Nutrition is of paramount importance at every stage of life, but needs for specific nutrients and energy change as you grow and age. Too little nutrition compromises your health, impairs the growth and development of children and increases the risk of infections. Food choices also affect chronic diseases, including coronary artery disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer.
More than 40 nutrients provide energy, form structural components of your body and regulate your body's functions. Nutrient categories include carbohydrates, lipids, protein, water, vitamins and minerals. Your requirements for specific nutrients are complex and vary over your lifespan. Nutrient needs are greatest during infancy, adolescence and pregnancy.
Growth and Development
An infant grows and develops rapidly. He doubles his weight by the time he's 6 months old and triples it by the time he turns 1. Breastfeeding is ideal for nutrition in infancy. Growth slows to a steady pace, with occasional spurts, from preschool through adolescence. Children and adolescents need an age-appropriate balanced diet with a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy products and protein.
Growing children need sufficient nutrition and calories for energy. But it shouldn't be excessive, promoting obesity. Include all food groups, and make low-fat choices in each group after the age of 2. Calcium is critical for bone growth, especially during childhood and adolescence. Dietary intake requirements vary by age, gender, genetic and environmental factors.
Adulthood
Skeletal growth and peak bone mass are achieved before age 30. Stability then becomes the primary nutritional concern of adulthood. Oral health, menopause, changes in metabolism and body weight and body composition become issues with nutritional components as adults mature. High-blood pressure, high cholesterol and high-blood sugar are all related to eating habits.
Calcium for bone maintenance, vitamin D for calcium absorption, B vitamins for metabolic reactions, folate for reproduction and anti-oxidants, vitamin C and vitamin E rise in importance during adulthood. A chronic health concern, which can be treated and to some extent prevented by diet and lifestyle, is cardiovascular disease. Nutrition continues to be a key factor in maintaining health and preventing or treating disease throughout adulthood.
Aging
A nutritionally adequate diet and physical activity contribute to your ability to maintain health and well-being as you age and may delay the decline of functional capacity. Although the number of calories you require declines with age, the requirement for most nutrients is equal to or greater than that of younger adults. Energy-dense foods and meal plans gain importance with aging. Multiple medications may interfere with nutritional status and increase overall health risks. Nutrition therapy helps in the treatment of chronic diseases of aging, is inexpensive and has no side effects.
Special Needs
Reproduction, high-risk infants, certain disease states and eating disorders may require specific nutritional support or medical nutrition therapy. Pregnancy outcomes, including a healthy baby and mother, depend on the mother's growth patterns and nutrition status at conception and her diet during pregnancy. Preterm and low-birth-weight infants require intensive nutritional care to survive and thrive. Those with certain diseases, such as diabetes, renal disease, celiac disease and metabolic disorders may require nutritional support, special meal plans or supplementary nutrients. Excessive dietary restraint, such as anorexia, binge eating and purging, and excessive consumption may be treated with medical nutrition therapy.
References
- "Nutrition Across the Life Span"; Mary Kay Mitchell; 2003
- Purdue University: 4-H: Nutrition Through the Lifecycle; 2002
- USDA: MyPyramid for Preschoolers; February 9, 2011
- "Nutrition Through the Life Cycle, Third Edition"; Judith E. Brown; 2008
