Vitamins and the elderly

As people age, they often become prone to illnesses they were able to shrug off in their youth. Therefore as people age, it is more important than ever that they take adequate amounts of vitamins to enable them to keep in optimum health. Some statistics have shown very few elderly people take vitamin supplements; this can have a potentially devastating effect on their health and well being and can even ultimately cause premature death.

Any ache or slight pain is often taken by an older person as a sign of disease; therefore their first thought is usually to either take painkillers, antibiotics or even feel they just have to live with it. Very few older people ever consider adding vitamin supplements to help their nutrition which then assists in combating disease.  If elderly people were more aware of the importance of adding vitamin substances to their diet, many of them would have improved health and probably live longer.

The large consumption of antibiotics by many elderly people usually act against the nutrients in the body, this becomes a vicious circle because the body becomes even more weak and vulnerable to succumbing to illness and injury.

Elderly people should take good care of themselves in their golden years. The problem is however that many of them live alone on reduced incomes. They are often unable or can ill afford to prepare nourishing food which then has an adverse effect on their health. As they are often housebound and unable to take exercise, their physical problems can become much worse. Just taking a vitamin supplement which has been designed for them could make up the deficit which is caused by their inadequate nutrition.

Let's take for example Vitamin D, which has the same important role in the body for any human being, no matter if child, adult or elderly. It helps keep the bones healthy as it provides calcium and assists in strengthening up the entire body. Elderly people need even more Vitamin D, as they lose calcium extremely quickly and there's a high risk of osteoporosis.

An additional problem facing elderly people is the harm presented by free radicals, which are unbalanced substances which if uncontrolled cause problems in the body.  As a comparison, think about the rust appearing on your car over the years. Taking antioxidants which assist in eradicating free radicals can help improve health and prolong life.

The easiest place to find antioxidants is fruits and vegetables, which contain vitamins such as Vitamin A, C and E, however only a small number of elderly eat the necessary quantity for the antioxidants to do their work. As antioxidants also assist in improving the immune system, elderly people are much more protected.

As we get older, skin cells start to diminish; it becomes less flexible and is more prone to injury. Skin requires Vitamin K to maintain its health, so it is important that an adequate amount of vitamin K is taken. Latest research has also shown that a lack of Vitamin K can also cause Alzheimer's.

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