The Way You Ate 10 Years Ago? Here's Why It's Not Working For You Now

Doctors and health experts suggest ways to change your diet as you get older, especially as you surpass the age of 50.

Almost as soon as you blow out the birthday candles — and how did there get to be so many, anyway? — you may notice changes in the way your body processes the food you eat. Especially if you’re 50 or over.

“The biggest complaint I get from clients is that the diet they followed 10 years ago is no longer working for them today,” said registered dietitian nutritionist Lisa Moskovitz. “They may find it easier to gain weight while eating those same foods of a decade ago, or they’re finding that sugar and carbs affect them differently.”

It’s happening because nutritional needs naturally change with age. “It’s not an overnight transition, but with hormonal and metabolic shifts over time, along with lifestyle changes, there are nutrients the body needs more or less of,” Moskovitz said. And those hormonal shifts apply to both women and men.

What you need less of — calories

If you were hoping this was the part where we told you that a minimum daily intake of cheese doodles and lasagna were needed for your golden years — yeah, that’s not going to happen. To break it to you quickly, you need fewer calories and more nourishment, plain and simple. Registered dietitian Kinga Balogh put it this way: “As your body ages, you may be needing a lower overall amount of food, mostly due to decreased activity patterns, yet the need for essential nutrients often goes up.”