Anorexia is associated with the fact that young people suffer from it, but it is possible that this problem may also occur in representatives of definitely older age groups. Anorexia in the elderly is a rather specific problem, because its causes are usually different, as are the behaviors of patients suffering from it. There are also differences in the treatment of anorexia in old age.

Contents:

  1. Anorexia in the elderly - causes
  2. Anorexia in the elderly - symptoms
  3. Anorexia in the elderly - possible consequences
  4. Anorexia in the elderly - treatment

Anorexia (anorexia nervosa) is the most common among the many different types of eating disorder. Typically, this problem is found in young patients - adolescents and young adults, and for this reason some people assume that this type of eating disorder does not occur at all in people older than this age.

Such thinking is definitely, but definitely incorrect - in fact, anorexia can appear at any age. Anorexia in the elderly is also possible, but in this age group it is, unfortunately, often underestimated. This poses an extremely high risk for people suffering from it - anorexia at this age can have fatal consequences.

Anorexia in the elderly - causes

When you look at the statistics on the prevalence of anorexia in the elderly, it may be surprising that so little is said about it - according to one of the available data, this problem may affect up to a quarter of all Europeans who are 80 years old.

Here, however, it should be noted that in elderly patients there are usually two different forms of anorexia: one is "typical" anorexia, the other is the so-called old age anorexia.

"Typical" anorexia occurs primarily in those seniors who have struggled with this problem in the past. It happens that in the earlier years of life a person suffered from anorexia, which - thanks to appropriate treatment - was overcome.

Just as some patients manage to overcome their eating disorders permanently, some patients, unfortunately, at some pointrelapse - it happens that this relapse does not take place until the fall of life.

Elderly anorexia is a much more common form of anorexia in the elderly. Predisposing seniors to its occurrence may be various changes in the functioning of their organisms, which appear naturally with age. Unfortunately, these problems are relatively numerous and they include, among others:

  • reduction of the basic energy demand of the body (which automatically results in a decrease in appetite),
  • increase in the amount of leptin in the body (resulting, for example, from the increase in fat tissue content in the body with age, which is secreted by the cells it contains; leptin suppresses the appetite, therefore its excessive amounts may contribute to for anorexia in the elderly),
  • slowing down of peristalsis in the digestive tract (it favors, among others, troublesome constipation, which ultimately reduces the desire to eat),
  • stomach dysfunction (slower emptying of the stomach may result in frequent feeling of fullness, so the senior may not feel like eating),
  • deterioration of the sense of smell and taste,
  • psychiatric problems (such as depression, where loss of appetite is one of its symptoms, or various dementia disorders),
  • the occurrence of side effects of medications taken by seniors (some of them lead to, among others, diarrhea, constipation or nausea, the intensity of which may increase after eating food, and therefore the senior may be extremely reluctant to eat any food).

It should also be noted that the possible cause of anorexia in the elderly are various diseases. A significant decrease in appetite, associated with excessive weight loss, is sometimes found in the course of various neoplastic diseases, but the above-mentioned problems may also appear in the case of certain chronic diseases - an example of such is heart failure.

The psychological basis of anorexia in a senior is also possible. It happens that an elderly person feels rejected by their relatives or that they are tormented by the fact that they have many different chronic diseases that cannot really be fully cured.

In such cases, anorexia can be a method of regaining the sense of control over one's own life - it usually takes place on a subconscious level and is related to the development of a sense of "power" over such a basic life process as eating food.

Anorexia in the elderly - symptoms

Anorexia in peopleIn fact, older people are rarely associated with the belief that they have excessive body weight and the pursuit of the dream, though extremely incorrect, weight.

In the course of anorexia in old age, there may be some other symptoms characteristic of it, such as:

  • a significant reduction in the amount of food consumed (not necessarily related to the obsessive calculation of the caloric value of food or the elimination of all unhe althy, caloric snacks from the menu),
  • complaints about various digestive ailments that appear after eating (such as a constant feeling of fullness, abdominal pain or indefinite discomfort localized by patients somewhere in their abdominal cavity),
  • progressive weight loss that does not worry the patient and therefore does not increase the amount of food consumed.

Anorexia in the elderly - possible consequences

You probably don't need to convince anyone that food is essential for life. In some patients - in children and also in the elderly - proper nutrition is especially important.

The elderly organism is much more sensitive to nutrient deficiencies - limiting the amount of consumed food may favor, among others, osteoporosis and it can lead to a significant decrease in immunity, resulting in more frequent occurrence of various infections.

The consequence of anorexia in old age are disturbances in the water-electrolyte or acid-base balance (which can lead to, for example, serious heart rhythm disturbances in a very short time), as well as sarcopenia or weakness syndrome.

In general, it can be summarized that anorexia in the elderly significantly increases their risk of death - it is for this and because of the above-mentioned potential risks of elderly anorexia that definitely requires treatment.

Anorexia in the elderly - treatment

As in seniors, the causes and symptoms of anorexia are different than in the case of anorexia in young people, the treatment of anorexia in the elderly is also slightly different. In these patients, the primary role is played by interactions aimed at eliminating factors contributing to eating disorders.

For this purpose, it is possible to modify the pharmacotherapy recommended for the patient - sometimes it turns out that it is enough to change one of the many medications taken by the patient to some other preparation, for example to lead to the relief of constipation that caused him reluctance to eat.

Important is optim altreatment of conditions that could be associated with a decrease in appetite, such as depression or Alzheimer's disease.

In the case of anorexia in old age, psychological support and dietary impact are also invaluable (it has been mentioned that in the elderly, deterioration of appetite may result from a deterioration in the perception of tastes or smells, therefore more intensive flavoring of dishes or caring for them). attractive appearance may lead to the fact that the senior will be more willing to consume them).

  • Eating disorders in the elderly
  • A he althy diet for people over 60 - will give you energy
  • Diet for seniors - what the elderly should eat
About the authorBow. Tomasz NęckiA graduate of medicine at the Medical University of Poznań. An admirer of the Polish sea (most willingly strolling along its shores with headphones in his ears), cats and books. In working with patients, he focuses on always listening to them and spending as much time as they need.

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Category:

Geriatrics