What do elderly people like to eat at meal times?
I am setting up a meals service for the elderly and would like to know what their favourite foods are. If you are elderly yourself or you have knowledge of what older people enjoy eating through your workplace or member of your family, please let me know.
mushy stuff
cause most don’t have teeth.
You can serve them anything? what is the cut off age for regular food and old people food. Just keep it from being too spicy.
My nan is 70 and grandad is 62 and they like the same foods non-elderly people like. It’s not about age, it’s about taste.
My grandma loves salads and jacket potatoes and things like that. I think if you stick to traditional style meals you should be onto a winner with most people e.g. meat, potatoes, veg and gravy.
having cooked for the elderly and deal with them now daily.
Its the old type plain foods meat 3 veg potatoes – and most love fish -they particularly like the old type desserts spotted dick – custard-trife -apple sponge-milk puddings semolina etc
I once went for an interview at an old folks home where every day they either had fish fingers and chips or beefburger and chips -I was so disgusted I reported them but nothing was done
The same as anyone else. They’re not a different species.
well they like to eat things everyone enjoys from day to day beef stew, chicken and dumplings, spaghetti, meatloaf, soup and sandwiches, sliced turkey and dressing and many others
Usually good old fashioned meals.Roast dinners, soups, puddings with custard.Ask a local hospital and doctors surgery if you could leave a questionnaire for people to add suggestions for you too.Best of luck, hope it works out well for you.
EDIT:You know what you can do with your thumbs down.;o)
Old people do like to eat food that is prohibited for them to take.
*We dislike our mother as she doesn’t listen to the doctor’s advice. And she landed in the hospital for being a hard-headed old woman!!!
The elderly are just like all of us…. everyone likes something different. Yes, some of them need softer foods, etc but not always.
My Dad is 75 and he eats steak & potatoes twice a day (he’d eat them for breakfast if Mom would let him).
I’d just make sure it’s GOOD food, not frozen dinner type stuff.
Remember to have a really good dessert too…. pie or fruit cobbler will go over very well!!!
I think you should ask the people who you are hoping to supply with meals.
Everyone is different, with different tastes.
Do market research.
Well I would presume they would eat the same as all us other humans,yes I get what your trying to say,I would try & make sure that it is healthy food,lots of veg,meat & fish (if they eat it) my step dad is an old codger (joke) & he just likes meat veg,meat veg,meat veg, If you know who your customers are going to be can’t you make up a quick choice of menus & deliver then round then you would get a better idea of what food is most populer,,wel I wish you luck in your new adventure.x
the elderly enjoy traditional food like you would cook for yourself. also don’t give large portions as this turns them off from eating. they hate to waste food.
I’m 63 and I eat the same as everyone else, thanks. If people have survived into old age, they probably don’t eat junk, so meals cooked from scratch will be popular.
Please remember, we are individual people, we don’t suddenly become a demographic when we reach a certain age, we like what we’ve always liked. I travel a lot: Australia, Far East, France, Belgium, Canada, Mexico and eat local food wherever I go. I don’t want roast meat and two veg, followed by a pudding with custard, thanks. I want fresh food in modest quantities. The salt herring and potato salad, followed by grenouilles and duck cassoulet I had in Montpellier last month – that kind of thing. Lots of fresh veg.
The person below who said “older people are habitual” reduces us all to a stereotype, apart from the dodgy grammar (does he mean he’s addicted to geriatrics ?)
Older people are habitual. They have a set way of living because it is a familiar pattern. That goes for food as well.
You have to balance what a person likes with what is also healthy. Generally simple food is best. Remember that older people should not have a lot of sugar or fatty or high carb diets. They are not active enough to burn off high calorie foods and their systems cannot cope with fatty foods and sugar is a danger to those who my be borderline diabetics.
Lean mets, Chicken and fish – for those who like it (I cannot stand fish myself). Good fresh vegies, frsh fruit – apples, oranges, plums, maybe grapes, rasberry and the like. Not cakes or other high cal bakery foods. Wheat bread, corn bread – OK. Simple, nutricious, not special, rich or hi calorie.
A persons background will telly ou about what they like. That may also depend on where you live or where your clientel might be living. Local foods are known to them and they will like what they are used to.
It does not have to be fancy. It does have to be well prepared, nicely served, nutricious. You might take a poll among people in a super market. Ask what is your favorite…. and make a list Meat, Vegie, Friut, drink. You will get a good cross section pretty fast.
Food is my guess.
Cottage pie.
Bangers and mash with onion gravy.
Home made soups.
Potted beef or ham sandwich.
A good piece of fish.
Elderly people eat what we eat. However some might prefer to have fish rather than meat but that depends on the individual
nearly 60 but i bet i like my Curry’s hotter than you, old people are old and not dead they enjoy life and food as much as you, some even have sex.
now excuse me please as i have to take my meds and empty my colostomy bag
you cant go wrongwith the old fashioned favorites like haddock and poached egg .sheperds pie .braised beef, stew , cheese and potato pie.etc nothing too spicy
Beef stew,meatloaf,some eat spagetti some dont hurts their tummy.
