Page 211 - Nutrition Counseling and Education Skills: A Guide for Professionals

Older adults dine together at a community site.
Source: Punchsock.

A comprehensive nutrition assessment of any older adult should be performed that considers the economic,
psychosocial, cultural, health, physiologic, and lifestyle factors influencing food intake before planning a
nutrition intervention. Primary goals are not as strong on prevention as on maintaining adequate nutrition
status. Many older individuals eat smaller meals and have lower activity levels, but may not achieve minimal
nutrition requirements. Poor dentures may affect chewing and digestion. Preference for lower-nutrient-
density food choices such as apple pie compared with a fresh apple may decrease some nutrients such as fiber.
Smaller portions need higher-nutrient-density focus, but may not be the choice of the client.32

Nutrition professionals need to stay current on published literature. Evidence-based systematic reviews,
practice and position papers, and other critical analysis formats can aid in developing education content.
Controversy is often present in many areas of practice such as the relationship between nutrient intake and
cognitive changes,33 calcium supplementation,31 or optimum weight status. For example, fragility of bones in
osteoporosis may not benefit from more body weight but rather from selected weight-bearing exercises in
conjunction with bone health nutrition awareness. There is ongoing debate if obesity should be actively
addressed after the seventh decade of life or emphasis placed on lean body mass.4

CASE ANALYSIS 5

What socioeconomic, physiologic, and lifestyle factors influence Mrs. Smith’s food intake? What are two
key nutrition issues you might discuss with Mrs. Smith during your first session?

People aged 85 years and older are the most likely individuals to live in nursing homes. Those in nursing

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