Adults and elderly adults
By the time we reach adulthood, the majority of our growth and development will be well and truly over, meaning the focus of nutrition can now shift to maintaining a healthy and active lifestyle. In doing this, adults will be able to keep the risk of developing age and weight related diseases such as cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes to an absolute minimum.
Adults should really know and understand their dietary needs by this stage of their lives. The high number of adults who are clued up about what they should be eating unfortunately does not correlate with the number of adults who are actually implementing this knowledge, with many consuming too much of the wrong things such as saturated fat, sugar and salt.
Adults who are serious about achieving a healthier lifestyle need to be proactive and use their knowledge of food and nutrition to help them on their way towards their goals.
On this page
Older adults and the elderly
Important vitamins, minerals and food groups
Appetite changes
Older adults and the elderly
According to 2010 mid-year population estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in the 25 years between 1984 and 2009, the percentage of the population aged 65 and over increased by 1 per cent, from 15 per cent in 1984 to 16 per cent in 2009 (an increase of 1.7 million people).
The same figures also show that the