Food Insecurity Among The Elderly

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Recommended: Introduction to food insecurity

Food insecurity is a concerning issue that need to be addressed in our current society. In population such as the elderly it is alerting issue. For instance, many older adults lack access, have chronic health conditions and limited support when obtaining food. As result older adults experience nutritional complication such as malnourishment and sometimes death. To reduce the complications associated with food insecurity in the elderly population interventions are needed. This paper will highlight several interventions that addressed the issue of food insecurity among the elderly population. Lastly, this paper will provide detail information on which intervention will be the best approach in increasing food intake and nourishment among the …show more content…

As noted by Wolfe, Frongillo, & Valois, (2003) hardships such as functional impairments, chronic health problems and money are major causes of food insecurity among the elderly. The US Department of Agriculture 's Continuing Survey of Food provided data on dietary intakes and behaviors were obtained from the elderly. There data showed that that lower-income elderly consume significantly fewer calories than higher-income elderly, fewer servings of major Food Guide Pyramid food groups, and most nutrients. Additionally, 6% of elderly households report some degree of food insecurity. Interventions have been established to reduce rates of food insecurity among the elderly. This paper will highlight several interventions that have played a significant role in strengthening access to nutrition among the elderly. More importantly, how interventions have been created at the individual, interpersonal, community and societal …show more content…

Specifically, a food education program that includes elderly having hands on experience through cooking methods, provides an understanding of healthy food choices, while improving nutrition (Chung, Louisa Ming Yan, Chung, Joanne Wai Yee, 2014). According to Chung et al. (2014), “the implementation of a food education program provided an alternative health approach to tackle the problem of nutritional status in elderly people”. By having nutrition education combined with cooking classes with peer support is also beneficial for older adults who experience limited nutrition (Jyväkorpi,Pitkälä, Kautiainen, Puranen, Laakkonen & Suominen, 2012). For instance, peer support under the interpersonal level encourages older individuals to want to eat food with nutritional value to live longer for those peers who are supporting them through the

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