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My 81 year old mom was ill for 3 months – she had swallowing issues and lost a lot of weight. This drink has probably saved her life. She's regained most of the weight.
Energy-Dense Nutritional Drinks to Keep Seniors Strong
It’s no secret that getting older brings a number of challenges, particularly where food is concerned. Many seniors experience a downturn in their appetite or physical changes that make eating full meals more difficult. While it’s essential for older adults to maintain their strength to avoid health issues like falls or illnesses, doing so can be tough, but a well-balanced nutritional protein drink can make the task a bit easier. If you or a loved one could use a drink that offers nutrition for elderly adults in a tasty, convenient package, keep reading or call ENU at (855) 266-6733 today.
High-Calorie Protein Shakes for the Elderly
Finding the best protein drink for elderly people requires careful consideration. Many shakes load up on sugar, corn syrup, or other harmful additives in an effort to boost calorie counts, so be sure to check out the ingredients list before buying a protein drink for seniors.
Still, calories are undoubtedly an important part of what defines good food for older people, because a lack of calories is often the reason for some of aging’s unwanted effects. At the end of the day, calories are what give our bodies energy, so if you don’t get enough of them – either because you don’t have an appetite or because you can’t tolerate solid food – you can wind up underweight or malnourished.
High-calorie protein shakes for the elderly can make it much easier to hit your calorie goals each day. Adding an ENU shake to your diet can provide an extra 400 calories from real food sources, plus more than 20 vitamins and minerals. Plus, ENU shakes offer plenty of protein, a critical part of nutrition for older adults.
Why is Protein Important for the Elderly?
Although every ingredient matters in a nutritional drink for seniors, protein plays a number of key roles in the body that arguably make it the most important element in elderly food products. The following are a few of the ways that protein can help keep seniors healthy and fit:
Improve Muscle Tone and Strength
As any athlete can tell you, protein is the main resource our bodies need to create new muscle tissue, no matter your age. The amino acids in protein can not only serve as the building blocks of new cells but also boost the muscle-producing process, especially after exercise. Even just light exercise can improve muscle tone and strength when paired with easily digestible sources of protein, such as whey protein isolate.
Reverse Muscle Loss in Seniors
While it may not sound as dire as some of the health issues seniors face, muscle loss caused by aging – a condition known as sarcopenia – can lead to a number of serious health threats. Elderly individuals who lose muscle mass in their legs, for instance, are more prone to falls and can quickly lose independence as their mobility wanes. Adding a protein drink for seniors to your diet can help your body retain its muscle mass and may even reverse the effects of sarcopenia if used alongside resistance training.
Bone Health
Calcium may get all the attention where bone health is concerned, but protein also plays an important part in keeping your bones strong. Recent studies have demonstrated that a higher level of protein intake can lead to healthier bones in older adults, possibly because protein promotes calcium absorption and can aid other processes beneficial to bones. Given the prevalence of sarcopenia and osteoporosis among older people, some experts have even called for an increase in the amount of protein in elderly meals.
Fight Illness
In addition to its role in building muscle tissue, protein is also an essential part of the body’s healing process. Anytime you get a cut, protein is needed to repair the damage, and it’s crucial to the body’s immune response as well. The antibodies and other cells that fight off disease are reliant on protein for their production, so if you’re not getting enough of this important macronutrient as part of a diet for seniors, you could be leaving yourself open to illness.
Create a Nutritional Meal Plan Using ENU’s Protein Drinks for Seniors
Ultimately, a protein drink for seniors is a tool for better nutrition, and like any tool, knowing how to use it can make all the difference. If you think your diet might be lacking in protein or other macronutrients, it can be helpful to create a nutritional meal plan that tracks what foods you eat – and by extension, what nutrients your body is getting – each day.
Keep in mind that the recommended daily allowance of protein for adults is just over a third of a gram per pound of body weight; for example, an older adult who weighs 150 pounds will need to get at least 55 grams of protein a day. Seniors battling an illness or building muscle may need even more than that – some experts suggest 1 gram per pound of body weight – which can be a tough target to hit on a reduced diet.
One nutritional protein drink for seniors from ENU offers 20 grams of protein, plus 400 calories, complex carbs, heart-healthy fats, and 24 vitamins and minerals. Try an ENU shake today for a quick and tasty boost to your calorie and protein intake.
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