Written by: Dr. Frannie Koe, MD
Edited by: Breanne Brazeale
The diets of our parents are far less nutritious now than in the past. The lack of proper nutrition is causing chronic disease to manifest more frequently in the older population today than in previous generations. Our parents are a lot sicker and there is more cognitive decline in the elderly population than previously.
My grandmothers ate real food. They did not drink any sodas, nor did they eat chips and fries. Processed foods were not an option for them. They prepared most meals fresh at home. They ate meats and veggies, much of which they grew and raised themselves. My grandmothers cooked with flour and made some desserts, but rarely. They also both walked a lot. One even rode a bike into her early 80s. Very few people in my grandmother’s generation were overweight or obese.
Our parents are becoming much more sedentary than in the past. As someone slows down physically, they are much more at risk of falling. People lose their balance easily when they are sedentary. Our lifestyles now are so much more conducive to being sedentary. It is usually a gradual process over the years, frequently because of sedentary jobs, and it is often hard to turn it around the older we get. Once someone sits more and more, falls can happen so easily. I tell people it is like being an astronaut going into outer space. When a person is weightless in space, even for a few days, they quickly lose their ability to balance and stand properly. It is similar when we sit for much of the time for days, weeks, and months on end. Our cerebellum, an important part of our brain that controls balance, will not work as well. I have seen many people have to hold on to the walls to get down the clinic hall.