Thats what kills me they always say everything is bad for you my gramps literally grew up on everything fired granny made and he is still living at 93…fried potatoes,creamy tomatos w biscuits of morning and rice and eggs sausage…
As an elderly person, I like food that is interesting. I like a lot of variety and only know what I fancy about half an hour before eating, which isn’t really that helpful to you, is it?
I used to work in a nursing home and my mom is in a nursing home herself right now, and I’ve always found they love comfort foods like meat loaf & mashed potatoes, baked mac & cheese, pot pies, chicken & noodles, beef stew, lasagna, cornbread, pie (apple, cherry, pumpkin), and soups (clam chowder, chicken noodle, potato, etc…)
And you should probably not make them anything too spicy, salty or sugary, especially if they have diabetes or food allergies, then a whole new menu needs to be provided for them. Also most condiments like salt, sugar/sweetener, gravy, etc. should be left on the side for them to add.
My 87 year old Grandma lives with us, she is always wanting foods like beans and cornbread, stew, ham, mashed potatoes, fruit and cottage cheese, any kind of veggie.
She really likes cheeseburgers, cabbage with smoked sausage, onion and sliced potato in it then you bake it.
Cole slaw, potato salad, pretty much anything that is easy to chew and is not too spicey. Cream soups such as baked potato soup and cream of brocolli are great also. She absolutely loves sweets of any kind!
Breakfast foods are pretty much cereals such as raisin bran, corn flakes, oatmeal, cream of wheat, toast with peanut butter, eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits and gravy really go over well.
That is great what you are doing. Best wishes to you and your program! Hope this helps.
My Grandma who is 80 loves hot tea toast eggs and bacon. Its hard to do things perfect but you would have 2 be an idiot to not no how to cooks eggs . Just make sure of allergys !
I’m a carer and worked alot with the elderly.They tend to like good hearty traditional meals-they don’t tend to like none of this ‘foreign’ food. I’d make them thing like roast dinner,Shepherds Pie,Fish and chips,chillie-con-carni(altho it’s foreign they like it but not too spicey),chicken and vegetables but take the bones out.You also need to think of people with special diets aswell. Don’t forget to take out the bones but just stick to traditional meals,you can’t go wrong.Good luck.
I’m 73 – you name it I’ll eat it. Just make sure there’s enough of it not those soppy meals of two watercress sprigs and a dob of unrecognisable something do not go down well.
I’ve given up worrying at my age whether it’s bad for me or will shorten my life.
RoyS.
THEY EAT THE SAME THINGS THAT THE REST OF US DO.
Just go easy on the spices.
Same as everyone else but they seem to take a liking to tapioca pudding.
Well, I am 65 and I like everything, Indian, Chinese, Traditional English, and my very favourite is Tex Mex, I absolutely love that. I often make Enchiladas and Burritos.. just because we are older doesn’t mean we have gone back to our babyhood.. we surf, text and do everything everyone else does.. That doesn’t mean we don’t like good old mashed potatoes.. the ultimate comfort food… Oh and we have sex, too!!!
Anything they can afford which, under this government, isn’t much.
Well everyone seems to have covered everything, just like to add, my dad is 83, and loves to start his day off with Porridge! Good luck. He is a nursing home and happy.
traditional foods….pie and mash with mushy peas…sausages with mash…spag bol…shepherd pie…roast dinner…chilli con carne..soup…cheese and potato pie with veg….lasagna…goulash…steak and ale pie…steak and kidney puddings…!!
and for pudding……
lemon meringue pie…gypsie tart…treacle tart..jelly and icecream…cakes…fruit pies…vic sponge with jam and custard…rice pudding…custard pies..!! hope this helps and that you are successful!! xxx
Perhaps you should ask this question in the seniors forum.
Then you would get your answers from “the horses mouth”.
There is a great diversity in elderly people. From your spelling of the word favorite, I suspect you may be British or Canadian … even so the diversity will still be very great.
Setting up a food service for the elderly should be very health conscious! While young people have health issue, too. The elderly are more likely to be “trying” to improve life style choices. My husband was diagnosed with high blood pressure and high triglycerides over a year ago.
That has made some major changes for us. I have had to rework many of our favorite menus to contain less salt and less fat (omega 6) We have been able to cut salt drastically from our eating regimen. ( I am using MORE not less spices!) We also eat less fat and healthier fats.
True, my husband does have some chewing issues fresh greens. We love cole slaw, not only does my new recipe have a healthy dressing, we also make sure it is more finely chopped. We eat lots of raw fruits and fruit salads. We prefer our vegetables steamed.
While we love ham… it is on our no no list… because of both salt and fat content. This is a food you would use on rarely at a food service as well as sausage and bacon. These foods are likely favorites of us oldies, however, use them in extreme moderation.
Someone mentioned that we loved desserts. Some of us do, I prefer a nice piece of fruit or slice of melon myself, My husband wants his dessert … later. (Really I perfer REAL ice cream, however, if I ate it regularly I could not get through the doors to the swimming pool and dance hall.)
Hope I have given you some food for thought.
my grandma eats just the same as me.