Skip to main content
NCBI home page
CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal logoLink to CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal
. 1991 Dec 1;145(11):1475–1487.

Nutrition of the elderly.

R K Chandra 1, A Imbach 1, C Moore 1, D Skelton 1, D Woolcott 1
PMCID: PMC1336040  PMID: 1959109

Abstract

The progressively increasing number of elderly people in the Canadian population and the disproportionate expenditure on their health care has stimulated interest in prevention of common illnesses observed in this age group. It is now recognized that nutrition plays an important role in health status, and both undernutrition and overnutrition are associated with greater risk of morbidity and mortality. Nutritional problems in the elderly can be suspected if there are several high-risk factors present--for example, living alone, physical or mental disability, recent loss of spouse or friend, weight loss, use of multiple medications, poverty, and high consumption of alcohol. Physical examination, anthropometry, and measurements of serum albumin levels and hemoglobin and lymphocyte counts are simple but helpful tools in confirming the presence of nutritional disorders. The prevention and correction of nutritional problems is likely to prove beneficial in the management of common geriatric illnesses. In these efforts, it is desirable to have a team approach in which the physician, the dietitian and the nurse each have a defined interactive role. Home care support services are important adjuncts in continuing care. Nutrition should receive a greater emphasis in the training of physicians and other health professionals.

Full text

PDF
1475

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Anderson K. M., Castelli W. P., Levy D. Cholesterol and mortality. 30 years of follow-up from the Framingham study. JAMA. 1987 Apr 24;257(16):2176–2180. doi: 10.1001/jama.257.16.2176. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Benfante R., Reed D. Is elevated serum cholesterol level a risk factor for coronary heart disease in the elderly? JAMA. 1990 Jan 19;263(3):393–396. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Brinson R. R., Curtis W. D., Singh M. Diarrhea in the intensive care unit: the role of hypoalbuminemia and the response to a chemically defined diet (case reports and review of the literature). J Am Coll Nutr. 1987 Dec;6(6):517–523. doi: 10.1080/07315724.1987.10720211. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Callender S. T. Iron absorption from food. Gerontol Clin (Basel) 1971;13(1):44–51. doi: 10.1159/000245317. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Cataldi-Betcher E. L., Seltzer M. H., Slocum B. A., Jones K. W. Complications occurring during enteral nutrition support: a prospective study. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 1983 Nov-Dec;7(6):546–552. doi: 10.1177/0148607183007006546. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Chandra R. K. Nutrition, immunity, and infection: present knowledge and future directions. Lancet. 1983 Mar 26;1(8326 Pt 1):688–691. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(83)91980-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Chandra R. K. Nutritional regulation of immunity and risk of infection in old age. Immunology. 1989 Jun;67(2):141–147. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Delvin E. E., Imbach A., Copti M. Vitamin D nutritional status and related biochemical indices in an autonomous elderly population. Am J Clin Nutr. 1988 Aug;48(2):373–378. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/48.2.373. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Grant A., Elbourne D., Valentin L., Alexander S. Routine formal fetal movement counting and risk of antepartum late death in normally formed singletons. Lancet. 1989 Aug 12;2(8659):345–349. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(89)90535-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Kuczmarski R. J. Need for body composition information in elderly subjects. Am J Clin Nutr. 1989 Nov;50(5 Suppl):1150–1235. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/50.5.1150. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Layne N., Whitehead P. C. Employment, marital status and alcohol consumption of young Canadian men. J Stud Alcohol. 1985 Nov;46(6):538–540. doi: 10.15288/jsa.1985.46.538. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Manson J. E., Stampfer M. J., Hennekens C. H., Willett W. C. Body weight and longevity. A reassessment. JAMA. 1987 Jan 16;257(3):353–358. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Montgomery R. D., Haeney M. R., Ross I. N., Sammons H. G., Barford A. V., Balakrishnan S., Mayer P. P., Culank L. S., Field J., Gosling P. The ageing gut: a study of intestinal absorption in relation to nutrition in the elderly. Q J Med. 1978 Apr;47(186):197–124. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Morley J. E., Mooradian A. D., Silver A. J., Heber D., Alfin-Slater R. B. Nutrition in the elderly. Ann Intern Med. 1988 Dec 1;109(11):890–904. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-109-11-890. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Morley J. E., Silver A. J., Fiatarone M., Mooradian A. D. Geriatric grand rounds: nutrition and the elderly. University of California, Los Angeles. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1986 Nov;34(11):823–832. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1986.tb03990.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Nelson R. C., Franzi L. R. Nutrition and aging. Med Clin North Am. 1989 Nov;73(6):1531–1550. doi: 10.1016/s0025-7125(16)30615-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Nieman D. C., Underwood B. C., Sherman K. M., Arabatzis K., Barbosa J. C., Johnson M., Shultz T. D. Dietary status of Seventh-Day Adventist vegetarian and non-vegetarian elderly women. J Am Diet Assoc. 1989 Dec;89(12):1763–1769. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Parfitt A. M., Frame B. Treatment of rickets and osteomalacia. Semin Drug Treat. 1972 Summer;2(1):83–115. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Probart C. K., Davis L. G., Hibbard J. H., Kime R. E. Factors that influence the elderly to use traditional or nontraditional nutrition information sources. J Am Diet Assoc. 1989 Dec;89(12):1758–1762. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Reid I. R., Ibbertson H. K. Calcium supplements in the prevention of steroid-induced osteoporosis. Am J Clin Nutr. 1986 Aug;44(2):287–290. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/44.2.287. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Resnick N. M., Greenspan S. L. 'Senile' osteoporosis reconsidered. JAMA. 1989 Feb 17;261(7):1025–1029. doi: 10.1001/jama.261.7.1025. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Ryan V. C., Bower M. E. Relationship of socioeconomic status and living arrangements to nutritional intake of the older person. J Am Diet Assoc. 1989 Dec;89(12):1805–1807. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Schneider E. L., Vining E. M., Hadley E. C., Farnham S. A. Recommended dietary allowances and the health of the elderly. N Engl J Med. 1986 Jan 16;314(3):157–160. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198601163140306. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Scythes C. A., Zimmerman S. A., Pennell M. D., Yeung D. L. Nutrient intakes of a group of independently-living elderly individuals in Toronto. J Nutr Elder. 1989;8(3-4):47–66. doi: 10.1300/J052v08n03_04. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. VanItallie T. B. The perils of obesity in middle-aged women. N Engl J Med. 1990 Mar 29;322(13):928–929. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199003293221310. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Zimmerman S. A., Krondl M. M. Perceived intolerance of vegetables among the elderly. J Am Diet Assoc. 1986 Aug;86(8):1047–1051. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from CMAJ: Canadian Medical Association Journal are provided here courtesy of Canadian Medical Association

RESOURCES