Healthy Eating for Successful Living in Older Adults

Healthy Eating for Successful Living in Older Adults is an educational and support program designed to assist older adults in the self-management of their nutritional health.  The focus of this program is to encourage participants to understand and implement eating and activity behaviors that support heart and bone health. The main components of the program include; self-assessment and management of dietary patterns, goal-setting, and problem-solving. This is accomplished through group support and education.  This intervention relies on both group interaction and the expertise of a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist when needed to help adults to commit to behavior change strategies.

Healthy Eating is an educational and hands on program using MyPyramid as a framework.  The intervention uses peer support to concentrate on behavior change.  The program also includes recommendations and support for physical activity in conjunction with sound nutrition practices.

Program Goals:

  • -Increase knowledge about enhancing heart and bone health through healthy diet choices and physical activity
  • -Adapt to culturally diverse populations
  • -Foster improvement in nutrition life-style to all seniors through peer-led behavioral change
  • -Teach participants how to set reasonable goals and solve problems related to common nutrition self-management issues, what community resources are available, and how to use them.

 

Target Audience:

  • Adults age 60

 

Program Description:

  • Six sessions, one session each week, 2.5 hours each session and a restaurant outing to test knowledge and skills.

 

Program Delivery:

  • Two trained Lay Leaders

 

Costs to Implement Program:

Contact Amanda Aprea (AmandaAprea@hsl.harvard.edu) or Jennifer Raymond (JenniferRaymond@hrca.harvard.edu ) Massachusetts Healthy Living Center of Excellence for more information.

Contact information

Website: http://www.ncoa.org/improve-health/center-for-healthy-aging/healthy-eating-for-successful.html

Reference Material

Mausbach, B.T., Bowie, C.R., Harvey, P.D., Twamley, E.W., Goldman, S.R., Jeste, D.V., et al. (2007). Usefulness of the UCSD Performance-Based Skills Assessment (UPSA) for predicting residential independence in patients with chronic schizophrenic. Journal of Psychiatric Research, Feb 13.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2004).  Bone Health and Osteoporosis: A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD:  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK45513/ (Accessed 12/15/2014)