Nutrition During Adulthood

MSc I –NALC –Combined Group

Dr Veena Yardi 10th,17th April’24
 INTRODUCTION
• Adulthood, the period in the human lifespan in which full physical and
intellectual maturity have been attained.
(Latin Word Adutus-Full grown/matured)

• Adulthood is a period of optimum mental functioning when the individual's intellectual,

emotional, and social capabilities are at their peak to meet the demands of career,
marriage, and children.

• Adulthood (Early Adulthood)is commonly thought of as beginning at

age 20 or 21 years, Middle age, commencing at about 40
years, is followed by Old age at about 60 years.

• It is the longest period.(Difficult, Settling down stage, responsible)

• Period of adjustments, new roles.
• During adulthood we are often too busy to pay attention to food.
• Nutritional habits developed during this period are investments in
• Adulthood covers a life span of roughly 60 years.
• To understand Nutritional Health during this period ,it cab be divided into three parts..Nutrition
has many roles…But we are often too bust to pay attention to food…Lifestyle factors play imp
role.(Nutrition & Exercise)
• Good nutrition throughout adulthood will reduce the risk of leading causes of deathof later
adulthood(NCDs)
• Early Adulthood-20-40 yrs
-Stop growing, In young adulthood, our physical abilities are at their peak, including muscle
strength, reaction time, sensory abilities, and cardiac functioning.
-Bone density –till 30yrs
-Muscle Mass grows
Personal ,Career Devpt
-Reproduction-
Challenges to good nutrition
Nutritional Habits Developed are Investment in Future Health
• Midlife- 40-60Yrs
-Peak of career
-Body composition slowly shifts as per hormonal shifts & decreases activity
Starts gaining weight
Time to reasses nutritional habits
• Old Age- 60+
-Harvest the fruits of earlier health habits
 PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES DURING
ADULTHOOD
• Most individuals have stopped growing by the time they
reach their twenties.

• But men and women continue to develop bone density until

roughly age 30.

• Muscular strength peaks around 25 to 30 years of age,

although regular use of muscles and weight training affects
strength as well as muscle size and retention.

• Hormonal changes start during middle adulthood.

• The type and amount of physical activity has a significant
impact on body composition, including lean body mass, fat
accumulation and relocation, and bone density.

• By middle adulthood, physical changes become more

apparent with the decline in size and mass of muscles and
an increase in body fat.

• Hearing loss begins as early as age 25 (or earlier with

exposure to loud music), and vision changes often become
noticeable by age 40.

• Body composition slowly shifts in tandem with hormonal

shifts age 40.
 FAD DIETS

● Inadequate nutrient supply (restrictions deplete tissue

reserves of important nutrients).
● Severe energy restriction (diets with 800 or fewer calories a
day require medical supervision).
● Unusual food restriction (for example, no carbohydrates).
● Food combinations (for example, grapefruit with all meals).
● Strict limitations (avoiding certain food groups, such as no
dairy or never eating potatoes).
● Gimmicks (don’t eat after 7 p.m. in the evening, eat only
popcorn for lunch, drink caffeine , or eat hot peppers to speed
up your metabolism)
• Weight Cycling/Yo-yo Dieting
 NUTRITIONAL CONCERNS OF ADULTS
& COMMON CONDITIONS
• PEM
• OBESITY/OVERWEIGHT
• IRON DEFICIENCY ANAEMIA
• IDD
• PCOS
• CVD
• DIABETES
• CANCER
• HYPERLIPIDEMIA
The risk of having metabolic syndrome is
closely linked to overweight and obesity and a lack
of physical activity.
 METABOLIC SYNDROME

• Metabolic syndrome is the name for a group of

risk factors that raises your risk for heart disease
and other health problems, such
as diabetes and stroke.
 Intervention
• Have small frequent, balanced meals.
• Include fibre in your diet, like whole fruits,
vegetables, oats, salads, etc.
• Avoid eating excess refined carbs like maida,
sugar, sweets, colas, etc.
• If non-veg. consume lean meats, white of the
egg, steamed fish instead of red meats.
• Have a rainbow diet comprising of all possible
colorful fruits & vegetables.
• Consume ample of water during the day.
• Include walnuts, almonds, peanuts, flaxseeds, in diet
as they are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids.

• Use cooking methods like roasting, steaming,

baking, microwaving instead of frying.

• Avoid having alcoholic beverages.

