Seniors For Living

What you eat has a lot to do with how you feel, and what you should eat has a lot to do with your age and life stage.

In assisted living, seniors who lived alone prior to move-in may benefit from mealtime socialization and the consistency of three squares daily. Others may struggle with the lack of control about what foods are served and when.

Not all assisted living communities allow residents to keep food in their apartments/rooms, which may pose a challenge to those who wish to keep healthy snacks on hand or want to eat something later if they aren’t hungry at the scheduled meal time (or didn’t like the offerings).

This guide to senior nutrition offers pointers on ways that seniors, wherever they live, can maintain a healthy diet: among them, drinking plenty of water (dehydration is the root cause of many senior health problems) and eating a colorful array of fruits, veggies, grains, and foods that are rich sources of Vitamins B, D, protein and calcium.

When considering assisted living, check into the community’s dining program:

• find out when meals are served and if there is any flexibility regarding what time one can eat,
• ask how many options are available at meal times,
• find out if food can be stored in the room/apartment or in a shared kitchen space,
• and ask whether the community will accommodate those with special dietary needs.

Read more about dining options in assisted living here.