Food for the Ageing Population addresses the characteristics of the ageing population as food consumers, the role of nutrition in healthy ageing and the design of food products and services for the elderly.

Features:

• a unique review of the chararacteristics of the ageing population as food consumers
• discusses aspects of the elderlys relationship with food, including appetite, ageing and sensory perception and the social significance of meals
• examines the role of nutrition in extending functionality in later years, focusing on undernutrition, Alzheimers and bone and joint health
• covers the important issues of food safety among the elder population

Part One discuss aspects of the elderly’s relationship with food such as appetite and ageing, ageing and sensory perception, food and satisfaction with life, and the social significance of meals.

Part Two reviews the role of nutrition in extending functionality into later years, with chapters on topics such as undernutrition and conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, bone and joint health and eye-related disorders.

Part Three addresses the issues of food safety and the elderly, designing new foods and beverages for the ageing and nutrition education programmes.

Contents

Part 1: Understanding Older People as Consumers of Food and Beverages

Older people, food and satisfaction with life

• Satisfaction and quality of life
• How does food contribute to quality of life?
• Factors impacting on satisfaction with food-related life
• Food-related goals and resources
• Ways of enhancing quality of life through food

Demographic and cultural differences in older people’s food choices and meal patterns

• The relevance of food choice and food patterns with ageing
• Commonality and difference in eating
• Regions
• The example of Chinese-speaking people

Appetite and ageing

• Regulation of food intake control
• Anorexia of ageing

Sensory perception of food and ageing

• Function and general role of the chemical senses
• Chemosensory perception and food intake
• Age-related changes in chemosensory perception
• Consequences of age-related chemosensory changes for food intake and health

The social significance of older people’s meals

• The dependent older person
• Social and cultural implications of food and meals

Gender and food in later life: shifting roles and relationships

• Gender and meals
• Masculinity, ageing and food
• Growing old together
• Widowhood and re-partnering
• Life events, gender and food in later life

Older people’s consumption of alcoholic beverages: social significance and health implications

• Alcohol consumption by elderly populations
• Social significance of alcohol consumption across cultures
• Health implications of alcohol drinking

Part 2: Extending Functionality Into Later Life

Undernutrition: diagnosis, causes, consequences and treatment

• Causes and consequences of undernutrition: the downward health spiral
• Diagnosis of undernutrition
• Micronutrient deficiency
• Treatment of weight loss
• Ethics

Ageing and changes in body composition: the importance of valid measurements

• Changes of body composition with age
• Body composition methodology
• Body composition measurements in the elderly

Interaction between diet and physical activity in older people

• Rate of living and energy expenditure
• Physical inactivity as a risk factor for chronic degenerative diseases
• Energy balance, interaction between diet and activity
• Measurement methods of physical activity

Prevention of Alzheimer’s disease: implication of nutritional factors

• Risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease (AD)
• Antioxidants
• B Vitamins
• Alcohol
• Dietary fats

Brain lipids and ageing

• Main lipids in the brain
• The influence of diet on biochemical changes during ageing
• Relationship between cognitive changes during ageing and lipids
• Lipids and sensory organs
• Desaturases, diet and antioxidants
• Omega-6 fatty acids
• Omega-9 fatty acids
• Saturated fatty acids
• Trans fatty acids

Nutrition and bone health in the elderly

• Epidemiology of osteoporosis
• Reduced bone health: definition of osteoporosis
• Determinants of bone health
• The role of calcium and vitamin D in osteoporosis
• Energy intake, body mass and bone health in the elderly
• Protein and bone health in the elderly
• Nutritional treatment after a hip fracture
• Other nutrients of potential importance for bone health

Nutrition and immune function in the elderly

• Immune responses in the very healthy elderly: primary immune ageing
• Immune responses in the frail elderly: common or secondary immune ageing
• Immune responses in diseased, undernourished elderly: tertiary immune responses

Nutrition and gut health in older people

• Age-related changes in the gastrointestinal tract of the elderly
• Intestinal immune function of the elderly
• Intestinal microbiota of the elderly
• Functional foods for the elderly

Nutrition and eye-related disorders

• Etiology of cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD)
• Dietary intake and blood levels of nutrients and eye disease
• The effect of nutrient supplements on eye disease risk
• Clinical recommendations/treatment guidelines

Beauty food: nutrition to support the skin

• Skin
• Nutrients
• Food applications of skin nutrients
• Future trends and markets

Nutrition and the metabolic syndrome in the elderly

• Metabolic syndrome in the elderly
• Nutrition and the treatment of the metabolic syndrome
• Diet and the prevention of the metabolic syndrome (MetS)

Fat-soluble vitamins and ageing

• Vitamin D
• Vitamin K
• Vitamin A/provitamin A carotenoids
• Vitamin E

Water-soluble vitamins and ageing

• B vitamin complex
• Vitamin B1, thiamine
• Vitamin B2, riboflavin
• Vitamin B3, niacin
• Pantothenic acid
• Vitamin B6, pyridoxine
• Vitamin B7, biotin
• Vitamin B9, folate
• Vitamin B12
• Vitamin C

Phytoestrogens and the health of older women

• Phytoestrogens
• Cardiovascular disease
• Breast cancer
• Bone health
• Cognitive function

Food-drug interactions in older people

• Drug use in the elderly
• Over-the-counter and herbal preparations
• Effects of nutrition on drugs: background and mechanisms
• Age-related physiological changes relevant for pharmacology

Dietary supplement use in the elderly: benefits and risks

• International trends
• Prevalence of supplement use
• Characteristics of older supplement users
• Types of supplements consumed by older people
• Motivation for supplement use
• Circumstances when nutrient supplementation is indicated
• Potential problems associated with supplement use

Part 3: Developing Food Products and Services for Older People

Food safety and older people

• Food handling behaviors and practices
• Changing behaviour

Developing nutrition education programs for older people

• Translational research
• Evidence-based nutrition programs (EBNP)
• Developing nutrition education programs for older adults
• A framework for nutrition intervention

Quality of feeding assistance care in nursing homes

• Quality assessment
• Translation of nutrition interventions into practice
• Culture change at mealtimes

Preparing meals in later life

• Meal preparation and the use of convenience foods in later life
• Findings of the food in later life project concerning foods which ease meal preparation

Designing new foods and beverages for the ageing

• Consumer-led new product development: the concept and process in the food and beverage industry
• Consumer-led food product development for the ageing: the case of home meal replacements

Index

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