What's a proper diet for the elderly?
My Dad eats butter, bacon, sausages, carrot cakes, Hersheys chocolates, Magnum ice cream, New York pizza, duck embryo, rice cakes with cane sugar, fried eggs, fried rice, fried chicken, spam, potato chips, pork chops, barbeque - everything bad that I could possibly imagine.
It's a big effort for dad to eat vegetables in any form - soups, steamed, stir-fried, roasted.
One time, it was up to me to make food for Dad for a couple weeks as my Mom went away. He didn't ask me to cook breakfast, he would just have a cup of coffee. By lunch, I would make him oatmeal. For dinner, I'd stir-fry vegetables with very little meat. He didn't complain. However, when my Mom returned, I was shocked to see a different level of happiness in his eyes. The kitchen table was again filled with freshly cooked rice, roasted pork and chicken, fried fish, stewed bone marrow with vegetables and peanut sauce and deep fried, crispy pork thigh. To be honest, I was so relieved that I remember exclaiming, "Thank God! Mom's back Dad!" My dad's smiling lips could almost reach his ears.
On the other side of the equator however, I noticed the elderly would not even consider eating meat and would only occasionally have chicken and fish meat. They'd control their egg and butter intake, once a week is a plenty. They would eat steamed vegetables nightly. They would have freshly made fruit juice. However, they would have their cookies, chocolates, custard and pies and a glass or two of wine.
So I'm not writing as a dietician or a nutritionist or a geriatric nurse. I'm writing because for some reason, amidst all the online articles about what to eat or not to eat, I realise that:
1. Balance is important. The more colours you see on the plate, the better.
2. Eat in moderation.
3. Eat on time, at least every 3-4 hours.
4. Eat more times, but smaller portions.
5. Have at least 8 full glasses of water on a normal day. If on medication, maybe more.
6. Try a 10-12 hour fast, if you can. But to make it simpler, just try not to eat 4 hours before you sleep.
7. Try not to stress eat.
8. Always eat with someone.
It's a big effort for dad to eat vegetables in any form - soups, steamed, stir-fried, roasted.
One time, it was up to me to make food for Dad for a couple weeks as my Mom went away. He didn't ask me to cook breakfast, he would just have a cup of coffee. By lunch, I would make him oatmeal. For dinner, I'd stir-fry vegetables with very little meat. He didn't complain. However, when my Mom returned, I was shocked to see a different level of happiness in his eyes. The kitchen table was again filled with freshly cooked rice, roasted pork and chicken, fried fish, stewed bone marrow with vegetables and peanut sauce and deep fried, crispy pork thigh. To be honest, I was so relieved that I remember exclaiming, "Thank God! Mom's back Dad!" My dad's smiling lips could almost reach his ears.
On the other side of the equator however, I noticed the elderly would not even consider eating meat and would only occasionally have chicken and fish meat. They'd control their egg and butter intake, once a week is a plenty. They would eat steamed vegetables nightly. They would have freshly made fruit juice. However, they would have their cookies, chocolates, custard and pies and a glass or two of wine.
So I'm not writing as a dietician or a nutritionist or a geriatric nurse. I'm writing because for some reason, amidst all the online articles about what to eat or not to eat, I realise that:
1. Balance is important. The more colours you see on the plate, the better.
2. Eat in moderation.
3. Eat on time, at least every 3-4 hours.
4. Eat more times, but smaller portions.
5. Have at least 8 full glasses of water on a normal day. If on medication, maybe more.
6. Try a 10-12 hour fast, if you can. But to make it simpler, just try not to eat 4 hours before you sleep.
7. Try not to stress eat.
8. Always eat with someone.
