Know How Much to Eat - Eating Well As You Get Older

Eating a mix of healthy foods every day provides the nutrients, fiber, and calories your body needs. The amount you should eat depends on your age and whether you are a man or woman. It also depends on your level of physical activity. The more physically active you are, the more calories you might be able to eat without gaining weight. Most people in the United States eat more calories than they need.

A woman over age 50 should consume about

• 1,600 calories a day if her level of physical activity is low
• 1,800 calories daily if she is moderately active
• 2,000 to 2,200 calories daily if she has an active lifestyle

A man over age 50 should consume about

• 2,000 calories a day if his level of physical activity is low
• 2,200 to 2,400 calories daily if he is moderately active
• 2,400 to 2,800 calories daily if he has an active lifestyle

Plan your meals and snacks to include the right number of calories for your activity level. (For information about exercise and older adults, go to http://nihseniorhealth.gov/exercise/toc.html)

The Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, recommend eating the following amounts of food if you are eating 2,000 calories per day. Remember to adjust the amounts depending on your daily calorie level.

A person who consumes about 2,000 calories daily should plan to eat 2 - 2 ½ cups of fruit a day. This might include one large banana, one-half cup of strawberries and a half-cup of orange juice. To help you get enough fiber, most of your daily fruit intake should be in the form of whole fruits rather than fruit juices.

A person who eats 2,000 calories daily should have 2 - 2 ½ cups of vegetables a day. This might include a half-cup each of broccoli, tomatoes, cauliflower, and a sweet potato. Aim for lots of color on your plate as a way to get a variety of vegetables each day.

A person who eats 2,000 calories per day should eat 7 to 8 ounces of grain foods daily. At least half of the grain foods eaten should be whole grains.Approximately one ounce of grain foods counts as a serving. This is about one slice of bread, one roll, or one small muffin. It is also about one cup of dry flaked cereal or a half-cup of cooked rice, pasta, or cereal.

Milk products are another important part of eating well. A person who consumes 2,000 calories daily should have the equivalent of 2-3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk, yogurt, or other milk products daily. One cup of yogurt contains about the same amount of calcium as 1 cup of milk. Eating 1½ ounces of natural cheese or 2 ounces of processed cheese is the same as drinking 1 cup of milk.

A person who consumes 2,000 calories daily should eat about 5½ ounces of protein each day. You can get protein from meat, poultry, and fish, as well as eggs, dried beans, tofu, nuts, and seeds. One egg or one-fourth cup of cooked dry beans or tofu counts as 1 ounce of meat, poultry, or fish. One tablespoon of peanut butter or a half-ounce of nuts or seeds also is the same as 1 ounce of meat, poultry, or fish. Nuts contain no cholesterol.

Oils are fats that are liquid at room temperature, like the vegetable oils used in cooking. Use mainly polyunsaturated and monounsaturated oils like those that come from olive or canola oil. A person who eats 2,000 calories daily should not consume more than the equivalent of 6 teaspoons of oil daily.

When eating out or buying packaged foods, pay attention to portion sizes. Portion sizes are not the same as the serving sizes listed on the Nutrition Facts label. A portion is the amount of food served in one eating occasion. A serving size is a standardized amount of food, such as a cup or an ounce, which is used to provide dietary guidance or to make comparisons among foods. The portions served at fast-food and other restaurants have grown a lot in recent years.

Whether you're eating out or at home, one portion may be much more food -- and many more calories -- than the amounts recommended for a specific daily calorie level. For instance, a bowl of pasta may be larger than the half-cup of cooked pasta recommended for a daily calorie level.

Also, read the Nutrition Facts label on packaged and canned foods. It tells you how many calories and which nutrients the food provides. You can use it to help you keep track of how much fat, saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, cholesterol, sugars, and calories you get from different foods.

The Percent Daily Value (written as "% daily value") on the right of the label tells you what percentage of the recommended daily amount of a nutrient is in one serving of the food. It is based on the nutritional needs of a person who consumes 2,000 calories per day. For example, on this label for macaroni and cheese, the Percent Daily Value for total fat is 18%. This means that one serving of macaroni and cheese (1 cup) will give you 18 percent of the total amount of fat you should allow yourself each day, assuming you eat about 2,000 calories daily.

Pay attention to the serving size and the number of servings in the package. A package might contain two or more servings, so if you eat two servings, you would consume twice the calories, fat, sodium, carbohydrates, protein, etc., as you would for one serving.

Source: National Institute on Aging