The elderly are a whole other challenge.

• Dental issues, trouble swallowing, general muscle weakness makes them favor mushy foods
• low stomach acid is rampant, from medications to control gastric distress or the lack of challenge in their digestion by eating few protein foods
• medications for metabolic syndrome plus medications to control side effects screw up their appetites
• age and poor health dulls taste buds and makes them fussy about textures
• if they have mental or mood issues they will crave comfort foods
• Basic dietary goals becomes "getting them to eat SOMETHING" much as it is with any treatment, like chemo, that disrupts appetite
• many elderly lose mental flexibility and regress to childhood eating patterns
• The needs of the many will outweigh the needs of the few: if enough people can only eat mush, everyone gets mush

A bizarre offshoot of Elder Care is how it has crept into verterinary science. So many vets say fat cats should “eat less and move more” and my vet wants to lower my eldery cat’s protein, when they need it more than ever because less efficient digestion means he’s not getting as much protein as when he was younger.

Does not bode well for us older folk unless we can change the mindset. Of course, I am hoping that eating this way helps me “drop in harness” rather than the slow horrible decline we see so many dealing with.