Health Info for the Elderly (Eating Problems)

The elderly will inevitably face some health issues in their daily life.  Knowing more can facilitate early identification, prevention and treatment.

Eating Problems

Older adults might encounter chewing difficulty, indigestion, taste loss or poor appetite with increasing age.

Chewing difficulties

Causes:

• Oral cavity, dental or jaw problems such as loosened teeth and ill-fitting dentures

• Decreased saliva secretion

Care:

• Seek medical advice on dental, oral cavity and jaw related problems as soon as possible.
• Prepare soft or moist food, for example, soaking bread or crackers in soup, milk or soy milk, and adding gravies or soup to moisten the food.
• Choose the food with suitable texture:
  

Indigestion

Causes:

• Gut and bowel diseases

• Side effects of medications
• Frequent consumption of food high in fat
• Smoking, excessive drinking, lack of exercise, stress

Care:

• Eat small frequent meals and chew slowly
  

• Avoid intake of spicy and high-fat food
• Exercise regularly, quit smoking and avoid alcohol beverages
• Avoid lying down right after meals
• Avoid gassy foods if you have bloating: e.g. Onion, bell pepper, green peas, cabbage, broccoli, sweet potato, dried beans, milk and its products, and soft drinks
  

Loss of taste

Causes:

• Reduced sense of taste due to deterioration of taste buds with increasing age
• Nasal or sinus problems, cold, influenza, head and facial trauma or other neurological disorders
• Side effects of medications
• Oral cavity, teeth or gum problems
• Smoking and alcoholism

Care:

• Use natural seasonings such as ginger, spring onion, garlic, dried tangerine peel, coriander, pepper, etc., more often
• Use fruits or colourful vegetables such as tomato, bell pepper, carrot and pumpkin more often as side dishes to boost appetite
• Encourage chewing and ensure proper dental hygiene
• Quit smoking and avoid alcohol beverages

Poor appetite

Causes:

• Changes in sense of taste and smell, resulting in reduced appetite
• Sick, low mood or side effects of medications
• Dental, oral cavity, problems
• Gut or bowel discomfort

Care:

• Eat small frequent meals and supplement nutritious snacks between meals such as bread with peanut butter, oatmeal with low-fat milk, etc.
  
• Use natural seasonings such as ginger, spring onion, onion, cayenne, aniseed, lemon juice, etc.
• Use colourful vegetables such as tomato, carrot and corn to boost appetite
• Prepare foods by adding minced meat, fish, beancurd, egg, potato or dried beans into congee, noodles or soup. Encourage consuming soup ingredients together with the soup so as to increase nutrient intake.

For more information, please visit the webpage of Elderly Health Service of Department of Health.

Source: Department of Health