Rethink your diet in older age

This week is Australia’s Healthy Weight Week, raising awareness of the importance of achieving and maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle.

Ngaire Hobbins, dietitian and author of ‘Eat to Cheat Ageing’, talks about the particular importance of nutrition and ageing.

“It is extremely important to maintain leanness and activity in your younger and middle years,” Ms Hobbins says.

“As you get older your physiology changes. Your body works differently because of changes in hormones and nerve functions. Activity is just as important but the pursuit of leanness is not so.

“The interesting thing about weight loss from 65+ is that if you lose weight in those years by dieting, you will lose muscle,” Ms Hobbins explains.

“Because of that, without professional assistance you could do more harm than good by dieting in those years. Loss of body muscle can affect your immune system, your body organ repair, your brain function. So it’s really important to rethink diet in your older age.”

Research has found that older people carrying a bit of extra weight could be healthier and live longer.

A study by Deakin University found that people over 65 with a BMI of around 27.5, which is considered overweight according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines, lived longer than those in the normal range.

So younger people should ‘plan ahead’. Be lean and fit in younger years but just focus on staying fit as you age; carrying extra weight is less important.

In fact a bit of a reserve can be really important says Ms Hobbins. “People who are slightly heavier are actually better off.

“It seems to be more helpful and probably protects them against frailty. That is difficult for people to understand when all the information out there tells them to not be overweight and be thinner.” 

Ms Hobbins explains that muscle and protein are key for ageing well, as protein is the major structural part of muscle.

“Muscle is enormously important. It is the protein reserve for a whole lot of other things in your body.

“It doesn’t just move you around, it also supports your immune system and supports your body organ maintenance and helps with fuel supply to your brain.

“If you lose muscle all those things get affected and therefore your capacity to live independently reduces,” Ms Hobbins says.

Apart from weight loss, the body’s muscle reserve reduces because the demands for protein are higher throughout the body: skin is more frail and vulnerable to damage, there is increased ‘wear and tear’ in all body systems and organs requiring more repair work.

As well as that your brain uses large amounts as a reserve fuel. Unfortunately at the same time the body’s ability to rebuild muscle reduces.

“To make matters worse, people don’t tend to eat enough protein. So that even if you are doing the activity that could help build muscle there may not be the protein needed available to get it done.

“And that’s just because meals get smaller, everything on the plate gets smaller. But in fact the protein bit should stay the same and everything else can shrink around it,” according to Ms Hobbins.

This might be a surprise to some people because they assume that when people get older they need less nutrients. But Ms Hobbins says older people need the same amount of nutrients as younger people. In fact they need extra protein.

“People often say to me ‘I’m not as hungry’ or ‘I don’t eat as much because I don’t need as much’, but you do need the same amount of nutrients. You may not be able to cope with the same bulk of food but the nutrients need to be a bit more concentrated.

“Part of the reason why people feel like they don’t need as much is because they’re not doing as much. But there is no reason why as you age you shouldn’t do as much.

“Too often people get into a habit in life of doing less especially when there are a few more aches and pains, a few more problems in the joints, and people slow down. In fact, what’s important is to not allow yourself to slow down.”

What is Ms Hobbins advice to ageing well? “Keep eating and keep active. Have a protein source at the centre of each meal and then surround it with as many colours as you can.

“Whether those colours come from olive oil, nuts, seeds, fruits or vegetables or edible flowers, it doesn’t matter so long as you get as many different colours as you can. And make sure the foods you eat are as close as possible to the way it came of the land or out of the water,” says Ms Hobbins.

“Nutrition hasn’t changed forever. We have always said ‘don’t eat too much, eat a wide range of foods and stay active’. Nothing really has changed, it just needs a bit of a different focus when you get older.”

Australia’s Healthy Weight Week is held 15 – 21 February. Find out more or how to get involved on healthyweightweek.com.au.