Prime Time Living 6.14.26 - Flipbook - Page 10
| Sunday, June 14, 2026
10
HEALTH
Finding
Information on
the Foods You Eat
As you age, certain nutrients
become even more important
By Margit B. Weisgal, Contributing Writer
I
f you want an estimate of the nutrients you’re getting from the food(s) you eat, here is
a website you can use to track what you ingest. My Food Diary (www.myfooddiary.com)
lists products and ingredients from multiple sources, both brand names and generic
products – like Trader Joe’s and Golden Corral. You can find Greek Yogurt with or without
a name brand. Its focus is people on diets, so if you’re interested in losing weight, it’s good
to have the information on what you eat each day.
Even if you don’t want to lose weight,
you can use the diary for a month or so
and see how everything averages out.
You can verify you’re eating enough of
the following nutrients for your ongoing
health. It’s far, far preferable that you
ingest these elements from food, if possible.
Key Ingredients
These are the ones that you should pay
attention to as you age.
• Protein: New evidence from the
National Library of Medicine shows
that adults over 65 need more dietary
protein than do younger adults to
support good health, promote recov-
ery from illness and maintain functionality. Based on studies in the
European Union, older adults need
1.0 to 1.2 g protein per kilogram of
body weight per day. If they have
active lifestyles, the upper amount
is preferred. Take your weight and
divide by 2.2 (a kilo in pounds). Then
multiply by 1 or 1.2.
• Calcium: Important for strong bones
and a healthy body throughout your
life. If you’re under 50, you need
1,000 mg.; over 65? Up your intake
to 1,200 mg.
• Vitamin D3: for strong bones! The
body needs it, along with calcium, to
build bones and keep them healthy.
The body can absorb calcium only if
it has enough vitamin D. Calcium is a
major part of bones. D2 is from fortified foods. D3 is from the sun and
skin. D3 is slightly more effective,
states the Mayo Clinic.
• Vitamin A: Supports growth, vision,
and cell function; it also has antioxidant properties.
• Vitamin B12: Used to make and
support healthy nerve cells. It’s also
used to make healthy red blood cells
and the genetic material inside cells
called DNA.
• Vitamin B6: Important for normal
brain development and for keeping
the nervous system and immune
system healthy.
• Vitamin K2: Vitamin K comes in two
forms: K1 and K2. “…the exciting
thing about vitamin K2 is that it’s
absorbed by your body more slowly
than vitamin K1. Whereas vitamin
K1 is quickly filtered out of your
blood – often within a matter of
hours, vitamin K2 has the potential
to be longer-lasting. That means it
stays in your body— several days
even — and has more time to do its
good work,” according to the Mayo
Clinic. It also helps your blood clot,
important if you experience an injury.
Research shows it contributes to
healthy bones, working in conjunction with Calcium and Vitamin D. It
also helps activate a protein called
osteocalcin, which binds to calcium
to build bones, and early studies
are showing that vitamin K2 supplements may reduce fractures and
improve bone quality in people with
osteoporosis.
Links for additional information
• Healthy Eating Index from the U.S.
Department of Agriculture, Food
Nutrition Service: www.fns.usda.gov/
cnpp/healthy-eating-index
• Eat Real Food: https://realfood.gov/
• Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition
Research Center on Aging: A study
from HNRCA on Vitamin K says,
“Higher brain concentrations of vitamin K are linked to lower odds of
cognitive impairment and neuroinflammation.” https://hnrca.tufts.edu/
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