As age takes its toll on us we almost always experience more digestive problems and food intolerances. One of the reasons for this problem of nutrition in the elderly is the decreasing amount of hydrochloric acid in the stomach. As we are all aware the acid lines the entire digestive tract and is the first line of defence in the body as it kill the bacteria, viruses and parasites that we unavoidably ingest. Another cause of problems in nutrition in the elderly is the increasing use of prescription drugs which can further damage the stomach lining.
As we age, there is also bacteria overgrowth in the small intestine and poorer absorption of some nutrients.
How To Improve Digestion in nutrition for The Elderly
- Eat more plant based foods in other more vegan dishes will help digestion as it contains more fiber and also is easily digested by the body. These are foods that help digestion rather hinder it like animal based diets.
- The elderly should also not skip meals
- The elderly should also avoid allergy -producing foods as it is at this stage in life that most people experience problems with food allergies.
- The elderly should also be encouraged to do some light exercise in line with their abilities.
- The elderly should also keep their stress levels low as stress can affect our digestion system.
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