Getting older is fun! But what should I pay closer attention to for my overall health?

Do things seem to be changing in your body? Has your fitness routine been the same, eating patterns generally along the same lines, but jeans a little tighter? As we turn a year on our calendar clock, things tend to change a little in the body. This is such a common question I get from clients day in and day out, whether I’m at the gym, in my home office, or the clinic. Let’s be real, things do change, and with that, all we can do is to try to understand why in order to stay on top of these changes, embrace the change, and accept the shifts we may need to make for the better of our health.

Nutrition through the lifespan fascinates me every day, whether I see a 9-month old, 13-year-old, 45-
year-old, or 67-year-old client. Some people don’t seem to have as many concerns as they turn a new leaf each year, but there are many, who into their 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s, ask me why their body seems to be changing despite following a healthy diet and including some physical activity into their days. And well, though it is important to always take good care of your health and your body, things will wear and tear, not work as efficiently, life happenings occur, and hormones change which plays a role in it all.

Let me wear my fitness cap first. As you get older, I cannot express the importance of strength and flexibility training. In the words of my 82-year-old Nonno, when he realized how difficult it was to stretch when he missed a day, “if you don’t use it, you lose it”. There are two reasons I say this – One: As you get older, mobility and strength, in particular core strength, become so imperative for our overall physical health. Having spent many years within the hospital setting, one of the many reasons for admission to hospital as we get older are falls – from there, unfortunately a load of other complications can happen within the hospital setting to make the situation worse. Being able to support your weight, catch yourself when you fall and balance yourself are critical as we age. Strength and flexibility training will also improve your bone health, so that core strength and your bone health work hand in hand here to prevent mishaps. Movement through the joints, with daily stretching or flexibility training will just allow for more efficiencies and less pain through the joints that tend to come along with the aging process. Second: With the change in hormones that comes with the aging process (further explanation to come), it becomes more important to try to maintain our muscle mass as best as possible. Now, don’t get me wrong, there is a large body of research that indicates that a little extra fat on our bodies as we age does promote longevity, however, in order to burn fuel more efficiently, and promote a healthy weight, coupled with the body’s increased ability to produce more fat as we age (more for women then men), the muscle mass will simply allow you to maintain a good metabolism and healthy weight, so that you can continue to enjoy life instead of worry about a number on a scale.

So, what about our food, hormone changes, stress, fat mass and muscle mass? How do we ensure we are maintaining our best health as we age? First off, there are differences between men and women. Men produce more testosterone, which translates into more muscle mass and an overall higher metabolic rate (like that’s fair right ladies?)! Women, lose more blood through menstruation (increased iron needs), and start producing less estrogen as they stretch beyond their thirties into their premenopausal and menopausal years. Though I am not an expert in hormones and hormonal changes through aging, I can confidently say that due to some of the hormonal changes, you may need (and/or want) to pay closer attention to certain nutrients and intakes during certain periods of your life, not to mention calories in and calories out.

As I always say to my clients, before we look at the food and activity, we must look at your whole life – if there is any added stress in your life, as well as how much sleep you’re getting. These two factors play such a huge role in balancing our hormones, that if one or both are off they can really make things breakdown or build-up differently in our bodies. So start here before you get so hard on your diet and fitness routine.

Let’s break it down a little more: you may have been able to eat whatever you liked during your 20’s, and then started being more aware of whole foods vs. processed foods, making some changes to get yourself in better alignment. Strong bones are important to develop right from birth, however, to maintain their strength, calcium is still an important mineral to include in your daily diet.  Dairy foods, dark green vegetables and salmon are just some of the high-dose calcium foods to include in your diet. Vitamin D works hand in hand with calcium, so check in with your doctor or dietitian to find out just how much you should try to include each day. Folate is a B-vitamin which helps to make red blood cells. Both men and woman should aim to include folate through food sources. Women of child-bearing age should pay particular attention to this vitamin which helps to prevent neural-tube defects in a fetus. Dark green veg, just like those that give us calcium, beans, lentils and enriched grain products contain a healthy dose of folate to help you get your daily dose.

What about your thirties and beyond? This tends to be the age where more concerns come from my clients. And although everyone is different and may feel the changes more than others, including nutrient-dense foods will only help to enhance your health. This is where we may want to step up some activity, as muscle loss does begin, slowing down our metabolism even more. So many individuals will start recognizing this, and then try to eat even less to try to off-set weight gain. Not consuming enough calories in your day will ultimately slow down your metabolism even more. So, while, yes, calories become important to recognize, although I’m not one to count calories every day, I do recommend to take a few days to log your intake (and obviously find out what your true needs are based on activity, muscle mass, gender and age), to make sure you’re getting enough, as well as not under- or over-consuming too much. The truth is, even though we take good care of our bodies, as I mentioned above, things just tend to wear down a bit, such as muscle mass, and overall digestive health too. Magnesium needs change for men and women beyond our thirties as well. Magnesium helps to convert the energy from food into proteins (hence the increased need at a time when muscle loss increases), not to mention its role in bone and nerve health. Grain products, wheat germ, cheese, peas, nuts and seeds, and salmon are just a few of the foods with great sources of magnesium. Other B-vitamins, such as B6 and B12 are also important during these years. Vitamin B-6 helps to make and use protein and stored carbohydrate (glycogen), as well as form hemoglobin which is needed to carry oxygen in your blood. Meat, fish, poultry, nuts, seeds, beans and legumes are natural contributers of this important vitamin. Vitamin B-12 (especially towards your fifties and beyond), is needed to form DNA, make healthy blood cells and keep your nerves working properly. This water-soluble vitamin (not stored in the body) comes in great proportions from eggs, milk, cheese, meat, fish, seafood and poultry, as well as some fortified food products.

The key is to be preventative, and promote a healthy inside whenever you can. As such, including an array of colours on each plate, for breakfast, lunch and dinner throughout your whole life, is imperative. These colours are the fundamental base of knowing you are providing your body with antioxidants. Antioxidants fight off free radical damage, which naturally comes along with the aging process, however, we are also exposed to free radicals in our environment or pesticide use, to note a few. The list of antioxidants which research has shown to prevent certain cancers and ward off or slow down the progression of heart disease is much too long to include here. Just know that by including carrots, squash, tomatoes, strawberries, blueberries, spinach, bok choy, or kale (as a start) means you are doing great things for the inside of your body. Thoroughly washing all fruits and vegetables is key, and consider this, wash your hands with soap before washing your fruit and veg. 🙂

Remember, getting your nutrients from food is always the best start – why? Well, let’s just look at dark green leafy vegetables – you’ll get calcium, folate, magnesium, iron and antioxidants in a dose. Check in with a dietitian to assess your diet first before jumping onto a supplement, yet know supplements are available should you need to do just that – supplement your diet! It’s a balancing act. But most important it’s about understanding all the changes that occur so that you can be empowered to make the best choices for your overall health.

To check out just how much of the listed nutrients you need, check out the Dietary Reference Intakes for Canadians:

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/alt_formats/hpfb-dgpsa/pdf/nutrition/dri_tables-eng.pdf