Chapter 18: Nutrition and Older Adult

Nutrition plays a role in ____ of the top ten causes of death in the United States.

4

Telomere

A caplike structure that protects the ends of chromosomes; it erodes during replication.

6. Brett has been shooting the breeze with Mark, one of his good buddies who is a doctor. Mark tells Brett that all he can do is show his concern for his parents and offer ways he can help them that don't sound like he's putting them down. Maintaining a sense of self is important to aging healthily. Brett hadn't thought of it like that. There are many conditions a person may face in their elder years that affect their nutritional status. Which of the following is a condition that puts old adults at nutritional risk?

All of these: depression functional disability poverty social isolation

Life Expectancy

Average number of years of life remaining for persons in a population cohort or group; most commonly reported as life expectancy from birth.

Medicare

Federal health insurance for all people age 65 and older, and for younger individuals with certain disabling conditions.

Longevity

Length of life measured in years.

Life Span

Max number of years someone might live; human life span is projected to range from 110 to 120 years.

When using the DETERMINE checklist for risk of malnutrition, the N stands for ____.

Needs assistance with shopping and preparing food

Super-Centenarian

Person who has reached age 110 or more, validated.

Centenarian

Person who reaches age 100 or more.

2. Both Brett and Brenna's parents are getting older. Brenna's parents have always been more into healthy diet and lifestyle than Brett's parents. These days, all four of them are more sedentary than they have ever been and smaller amounts of physical activity tire them more easily. True or False: At this point, their caloric needs have significantly decreased but their nutrient needs remain the same, if not more, making nutrient-dense foods a must for health maintenance.

TRUE

4. Brett and Brenna want the best for their parents and want them to be around to see their grandchildren go off to college. They're doing the best that they can to support their parents' health, but in the end it's not Brett or Brenna's choice how their parents live their lives and care for themselves. It's hard watching them get older and, in the case of Brett's parents, seemingly become more frail with each passing day. True or False: Of all the physiological changes that occur as we age, shifts in the musculoskeletal system have the biggest effect on nutrition status and physical resilience.

TRUE

5. Brett tries to explain to his parents that the better they take care of themselves the better their functional status will be. The little changes they're grumping about now, like having to hire someone to do minor household repairs or having a cleaning lady because even chores are draining, are signs their functional status is already decreasing. True or False: The best way to preserve functional status is through physical activity, both strengthening and flexibility exercises. In our elder years, muscle is lost if it isn't used regularly.

TRUE

As people age, vitamin D synthesis in the skin declines fourfold, and the kidneys' ability to activate it diminishes, setting the stage for deficiency.

TRUE

Brenna's mom fell down the last step of their front porch while scooping snow and cracked her ulna. Brenna gets after her for scooping the snow in the first place when she knows she has osteoporosis and a tendency for falling. Brett hires a snow removal service that will arrive as early as possible with future snows to prevent this from happening again, as they both know Brenna's mom is going to continue to shovel. She feels young and says her osteoporosis and age aren't holding her back in life. 1. Brenna and Brett both feel that even though Brenna's mother has a history of falling every couple of years and breaking something, she is overall very healthy compared to others her age. Brett's mom is only a few years older and she has a long history of health problems and needs assistance to get around most days. True or False: Functional status is a better indicator of health in older adults than their age, as how they have taken care of themselves over their lifetime greatly affects how they feel and function. Two different 70 year olds can have completely different health statuses.

TRUE

Weight loss and decline in lean body mass lead to lowered energy requirements, but this may be preventable or reversible through physical activity.

TRUE

Senescence

The condition or process of deterioration with age.

Of the following individuals living in the U.S., who is likely to have the longest life expectancy?

White woman with a healthy lifestyle

3. Talking to Brett's dad has become a graphic rundown of all of his bodily functions. Brett wants the best for him, but isn't a fan of the gory details or his dad complaining without changing anything. He did buy a multivitamin the other day at the store and he's about to open the box sometime today or tomorrow to see what it's all about. Which of the following is NOT an age-associated physiological gastrointestinal system change that affects nutritional status?

X Not: damaged, less efficient mitochondria resulting in less energy

Compression of Morbidity

shortening the period of illness and decreased functional capabilities at the end of life.