Older people, food and satisfaction with life

Dietary intake and nutritional status not only play a major role in the overall quality of health of older people but also have impact on their satisfaction with life (Sahyoun, 1999, Vailas et al., 1998). Silverman et al. (2002) argue that the type of food eaten and the social cultural context all make significant contributions to older people’s satisfaction with their quality of life. Investigating satisfaction with food-related life of older people has high significance for several reasons. Firstly, food and energy intake tend to decrease with ageing for a number of both physiological and practical reasons including reduced activity (immobility), reduced muscle tissue, a lower resting metabolic rate and smaller meals (Macintosch et al., 2000; Prinsley & Sandstead, 1990). This reduced energy intake, also known as “anorexia of aging”, is a potential health risk because, although food intake is reduced with age, the need for most nutrients does not decrease with age. Secondly, ageing affects the ability to taste and smell. Also seniors are less sensitive to all the basic tastes and particularly smells. Both the ability to detect tastes and smells and their intensity declines with age and it has been suggested (Rolls, 1999; Westenhoefer, 2005) that sensory losses accompanying aging may even be partly responsible for the reduced intake of foods (see chapter XXX). Further as people get older their living circumstances may alter. For example, as people retire their level of income may reduce and their social network may also diminish. As health fails, access to shops and amenities may become a problem. As people loose their living companions due to death of spouse or children leaving home, cooking arrangements may change. All these factors compound as people get older, affecting older people’s relationship with food and in turn their satisfaction with food-related life. By identifying which factors are important and what can be altered, it may be possible to increase older people’s satisfaction with food and in turn contribute to a better quality of life. This chapter looks at food related satisfaction with life of older people, identifying some of the determinants and barriers to satisfaction with food related quality of life, and discusse