Food preferences in older adults and seniors

Food preferences in older adults and seniors takes into consideration how people's experiences change with aging; that is, including conditions like taste, diet (nutrition) and food choice. Primarily, this occurs when most people approach the age of 65 or older. Influencing variables can include: social and cultural environment; male or female sex; personal habits; as well as physical and mental health. Scientific studies explain why people like or dislike certain foods.

There is a lot of work and scientific research that goes into examining the variables that cause the elderly to change food preferences. An example of these studies would be an experiment that the Elderly Nutrition Program (ENP) was executing. To improve the quality of meal programs, the ENP explored how food preferences varied depending on biological sex and ethnic groups. A total of 2,024 participants in the ENP aged 60 years or older were interviewed. A majority of the participants were female, served by congregate meal programs, or meals served in community settings such as senior centers, churches or senior housing communities.

A general impression of the meals and preferences for 13 food groups (fresh fruit, chicken, soup, salad, vegetables, potatoes, meat, sandwiches, pasta, canned fruit, legumes, deli meats, and ethnic foods) were assessed. After adjusting other variables, older males were significantly more likely to prefer deli meats, meat, legumes, canned fruit, and ethnic foods compared to females. In addition, compared with African Americans, "Caucasians demonstrated higher percentages of preference for 9 of 13 food groups including pasta, meat, and fresh fruit.

To improve the quality of the ENP, and to increase dietary compliance of the older adults to the programs, the nutritional services require a strategic meal plan that solicits and incorporates older adults’ food preferences".

There are multiple parts of an elderly person's life that can affect their preferences in foods. Aspects like the environment, mental & physical health, and lifestyle choices are all contributing to the way a person decides on what foods they happen to like or dislike.

An article about Influences On Cognitive Function In Older Adults (Neuropsychology, November 2014) states that "the nutritional status of older adults relates to their quality of life, ability to live independently, and their risk for developing costly chronic illnesses. An aging adult’s nutritional well-being can be affected by multiple socio-environmental factors, including access to healthy and affordable foods, congregate meal sites, and nutritious selections at restaurants. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, American Society for Nutrition, and the Society for Nutrition Education have identified an older adult’s access to a balanced diet to be critical for the prevention of disease and promotion of nutritional wellness so that quality of life and independence can be maintained throughout the aging process and excessive health care costs can be reduced". Someone’s surroundings and health can affect what foods they chose and prefer to eat.

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