QUESTION = Why is it that as we get older, we are able to handle eating hotter foods GENERATION = When your body gets old, it gets less effective at breaking down the food you eat. This means you have to take smaller portions of food to maintain the same amount of energy. So, you eat a bigger meal, and you feel fuller, and your body can break down more of the food. This is why you feel full after eating a big meal, but then feel like you're starving after eating a smaller meal. Your body is still working, but it doesn't have as much energy to break down the food you eat. So, you feel hungry and have to take smaller portions of food to keep up with the larger meal. This is why you feel full after eating a large meal, but then feel like you're starving after eating a smaller meal. There's also a chemical called insulin that tells your body to store fat, so you don't feel hungry after eating a large meal. This is why people get fat after eating a large meal, but then feel like they're starving after eating a small meal. So, in short, your body gets used to eating more food and less food. RETRIEVAL #0 = Food choice of older adults---be maintained throughout the aging process and excessive health care costs can be reduced". An individual's surroundings and health can affect what foods they choose and prefer to eat. Section::::Influences on food preference.:By age: younger and older adults. As people get older, their bodies change. This includes their taste buds, their needs of certain vitamins and nutrients, and their desire for different types of food. In a study by the Monell Chemical Senses Center, fifty young-adults and forty-eight elderly subjects participated in the study. Young subjects ranged from eighteen to thirty-five years of age and elderly subjects were sixty-five years of age or older. There were more females than males in the study, but there were approximately equal proportions of males and females in the two age groups. The study observed that younger females had stronger cravings for sweets than elderly females. They related this difference in preference with the younger female test subject's menstrual cycles and the fact that elderly women no longer go through menopause. Also the study determined that "ninety-one percent of the cycle-associated cravings were said to occur in the second half of the cycle (between ovulation and the start of menstruation)". These physical changes can explain why someone of an older age might not be getting the nutrition they need. As taste buds change with age, certain foods might not be seen as appetizing RETRIEVAL #1 = Sensory-specific satiety---pleasantness from variety of foods. However, it was proven that sensory impairment did not greatly affect the decline in sensory-specific satiety; instead, there is an unclear cognitive process that relates to decline in sensory-specific satiety that just may be the decreased desire for overall change in the elderly as compared to adolescents. RETRIEVAL #2 = Evolutionary mismatch---a world of more sedentary lifestyles and convenience foods. People are sitting more throughout their days, whether it be in their cars during rush hour or in their cubicles during their full-time jobs. Less physical activity in general means fewer calories burned throughout the day. Human diets have changed considerably over the 10,000 years since the advent of agriculture, with more processed foods in their diets that lack nutritional value and lead them to consume more sodium, sugar, and fat. These high calorie, nutrient-deficient foods cause people to consume more calories than they burn. Fast food combined with decreased physical activity means that the "thrifty gene" that once benefit human predecessors now works against them, causing their bodies to store more fat and leading to higher levels of obesity in the population. Obesity is one consequence of mismatched genes. Known as "metabolic syndrome", this condition is also associated with other health concerns, including insulin resistance, where the body no longer responds to insulin secretion, so blood glucose levels are unable to be lowered, which can lead to type 2 diabetes. Section::::Mismatch in human evolution.:Human disease.:Osteoporosis. Another human disorder that can be explained by mismatch theory is the rise in osteoporosis in modern humans. In advanced societies, many people, especially women, are remarkably susceptible to RETRIEVAL #3 = Food choice of older adults---in community settings such as senior centers, churches or senior housing communities. These congregate meal programs are encouraged to offer these elderly people a meal at least five times per week. Less access to transportation may also be an issue, especially in rural areas where there is less public transportation. However, an Iowa study failed to find problems in purchasing food among elderly in rural open country and towns, as those without their own transportation relied on family, friends and senior services. A separate study found a slight difference in urban areas with elderly who did not own a car. Aside from transportation, the kind and quality of available food can also shape food choice if a person lives in a so-called "food desert". Social network type can also affect individuals food choices in our elderly population as well. For example, a person that has a larger social network and lower economic status is more likely to have proper nutrition that someone who has a smaller social network and higher economic status. This means that it is important for our elderly populations to keep social networks so they can live longer and have a more active lifestyle, especially when it comes to food. Section::::See also. BULLET::::- Assisted living BULLET::::- Centenarian BULLET::::- Elderly care BULLET::::- Food choice BULLET::::- Food RETRIEVAL #4 = Food choice of older adults---to lose their knowledge of flavors. That, in turn, can lead to changes in eating behaviors. Psychological conditions can affect elderly eating habits. For instance, length of widowhood may affect nutrition. Depression in elders is also associated with a risk of malnutrition. Section::::Influences on food preference.:By lifestyle choices. Elderly people can make different lifestyle choices in eating healthy. Dietary choices are often a result of personal beliefs and preferences. A survey based on self-reporting found that many rural community-dwelling elderly Iowans adopted eating habits that provided inadequate levels of some key nutrients and most did not take supplements to correct the deficiencies. In contrast, a restaurant study found that the impact of a lifestyle of health and sustainability on healthy food choices is much stronger for senior diners than for non-senior diners. Other research has found that adults regardless of age will tend to increase fruit and vegetable consumption following a diagnosis of breast, prostate or colorectal cancer. Section::::Influences on food preference.:By social environment and conditioning. The environment can greatly impact food preferences of older adults. Those around 75-years old and older tend to have limited mobility due to health conditions and rely on others for food shopping and preparation. Homebound seniors tend to receive one meal per day (several fresh and RETRIEVAL #5 = Food choice of older adults---or gum disease, are associated with significant differences in dietary quality, which is a measure of the quality of the diet using a total of eight recommendations regarding the consumption of foods and nutrients from the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). Approaches to minimize food avoidance and promote changes to the diets of people that have eating difficulties due to oral health conditions are needed desperately because without being able to chew or take in food properly, their health is effected drastically and their food preferences are limited greatly (to soft or liquids only). Declines in physical health can cause deterioration in diet due to difficulties in preparing and eating food as a result of conditions like arthritis. At the 2010 "Providing Healthy and Safe Foods As We Age" conference sponsored by the Institute of Medicine, Dr. Katherine Tucker noted that the elderly are less active and have lower metabolism with a consequent lower need to eat. Also, they tend to have existing diseases and/or take medications that interfere with nutrient absorption. With changing dietary requirements, one study developed a modified food pyramid for adults over 70. Section::::Influences on food preference.:By personal health.:Mental health. The impact of certain diseases can also impact the quality of the food in the elderly population, especially those that are in care facilities. More often than not, when some has Alzheimer's disease RETRIEVAL #6 = Mitochondrial theory of ageing---[[Calorie Restriction]] BULLET::::- [[Denham Harman]] BULLET::::- [[Free radical theory of aging]] BULLET::::- [[Gerontology]] Section::::References. [[Category:Ageing]]