Meal Planning Calendar: How Assisted Living Communities Plan Menus
Nutrition plays an important role in senior health, contributing to everything from brain function to muscle tone to immunity. Seniors may struggle to maintain a balanced diet due to factors like limited mobility, medication side effects, or even loss of taste.
In assisted living communities like LakeHouse Kalamazoo, we use a meal planning calendar to create our weekly meal plan for seniors. Our residents can enjoy three square meals a day plus snacks to meet their nutritional needs.
Ready to learn how we create nutritious senior meals each day? Read on to learn more about our meal-planning calendar for seniors.
Meeting Dietary Guidelines
One simple way to create a balanced diet is to follow dietary guidelines like the MyPlate plan. MyPlate encourages people of all ages to limit things like highly processed foods and saturated fats and instead opt for whole, balanced, and varied choices.
Fruits and Vegetables
One potential issue seniors face is a lack of vitamins and minerals, particularly when eating a diet of processed foods. You can get many of your key vitamins and minerals, like B12, iron, and potassium, by eating at least five servings of fruit and vegetables a day.
We provide at least one serving of fruits or vegetables per meal. For example, we may serve berries and bananas with fortified cereal for breakfast, a fresh side salad with lunch, and a side of roasted root vegetables for dinner.
Healthy Carbs
Fad senior diet tips may encourage you to stay away from carbs. The body uses carbs to create glucose, which is the main source of energy your body needs to support cell, tissue, and organ functions.
Rather than cutting out carbs entirely, we suggest that seniors opt for healthy carbs. This includes whole grains like brown rice or quinoa, as well as starchy produce like sweet potatoes and bananas.
Protein
Emerging research suggests that seniors should get more protein than adults between the ages of 50 and 70. The best way to increase your protein intake is to add protein to each meal.
For example, you can add protein to your breakfast by enjoying a serving of low-fat dairy products like yogurt or a scrambled egg. You'll also derive heart-healthy protein from whole grains, lean meats, fish, and beans.
Practicing Food Safety
Whether you're preparing a meal at home or signing up for assisted living dining plans, food safety should always be a top priority. Healthy senior eating means having clean, fresh, and properly cooked food available.
Preventing Foodborne Illness
Older adults are at an increased risk of hospitalization due to foodborne illness. Common foodborne illnesses include salmonella, e. coli, and campylobacter.
To prevent foodborne illnesses, it's important to sanitize all dishes, utensils, and dining spaces. You should also keep raw meat and poultry products away from other food and take extra care to get those food groups to temp. Finally, refrigerate perishable food quickly to avoid spoilage.
At LakeHouse Kalamazoo, we follow all federal, state, and local food safety guidelines to protect our seniors.
Accounting for Dietary Restrictions
Some seniors worry that their specific needs and preferences won't be met in a communal dining environment. At LakeHouse Kalamazoo, we strive to provide meals that all our residents can enjoy by honoring individual dietary restrictions, including:
- Allergies and food sensitivities
- Religious or cultural food restrictions
- Personal preferences (e.g., vegetarianism)
We also recognize that nutrition plays a significant role in managing certain chronic conditions, like diabetes and high blood pressure. Our chef and in-house dining team always take long-term health needs into consideration during senior meal prep.
Creating Exciting Meals
Eating can and should be one of the greatest pleasures in life. While nutrition is our top priority, we also aim to put together meal plans that keep our seniors happy and excited.
Infusing Flavor
Some seniors experience a diminished sense of taste. Not only can this reduce the desire to eat, but it can also cause seniors to reach for foods that are high in salt. While salt does a great job of bringing out flavor, it's also important to limit salt intake, especially with health conditions like high blood pressure.
To create flavorful meals without relying on high salt content, we use fresh herbs, spices, citrus juice, vinegar, and more. Not only can these natural ingredients make your meals more delicious, but they also provide additional vitamins and nutrients.
Celebrating the Seasons
Another great way to get variation in your meal plan is to choose recipes based on the season. For example, we love to use seasonal produce as often as we can. Fall dishes may feature root vegetables and squash, while summer dishes may feature nightshades like eggplant and tomatoes.
We also use our community mealtimes to bring the holidays to life. From July Fourth cookouts to Thanksgiving turkey dinners, we're always happy to celebrate with our residents.
Trying International Cuisine
Trying international cuisine is a great way to step out of your comfort zone and discover new food that you love. It's also a great way to learn creative ways to use both familiar and unfamiliar ingredients and diversify your nutrition.
Our community amenities include all kinds of social activities. This includes special meals where we try international cuisine and learn about food from around the world. When we have a special meal that our residents love, we incorporate it into our ongoing meal-planning calendar.
Learn More About Our LakeHouse Kalamazoo Meal Planning Calendar
Healthy eating is an important part of the holistic approach to senior health. Many seniors struggle to get the nutritional balance they need when they're cooking at home. In an assisted living environment like LakeHouse Kalamazoo, seniors can sit back, relax, and enjoy our meal planning calendar.
Our team at LakeHouse Kalamazoo takes great pride in creating programs seniors love. From our dining and meal programs to our activity calendar to our personalized assistance, we go above and beyond to keep our residents healthy and happy. Contact us to learn more about our amenities and schedule a tour of our campus.