Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Download Coach on Call - UPMC Health Plan
Document related concepts
no text concepts found
Transcript
Coach on Call Getting Enough Calories Do you or a loved one have trouble getting enough calories to stay at a healthy weight? Perhaps one of the reasons below makes eating a challenge: •Aging. The senses of taste and smell decline with age. This can make it harder for older adults to enjoy food. Feeling depressed or lonely can also cause poor appetite in seniors. •Dental problems. Examples are dentures that don’t fit, jaw pain, missing teeth, or mouth sores. These and other problems can make it hard to chew and swallow. •Some medicines. Certain drugs cause nausea, changes in the way foods taste, or poor appetite. Others can speed up metabolism, so that the body needs more calories than before to stay at the same weight. •Depression or anxiety. Some people respond to feeling depressed or anxious by eating less. •Cancer. Tumors tap into the body’s energy supply to grow. They may increase the body’s metabolism as well. Also, many cancer treatments cause nausea, vomiting, poor appetite, or a change in food likes and dislikes. •Other diseases and illness. For example, in COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), the effort of breathing uses extra calories and may lead to being underweight. So can serious infections, some food allergies, AIDS, hyperthyroidism (an overactive thyroid gland), and poorly managed diabetes. Not getting enough calories can cause muscle loss and weakness. It can make it hard to fight infection. In children, it can cause problems with growth and development. Always tell your doctor about unexplained weight loss. Losing more than 5% of your weight (about 7.5 pounds for a 150-pound person) over 6 to 12 months without trying may be a sign of a serious health problem. A healthier life is on the line for you! CMN10-1018-3 UPMC _11_593 Copyright 2010 UPMC Health Plan, Inc. All rights reserved C on C WM Get Cal C20100909-12 (MCG) 12/20/11 PDF Page 2 of 4 Getting Enough Calories Healthy Ways to Add Calories First take care of any medical condition. Then, with your doctor’s okay, try these tips for improving your appetite and adding calories to your meals and snacks: Are you taking a medicine that affects your appetite? Talk with your doctor about switching from medicines that may cause a loss of appetite. Or you may be able to add a medicine that can boost appetite. Eat more often. Eat five or six smaller meals throughout the day instead of three large meals. Include snacks between meals and before bed. Choose nutrient-rich foods. Calories are important, but the nutrition provided by the calories is more important to your health. Include whole grain breads, cereals, rice, and pasta; fruits; vegetables; and oils, nuts, and seeds. •Eat a good source of protein at every meal. Protein helps rebuild and repair tissues. Choose lean sources of protein, such as nonfat and low-fat milk, yogurt, and cheese; fish; poultry without the skin; low-fat meats; and dried beans and peas. Include “calorie boosters” at every meal and snack. These foods are high in calories for their volume: •Vegetable oils •Tub or liquid margarine •Mayonnaise •Avocado •Olives •Dried fruit •Low-fat cheese •Nonfat dried milk •Granola •Honey, sugar, or syrup •Jam or jelly •Nuts •Sweetened low-fat yogurt or frozen yogurt Make a habit of serving healthy foods with calorie boosters. For example : •Serve whole-grain bread or crackers with tub or liquid margarine, peanut butter, and jam or jelly. •Add oil or margarine to rice, pasta, and vegetables. •Sprinkle low-fat cheese on soups, casseroles, and vegetables. •Add nonfat dried milk to mashed potatoes, soups, and stews. •Serve fruit with sugar, honey, syrup, nuts, granola, or frozen yogurt. A healthier life is on the line for you! Page 3 of 4 Getting Enough Calories Try new foods and new tastes. A health condition or the treatment of one may have changed your food likes and dislikes. Experiment with sweet, sour, salty, and spicy foods, even if you haven’t liked their taste before. •Choose nutrient-rich drinks that are higher in calories. Don’t fill up on coffee, tea, or diet drinks. Instead, drink healthy shakes or smoothies. Simply blend nonfat or 1% milk, yogurt or frozen yogurt with fruit, and 100% fruit juice (fresh or frozen). Add a favorite syrup if you like. •Drink fluids 30 minutes before or after a meal, not with it. You may also find it best to avoid broth-based soups and plain raw vegetables with meals. These foods contain a lot of water and few calories. •If you like salads, top them with calorie-dense foods such as chicken or tuna. •Try cold foods instead of hot ones. Foods that are served hot tend to have stronger aromas. Do the smells of foods take your appetite away? Try a cold sandwich or salad instead. •Talk with your doctor about using liquid meal supplements. Examples are Ensure, Boost, and instant breakfast drinks. These can make up for some of the nutrition you miss when you can’t eat a meal. But use these only if you’ve done your best to eat regular meals. •Limit foods that are high in saturated fat or trans fat. Fat is calorie rich. But these two kinds of fat increase the risk of heart disease. Examples of foods to eat only in small amounts are: Whole or 2% milk Butter Cream Cream cheese Sour cream Ice cream Regular cheese Tropical oils (coconut or palm oil) French fries Many fast foods Doughnuts Cookies Cake Piecrust Poultry skin Fatty meats Instead, choose nonfat dairy; low-fat sources of protein such as dried beans/peas/lentils, fish, poultry without skin, and lean meats; and unsaturated fats such as vegetable oils and liquid margarine. A healthier life is on the line for you! Page 4 of 4 Getting Enough Calories Take Action Choose one or two of the tips above that you would be willing to try this week. Record them below. 1. 2. A healthier life is on the line for you!
