USDA MyPlate Nutrition Information for Older Adults (2024)

FAQs

How is MyPlate different for older adults? ›

Unique Needs of People Ages 60+

Choose foods with little to no added sugar, saturated fats, and sodium. Get enough protein during your day to maintain muscle mass. Focus on the nutrients you need, including potassium, calcium, vitamin D, dietary fiber, and vitamin B12.

BEST TOOL: The Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short-Form (MNA®-SF) is a screening tool used to identify older adults (> 65 years) who are malnourished or at risk of malnutrition. The MNA®-SF is based on the full MNA®, the original 18-item questionnaire published in 1994 by Guigoz and colleagues.

Older adults' unique nutrition needs

Choose foods with little to no added sugar, saturated fats, and sodium. To get enough protein throughout the day and maintain muscle, try adding seafood, dairy, or fortified soy products along with beans, peas, and lentils to your meals.

Fried Foods

Fried foods are especially unhealthy for seniors as they are high in saturated and trans fats, which can increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, and Type 2 diabetes. Eating fried foods too often can contribute to obesity and other health issues.

In general, you'll need less of some foods and more of others. How you eat as an older person will also vary depending on your gender: older men have different nutritional needs from older women. But healthy eating doesn't really change that much with age, especially if you already have a good diet.

MNA-SF is a screening scale used to assess nutritional status. It includes queries regarding other senior issues, including cognitive impairment and depression, mobility, acute disease or psychological stress, weight loss, and food intake. MNA-SF is the recommended version of MNA for clinical use.

A sedentary male over the age of 70 requires around 2,000 calories. Consume about 2,600 calories a day if you are active. A female older than 70 years should eat between 1,600 to 2,000 calories daily if you are a sedentary to active.

How Many Eggs Can Older People Eat? There is no limit to the number of eggs older people can eat, with the exception of those with type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol or any existing heart disease who can enjoy up to 7 eggs a week.

What is the best assessment of nutritional status in the elderly? ›

The MNA^® is a validated nutrition screening and assessment tool that can identify geriatric patients age 65 and above who are malnourished or at risk of malnutrition.

Meal preparation is the way of cooking meals or meal portions ahead of time, usually for the whole week. This effective trick could help seniors save so much time because they don't have to work hard on shopping, preparing and cleaning up after the meal.

Common examples of complex carbs include whole grains, legumes, sweet potatoes, oats and wild rice. Here is a breakdown of healthy carbs to add to your diet. Complex carbs are vital for older adults because they are full of dietary fiber, including parts of the plants you eat that your body can't digest or absorb.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics' Evidence Analysis Library estimates that the caloric needs for generally healthy older adults are 18-22 calories/ kg body weight per day for women and 20-24 calories/ kg body weight per day for men.

The MyPlate Plan shows your food group targets – what and how much to eat within your calorie allowance. Your food plan is personalized, based on your age, sex, height, weight, and physical activity level.

MyPlate Plan is personalized based on your age, height, weight, and other basic factors.

Older adults generally have lower calorie needs, but similar or even increased nutrient needs compared to younger adults. This is often due to less physical activity, changes in metabolism, or age-related loss of bone and muscle mass.

Small children have a higher basal metabolic rate than older people so need more nutrients. Children have huge energy requirements so need more calories than older people. Children need more water because they are at greater risk of dehydration. Older people might have physical problems which make eating difficult.