HEALTHY LIVING


The Right Foods to Eat When You’re Over 50


As we age, our bodies’ need change. Here’s how to ensure your nutritional requirements are being met. ::


BY GARY GREENBERG J


ust as an older car may need a higher grade of gas, the aging human body needs a higher grade of fuel, in


the form of food, to keep running smoothly. “Mother Nature is not kind to us,”


says registered dietitian Joan Salge Blake, author of Nutrition & You. “As we age, the metabolic rate declines, so we need fewer calories. “But at the same time we need as


many or even more nutrients. So we have to be smart about diet choices. We have to make sure each bite counts.” To help seniors make smart decisions, scientists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (HNRCA) at Tufts University have created the MyPlate for Older Adults infographic, an update of the old food pyramid, specifically designed for seniors. Half of MyPlate for Older Adults is


filled with fruits and vegetables, with the rest evenly split between whole grains, and protein and dairy.


78 NEWSMAX MAXLIFE | JANUARY 2019


I tell people, when they look at their plate, they want to see a rainbow, the different colors mean you are getting a wide range of protective phytochemicals.”


— Keri Greenfield, Integrative nutrition coach Healthy fats and oils, and herbs


and spices, are included on the side. The takeaway is to eat more whole foods and less of the processed stuff. Integrative nutrition coach Keri


Greenfield suggests that people alter their diets by “crowding out” unhealthy foods. “In the crowding-out method,


we add more healthy foods to a client’s meal plan so there is less room for the unhealthy foods,” explains Greenfield, a geriatric nurse practitioner who works with seniors in the Dementia Prevention Program at Florida Atlantic University’s Comprehensive Center for Brain Health. “You are literally crowding out the


junk until you reach a well-balanced diet that is sustainable.” Here are some of the special nutritional needs of seniors and the foods that best supply them:


ANTIOXIDANTS Why they’re needed: Flavonoids,


phytochemicals, polyphenols, and other antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables are some of the most potent anti-aging compounds around. They help protect cells from


renegade ions called free radicals, which cause oxidative stress and the resulting inflammation that contributes to heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s, arthritis, and other chronic problems. “That’s why older people tend


to feel tired so frequently,” says Dr. Sandra Kaufmann, author of “The Kaufmann Protocol: Why We Age and How to Stop It.” What to eat: HNRCA scientists,


Greenfield, and many others suggest choosing produce that has the deepest colors, which signals high antioxidant content. Compounds such as the orange-


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