Is Soy a Good Alternative Protein For The Elderly?

Rate it!

Currently 3.5 /5 Stars.
1
2
3
4
5

Is Soy a Good alternative protein for the elderly?
An aging body needs smarter nutrition, not lesser nutrition!

Physiological changes in ability to digest, in bone density, with sugar or cholesterol control can cause nutritional needs in an elderly individual to change. At the same time, the human body still needs its recommended servings of protein, vegetables, fruits, dairy, and good fats

It is however common knowledge that as people get older one of the food groups they tend to cut back on is protein. This is primarily because of the trouble they face digesting animal proteins (excessive fat) or vegetarian proteins such as lentils that might cause them abdominal discomfort and flatulence.

An elderly person also faces certain distinctive physiological challenges that come with age. Problems with dentition, lowered secretions of saliva and digestive enzymes, a sensitive stomach, reduced appetite, reduced digestion and assimilation and dietary restrictions to name a few.

NutritionVista

User Comments

22 December, 2010 | Kendal | Reply

I donot like soy so can you suggest an alternative to soy which is as good as animal protein for vegetarians?

22 December, 2010 | Poonam | Reply

Hello Kendal,
You can have low fat milk products which will give you excellent quality proteins. Cereal and pulse combinations like, beans and toast, hummus and pita bread, rice and lentils etc are also good protein sources.
You might enjoy the taste of textured soy products or meat substitutes better than soy itself.

11 October, 2010 | Swathi | Reply

Dear Ms.Vijayalakshmi,

Soy protein is compared to animal protein in its nutritional values, my question is -
1. Is is also that difficult to digest when given to elders
2. what are miso and tempeh and how can I use it for my in-laws, they are 75 yrs and 65 yrs, father-in-law does not have any disorders but my mother-in-law is a diabetic.

14 October, 2010 | Vijayalakshmi Iyengar | Reply

Dear Swathi,
Processed soy in limited quantities is both accepted and assimilated well unlike unprocessed soy.
You can add precooked soy nuggets, chunks, flakes or processed soy powder into dal, sambar or any vegetable preparation. Soy powder can be added to dough’s/ batters to make chapattis /doas/idli etc or added to buttermilk, milk, juice etc and drink it. Choose what is best accepted by the person concerned.

Soy is seen to have a mild hypoglycaemic activity, so your mother in law would as a matter of fact benefit from a limited intake of soy. So get creative and improve the quality of you’re parents in-law’s diet.

09 October, 2010 | Sangeetha Narayana Swamy | Reply

Dear Gita,

As mentioned in the article, elders face a lot of problems in consuming a healthy and balanced meal due to many reasons as mentioned above. Therefore their meal should consist of foods that are soft, mushy and well cooked. Tofu, miso, tempeh, soy milk are all processed soy foods.

Thank you for your query.

08 October, 2010 | Gita Dalve | Reply

Does it matter how we give soy to elders? What exactly do you mean by processed? Is not any cooking procedure a kind of processing?

14 October, 2010 | Vijayalakshmi Iyengar | Reply

Dear Gita
Since unprocessed soy beans may cause abdominal cramps, flatulence etc and certain nutrients may not be easily available, It is preferred to give them soy which has undergone some kind of process that destroy the anti nutritional factors.
Processes like autoclaving; fermenting, sprouting etc destroys the anti-nutritional factors of soy. This will help everybody, especially the elderly both to tolerate soy and assimilate the nutrients in it.
Apart from the few products suggested by Sangeetha you can incorporate soy chunks/ nuggets, soy flakes or even soy processed powder, all commercially available, into any preparation, with out altering the taste of the original dish too much.

Post Comments

Contact Name:

E-mail:

(Will show your Gravatar icon)

Comments:

Notify me when new comments are added

User Rules

Dear User,

This is to inform you that this part of the site is moderated, and your comments will be published after the approval of the moderators. Your text comments can be modified or deleted at any time. All comments that are posted are moderated by paid employees to ensure appropriate behavior and monitor and prevent abuse and disrespect of users and readers. The moderators also ensure that all questions asked are forwarded to and responded by employees in a timely manner and by the appropriate and qualified employees. The moderators are the dietitians listed under "The NV Dietetic Team"

All users are by default considered as non medical professionals, unless explicitly stated. If you are a health professional giving medical information as a platform user, please list your status as a medical professional so as to be clearly identified.

Please note - We recommend you not include any personal data and will remove all advertising for a site or product.

All platform users and moderators must behave at all times with respect and honesty. If comments are inappropriate moderators may intervene and if a platform users is banned they will be warned or notified before being banned.

Please note regarding response time - The moderator’s is notified automatically with details the instant a comment is posted.

'The information provided on the NutritionVista.com website is designed to complement, not replace, the relationship between a patient and his/her own physician.' The minimum age for the use or participation in these platforms is 18 years of age and is strictly adhered to. By posting a comment all users of this platform undertake to disseminate only information that is true and correct in light of their knowledge.

Tags: Alzheimers & Nutrition, Chronic Lifestyle Diseases, Diabetes Management, General health, Healthy Foods, Healthy Lifestyle, Nutrition, Nutrition Counseling, Osteoporosis, Seniors Health

© 2007 - 2024 NutritionVista.com. All rights reserved. A single copy of these materials may be reprinted for noncommercial personal use only. All articles and content written by the Nutritionvista.com team for NutritionVista.com are the sole property of J.L.S Healthcare Pvt. Ltd. Content may not be copied without express permission to do so. If you want to link back to an article, please ensure a working link to the article title is used and is functioning at all times.