or kilojoules) than when

they were younger, but they still need the same, if not more, of the

vitamins and minerals food provides. This means the quality of our

diet becomes more important as we grow older. Foods that provide

lots of nutrients with relatively little energy – like vegetables and

fruits – are even more important. Unfortunately things like chocolate

cake, for example, that fill us up but provide little in the way of

vitamins and minerals, need to be eaten in much smaller quantities.

·

Tip: Aim for bigger portions of fruits and vegetables and

smaller portions of high energy (high calorie/kilojoule)

foods.

Many people in this study did not eat enough protein foods.

Research now suggests that higher protein intakes can help older

people maintain muscle. For this reason the Ministry of Health

recently increased the recommendations for protein intakes for

people over 70 years old.

Foods containing protein include: lean meat, chicken, seafood,

eggs, cooked dried beans, peas and lentils. These foods are also

good sources of iron, zinc and other nutrients. Milk and dairy

products also add protein to our diet.

·

Tip: Aim to include protein foods in at least two meals each

day.

Easy examples - beans on toast; poached, scrambled or

boiled eggs; canned salmon, tuna or sardines on toast or in

a salad; add quick-cooking red lentils to soups; bean salad

(using canned 5-bean mix); hot chocolate made with milk.

Many New Zealanders, including older people, don’t get the

recommended amounts of fibre in their diets. Breads and cereals,

especially whole grains, are a good source of fibre as well as being

an important source of carbohydrate, B vitamins and minerals.

·

Tip: Aim for 6 serves of breads and cereals each day and

make at least half whole grains. Whole grains include oats,

bran, brown rice, barley, wholemeal pasta, whole grain

breads or crackers, sweet corn and popcorn.

1 serve = 1 slice grainy bread; ½ cup porridge; 1 cup

cooked pasta

Many people in this study did not eat enough dairy foods. These add

protein to the diet, are an important source of calcium for bone

health, and provide other nutrients. As dairy contains saturated fats

which are not good for heart health, always choose reduced fat-milk,

yoghurt or cheese.

·

Tip: Aim for 2 or more serves of dairy each day.

Examples: a glass of milk; a pottle of yoghurt; 2 slices of

cheese; 2 scoops of ice cream.

Adequate fluids are important for many reasons, not least of all to

avoid constipation and maintain blood pressure. It’s recommended

we aim for 6 to 8 glasses of fluids each day – but this can be as tea,

coffee, milk, juice or water. Any beverage except alcohol counts. We

need to drink more when it’s hot or when we’ve been active.

·

Tip: As we age our thirst mechanism does not work as well,

so it’s a good idea to develop a habit of drinking at regular

times during the day.

In document 11438 pdf (página 31-40)