• Consume soups, salads, roasted grams, fruits as

snacks.
•
 Lifestyle
• Avoid fasting & feasting.
• Exercise daily & increase your daily physical
activity (climbing stairs, taking walks, go
swimming, play a sport)
• Avoid smoking.
• Keep tabs on the quality of sleep.
• Avoid frequent eating outside to avoid
consumption of trans fats.
• Get a health check up done annually.
“Good nutritional habits maximize peak physical &
mental performances.”
 PCOS
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a condition that affects a woman's
hormone levels. Women with PCOS produce higher-than-normal amounts
of male hormones. This hormone imbalance causes their body to skip
menstrual periods and makes it harder for them to get pregnant.(15-
45Years)
• Risk Factors: Infertility; Diabetes; Obesity...
• Symptoms: Hair loss; Depression (mood); Acne, weight gain, body& facial
hair
 IMPORTANCE OF NUTRITION DURING ADULTHOOD

Nutrition during this period is imp, as it supports

the following:

• An active LIFESTYLE,

• Maintenance of healthy WEIGHT,

• Promotes good HEALTH

• And WELLBEING.
Healthier Women Healthier Nation…

Multitasking & stressed woman

 Dietary Recommendations for Adults
• Energy -Caloric requirement are based on your physical activity level and body
weight. If you’re overweight or obese then calories reduction is needed.
• Protein-Protein is needed for almost every function in the human body. Adults
require protein to maintain lean muscle mass and for healthy hair, skin and nails.
0.8-1g/kg body weight.
• Carbohydrates - Carbohydrates are your body’s main source of energy. It is
recommended to eat at least 50 to 55 percent of carbohydrates from the total
calories which is equivalent to 225 to 325 grams of carbohydrates per day form a
2,000-calorie diet, as carbohydrates provide 4 calories per gram. Choose nutrient-
dense, high-fiber carbohydrates from whole grains, fruits, vegetables and legumes ..
• Fats- 20 to 35 percent of fats from the total calories or about 44 to 78 grams per
day for a 2,000-calorie diet. Replacing saturated and trans fats with healthier,
unsaturated fats is beneficial for your heart as well as omega 3 and omega 6 ratio
should be kept in mind. (4:1)Choose healthy fats, such as vegetable oils, nuts,
seeds, fish oil, peanut butter, avocados and hummus.
• Vitamin A:-This is required for eyes ; beta-carotene function like antioxidants.
• Vitamin D:- There is an age-related decline in many key steps of vitamin D
action including the rate of skin synthesis, the rate of hydroxylation and the
response of target tissues. Vitamin D deficiency in a subset of the elderly
population, characterized by low blood levels of 25-OH-D coupled with
elevations in plasma PTH and alkaline phosphatase .There is evidence that this
vitamin D deficiency contributes to declining bone mass and increases the
incidence of hip fractures.
• Calcium:- Deficiency is seen a lot in both men and women (due to menopause
the hormonal protection of bone loss lost).
• Vitamin E:- A large body of scientific evidence indicates that reactive free
radicals are involved in many diseases, including heart disease and cancers. Vit
E-Antioxidant
• Vitamin K:- Vitamin K is an essential fat-soluble micronutrient, which is
needed for a unique post-translational chemical modification in a small group of
proteins with calcium-binding properties,. It also help in coagulation of blood.
• Vitamin C:- It acts as an antioxidant, scavenges free radicals in the body.
• Thiamine:- Thiamine deficiency results in the disease called beriberi, which
has been classically considered to exist in dry and wet beriberi.
• Riboflavin:- Riboflavin deficiency almost invariably occurs in combination
with a deficiency of other B-complex vitamins, some of the symptoms (e.g.
glossitis and dermatitis) may also result from other complicating deficiencies.
• Niacin :- Niacin (nicotinic acid) deficiency classically results in Pellagra. It
also attributable to disturbances in tryptophan metabolism.
• Vitamin B6 :- A deficiency of vitamin B6 alone is uncommon because it
usually occurs in association with a deficit in other B-complex vitamins.
Vitamin B6 deficiency results in an impairment of the immune system.
• Selenium:- Selenium has been implicated in the protection of body tissues
against oxidative stress, maintenance of defences against infection, and
modulation of growth and development.
• Magnesium:- It functions as a cofactor of many enzymes involved in energy
metabolism, protein synthesis, RNA and DNA synthesis, and maintenance of
the electrical potential of nervous tissues and cell membranes.
• Zinc:- Zinc is an essential component of a large number (>300) of enzymes
participating in the synthesis and degradation of carbohydrates, lipids,
proteins, and nucleic acids as well as in the metabolism of other
micronutrients
• Iodine:- The only physiological role known for iodine in the human body is in
the synthesis of thyroid hormones by the thyroid gland. Therefore, the
dietary requirement of iodine is determined by normal thyroxine (T4)
production by the thyroid gland without stressing the thyroid iodide trapping
mechanism or raising thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels.
FOOD PYRAMID
RDA,EAR,ICMR 2020
“Good nutritional habits maximize
peak physical & mental
performances.”