June 22, 2018 / Blog / ilcorp

The Guide to Better Nutrition Habits for Seniors

Living a healthy lifestyle starts with the food you are eating. Food is the foundation that your health is built on, and getting the proper nutrients and minerals is essential for living well. On the opposite end, eating poorly by consuming non-nutritious foods can slow down your body, deteriorate your health, and lead to a poor quality of life.

This is why as you age, it is important to be conscious of the foods you are putting into your body. Your metabolism slows as you get older and you don’t require as many calories as before. This just means all the more reason to make sure the foods you are eating are nutrient dense and are providing you with all the important vitamins and minerals that you need. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle and diet can help regulate weight, strengthen your immune system and even increase your energy levels.

Improving Senior Nutrition: The Best Healthy Eating Tips

While change might be difficult at first, you can still learn how to eat healthy even as you age. It’s important to remember that changing your eating habits is a lifestyle change; however, you can constantly adjust your eating habits with your changing tastes. Here are a few healthy eating tips to keep you feeling your best:

• Eat with friends and family. Enjoy a delicious and nutritionally benefiting meal with your friends and family. Making it a social affair can help you stay on track while enjoying some wonderful company from your loved ones.
• Keep a water bottle handy. Keeping your body hydrated is very important in staying healthy. Choose a fun water bottle and try and get at least 2 liters of water a day, the equivalent of half a gallon.
• Learn new recipes. Half the fun of eating right is learning new ways of preparing foods and trying out some new dishes to keep your palate intrigued. Again, get together with friends and family and explore some different nutritious and tasty recipes.
• Snack smart. Sometimes the sneakiest of empty calories come from snacking. Just because you’re not sitting down and eating an unhealthy meal, the unhealthy snacks you’re munching on can still negatively affect your diet. A smart alternate to habitual snacking is preparing pre-made, pre-portioned healthy snacks for your enjoyment. Cut up fruits and vegetables or portion out wheat crackers and popcorn to grab when your stomach starts rumbling in between meals. You’ll find this preparation will really help you from consuming as much junk food.
• Check out the nutrition labels. If you go grocery shopping, make sure to check out the nutrition labels. Sometimes you’ll think that a product will be healthy because they advertise it as “no sugar” or “low-fat,” however the fillers they use to maintain the original taste are just as bad, if not worse.
• Let yourself indulge. Eating healthy doesn’t mean you can’t treat yourself every once in a while. Let yourself indulge a bit and enjoy a sweet treat or get one of your favorite guilty pleasures while out celebrating a special occasion. Just remember, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is all about moderation!

Enjoy a Healthy Lifestyle at Immanuel Living

At Immanuel Living, we pride ourselves on our senior dining services that have farm-to-table meals prepared every day for residents. Our skilled cooks and executive chef produce locally sourced meals that are both fresh and delicious. Even our Care Center offers dining multiple meal service times and a variety of options to accommodate specific needs, preferences, and allow each individual to decide on their eating schedule. Contact us today to learn how we support better nutrition habits and a healthy future at our vibrant senior living community in Kalispell, Montana.