Healthy eating for older adults Archive

Frustrated by medical and health care websites? New research suggests seniors don't use this health technology like they should, but it may not be their fault.

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It's said that you can find just about anything on the Internet. Yet when it comes to finding information about health, many seniors are at a loss.

"Few seniors are using digital health technology," says Dr. David Levine, of Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital, who specializes in medical technology information.

High-intensity interval training may be more enjoyable than moderate continuous exercise and may help sedentary adults stay motivated when doing new workouts. 

Terms like "healthy" or "natural" can be meaningless or misleading.

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If you're like most nutrition-minded shoppers, the word "healthy" on the front of a package can be a big draw. "When you're stuck in a situation where processed foods are the only thing available to you, it can be helpful to know which foods are healthier than others," says Dr. Walter Willett, chair of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Yet these days you're on shaky nutritional ground if you rely on front-of-package claims like "healthy" to determine which soup, sauce, cereal—or other canned, bottled, boxed, or bagged food—is the best choice. A food marked "healthy" may be loaded with sugar or refined carbohydrates.

In preliminary research, sucralose and acesulfame potassium increased insulin levels, although more studies are necessary to determine whether they—or other artificial sweeteners—increase the risk of insulin resistance.

Data from more than 200,000 people indicates that the risk of developing melanoma increases by 13% for every glass of white wine consumed per day. Drinking beer, red wine, or liquor was not associated with increased risk.

Published: March 1, 2017

Figuring out the exercise style that best suits your needs will help you stick to a plan.

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Making a plan to get regular exercise can be challenging. There are many options, and you may not be sure how to narrow them down. "The result may be that you put off exercising," says Madhuri Kale, a physical therapist at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

It helps to know the basic categories of activity you can choose from: exercise classes, gym workouts, home workouts, and vigorous work or recreational activity. Here are some pros and cons to consider for each.

That's the first step in avoiding unhealthy refined or highly processed grains.

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It's important to eat a diet that includes whole grains. But not everyone knows what that means. "Some people aren't sure what a whole grain is. It can be confusing, and you may wind up making the wrong food choices," says registered dietitian Kathy McManus, director of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Whole-grain goodness

Whole grains are seeds or kernels that have three parts: the bran, or outer skin; the germ, or embryo that can turn into a plant; and the endosperm, or food supply for the embryo. All three parts contain important nutrients such as protein, B vitamins, antioxidants, minerals, and unsaturated (good) fats. Many whole grains—such as barley, rye, and wheat—also contain fiber, which helps lower cholesterol, improves digestion, and controls blood sugar. A study in JAMA Internal Medicine linked eating whole grains to a 9% lower overall death rate and a 15% lower death rate from heart disease, as we reported in April 2015.

Take control by using helpful gadgets and talking to your doctor about reducing your medications.

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There are many reasons why people are unable to stick to a medication regimen prescribed by a doctor, such as high costs or drug side effects. Often, those issues can be resolved by asking your doctor if a switch to another drug will help.

Another reason for what doctors call "non-adherence": too many pills and confusion about taking them. "It is a bigger problem than organization, and not always the patient's fault. Often providers write too many prescriptions without explaining them, or create a complicated schedule," says Dr. Sarah Berry, a geriatrician and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School.

It appears that the risk of an early death falls with each additional healthy lifestyle behavior that is maintained, even in people who are overweight.

It appears that health anxiety may be associated with a greater risk for developing heart disease.