Most Popular Diets For Seniors For 2023
No matter what your age, it’s important to stick to an overall healthy diet as much as possible to keep your body and mind strong, active and focused. This is especially true for seniors. However, they don’t need nearly as many calories as younger people do.
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As we age, our bodies need less energy and undergo some changes. Because of this, seniors need to switch up their diet to adapt to these natural changes of their bodies. In addition, physical exercise that must go hand in hand with healthy dieting, may need to be tweaked slightly as well, depending on the person’s physical strength and health condition. Ultimately, while every senior is an individual, there are some senseful diets that are currently popular and have been proven by certified dieticians to be both safe, effective and sustainable for most seniors in general if followed correctly and responsibly. These diets have shown to aid in weight loss and reduce the risk / control various common health conditions in the senior community, such as diabetes, heart disease, dementia, obesity, high blood pressure and many others.
The following diets are the healthiest and most popular diets for seniors for 2023.
The Mediterranean Diet
As the name suggests, this diet comes from the countries near the Mediterranean Sea, including Italy, Croatia, Lebanon and Monaco. According to years of intensive research and concrete evidence, this plant-based diet which emphasizes on unsaturated fatty acids has proven to be incredibly good for overall well-being.
With the Mediterranean diet, all that really matters is that plenty of nutrient-rich foods are being consumed regularly. All in all, this very popular and successful diet focuses on quality of diet rather than a single nutrient or food group.
The best part about this diet is that it isn’t difficult, yet also highly adaptable and accommodating. So if you’re all about low carb, vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, low fat, you name it, you can make small changes and still be within the rules and parameters of the diet. Additionally, if you want to stick to a budget, the Mediterranean diet will make a great choice for you as well.
So how does the Mediterranean diet work?
● Eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, legumes, olive oil, herbs and spices daily.
● Eat seafood and fish at least twice a week.
● Poultry, eggs, cheese and yogurt in moderation.
● Red meat and sweets are best reserved as occasional treats.
● The occasional glass of red wine is encouraged.
The DASH Diet
The DASH diet is the acronym for dietary approaches to stop hypertension, and is approved and promoted by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. It’s designed to stop (or reduce) hypertension, also known as high blood pressure.
This diet is quite similar to the Mediterranean previously mentioned, with one difference: You’re limited to a max of 2,300 mg of sodium per day. Other than that, DASH focuses on the foods you’ve always been told to eat: fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean proteins and low-fat dairy, which are all high in essential nutrients that fight high blood pressure, such as potassium, calcium, magnesium and fiber.
The DASH diet is also balanced, adaptable, and can be followed long term. It strongly discourages foods high in saturated fat, such as fatty meats, full-fat dairy foods, tropical oils and sugar-sweetened beverages. Alternatively, you can try combining the Mediterranean and DASH diets together, which has been coined the MIND diet. As the name perfectly states, this combo aims to improve your brain and cognitive function, which lowers your risk of developing dementia.
The Keto Diet
The keto/super low carb diet is short for ketogenic. The goal of this is to achieve rapid weight loss in a natural, healthy way by burning fat reserves and experiencing less food cravings. This diet is also designed to also boost your mood, mental focus and energy. This diet, if followed properly, can also help prevent or control type 2 Diabetes. By eliminating almost all carbs and filling up on fats, your body can safely switch to a state of ketosis, which is when your body breaks down both dietary and stored body fats into substances called ketones, instead of sugars, for energy.
While it may be similar in some ways to other familiar low-carb diets, the classic keto diet’s extreme carb restrictions, which limit you to about 20 net carbs a day or less, and the deliberate shift into ketosis, are what set this increasingly popular diet apart from the rest. The keto diet has its roots in the decades-old therapeutic ketogenic diet, and is composed of 90% fat, 6% protein and just 4% carbohydrates.
If the Keto diet sounds too extreme, you can try the modified ketogenic diet instead, which many dieticians currently agree is actually the healthier option. This modified keto diet is easier to maintain long term because it allows more daily proteins and requires less daily fat ratios.
The Intermittent Fasting Diet
Intermittent fasting, sometimes referred to as “part-time dieting,” is a type of fasting intended to help followers lose weight effectively without drastically depriving yourself of carbs. Your body goes into a minor state of ketosis while you’re fasting, which changes and improves your daily metabolism. Types of intermittent fasting and schedules greatly vary. Some of the most popular options include:
Time-restricted feedings, Twice-a-week fasting, Alternate-day fasting, Modified alternate-day fasting and one large meal a day.
Final Thoughts
While these diets have been backed up by years of considerable research, they are not suitable, effective or safe for every senior due to certain medications, lifestyle and more. Therefore, it’s strongly recommended to first consult with your doctor or a dietician before taking on any of them.
