Prime Time Living 6.14.26 - Flipbook - Page 21
| Sunday, June 14, 2026
Changing Nutritional Needs
Continued from page 8
we need to maintain a healthy weight.
We start to decline in our dietary energy
requirements in midlife, and it continues
to decrease. People are now living longer – 80s, 90s and centenarians; they
only require 1,200-1,500 calories a day to
maintain a healthy weight. However, the
new energy requirements say that these
older adults need the same caloric intake
as a 10-year-old boy.
Here’s the kicker: dietary recommendations still say adults need a certain
amount of micronutrients. To accomplish
that goal with fewer calories, we must
consume nutrient-dense foods: lots of
fruits, vegetables, no baked goods, no
chips (sigh!), none of the foods that have
a lot of wasted calories and limited micronutrients.
Important Nutrients and Vitamins
It’s worth looking at what nutrients and
vitamins we need for healthy aging. The
only way to get micronutrients is through
our diet, preferably one that follows the
Healthy Eating Index, is low in saturated
fats and modest amounts of mono- and
unsaturated fats, and low in unprocessed
and red meats.
As our bodies and lifestyles change
with age, along with the burden of disease, several micronutrients take on more
importance because we don’t always get
enough of them. First on the list is Vitamin
B12 (cobalamin), one of eight B vitamins.
“The body uses it 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,” according to the Mayo Clinic.
Older adults are particularly prone to a
B12 deficiency. One reason is because of
atrophic gastritis, a thinning of the lining
of the stomach that occurs as we age.
This is a silent condition that interferes
with B12 absorption. Several drugs like
Prilosec and Protonix (to reduce stomach
acid and treat GERD), as well as metformin (for diabetes) also interfere. By the
time people reach 80, about 40 percent
have atrophic gastritis.
Low or even a slight B12 inadequacy is
sufficient to cause various impairments in
neurologic and cognitive function. Clinical
trials show that people who have metabolic indicators of low B12 actually
predict the subsequent development of
dementia.
One other important nutrient is Vitamin
A, which the body uses to support
growth, vision and cell function. It’s also
called retinol or retinoic acid. Vitamin A
has antioxidant properties.
The Best Source of Nutrients
is Food
At some point, it may be worthwhile
to consult a dietician on how to include
the important nutrients and vitamins
without resorting to supplements, which
are unregulated. Most people don’t pay
attention to the FDA warning on OTC
supplements:
“These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
This product is not intended to diagnose,
treat, cure or prevent any disease.”
These products are unregulated, so no
one is checking that the product inside
the bottle matches the information on
the label. The companies that make them
are far less strict than manufacturing
standards for FDA approved drugs and
medicines.
Don’t Waste Time (or money) on
Dietary Supplements
“‘Dietary supplement’ is an umbrella
term. It includes everything from individual nutrients – vitamins A, B, C, D, E and
K and minerals like calcium – to multivitamins and specialized “senior” formulas
that contain various combinations of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and other
compounds.
“For instance, dietary supplements
cannot make claims about treating specific conditions on their labels, like ‘lowers heart disease risk’ or ‘protects against
dementia.’ Yet, the guidelines do allow for
phrases like ‘promotes heart health’ or
‘supports immunity.’ However, any such
phrases must be followed by the warning
above.
“Healthy adults don’t need dietary supplements. But realize that multivitamins
have their limits. They might offer extra
vitamins and minerals you may occasionally lack from your regular diet, but they
are not a replacement for healthy eating,
and they won’t offer special benefits or
protection,” according to an article published by Harvard Medical School.
End Notes
Some of the supplements people take,
their bodies cannot absorb the nutrients
that are in there because the transporters
are saturated. Ask your clinician or dietitian, “What do I need?”
There are some people who posit that
our loss of smell or taste is not actually a
normal physiological change but rather
driven by medication use. Polypharmacy,
which is covered in a separate article in
this section, taking more than five medications every day, is a big issue among
older adults. Medicines can interact with
food and with supplements causing an
unexpected complication.
Many supplements are targeted toward
older adults for the purpose of reducing
cognitive decline. AARP has done many
surveys on this and a substantial number
of Americans believe that taking a pill will
help. Indeed, there’s no evidence right
now to indicate that these supplements
are doing anything.
A healthy diet, amongst other things,
prevents many chronic diseases including dementia. There is increasing data to
suggest that it’s important to address that
issue in middle age.
About the
Experts Sourced:
Roger A. Fielding, Ph.D.,
(https://hnrca.tufts.edu/people/
faculty/roger-fielding), is a Senior
Scientist in the Metabolism & Basic
Biology of Aging directive at the
HNRCA. Dr. Fielding has conducted
numerous studies examining the role
of skeletal muscle power on physical
performance in older adults.
Courtney Millar, Ph.D.,
(CourtneyMillar@hsl.harvard.edu), is a
research scientist devoted to improving
health and well-being of older adults
through dietary interventions. She
developed a deep understanding
of the relationship between dietary
bioactive components and metabolic
disease. She also works on brain
health and physical health and
function.
Sarah L. Booth, Ph.D.,
(sarah.booth@tufts.edu), Director of
the HNRCA at Tufts University as well
as Senior Scientist and leader of the
Diet & Aging Brain, Sensory Systems
directive. She is an international
leader in vitamin K research. Among
her many research accomplishments,
Booth developed the methodology for
measuring vitamin K forms in a variety
of food matrices and her research
team continues to generate vitamin
K food composition data that are
incorporated into national nutrient
databases.
Dr. Joel B. Mason, M.D.,
is a Senior Scientist in the Diet &
Chronic Disease Prevention for
Healthy Aging directive at the HNRCA.
He studies the cellular pathways by
which 1-carbon nutrients, obesity,
and the colonic microbiome alter the
risk of cancer formation, and his team
develops strategies based on this
knowledge for the purposes of cancer
prevention.
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