Newswise — As we wage war on the obesity epidemic, our preoccupation with what we eat may kill our grandparents, says a Saint Louis University geriatrician and endocrinologist who has studied the hormones that trigger appetite.
"Despite the fact that almost every study shows that intentional and unintentional weight loss in the elderly results in premature death and disability, the public is continuously barraged with information on the evils of obesity and how food intake should be curtailed," says John Morley, M.D., director of the division of geriatric medicine at Saint Louis University School of Medicine.
Weight loss " not weight gain " in the elderly should send up a red flag about health problems, Morley said.
"According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), as many as 16 percent of Americans over the age of 65 consume less than 1,000 calories a day, putting them at severe risk of malnutrition," Morley said.
Another study found that nearly a third of elderly patients who continue to lose weight died, while more than 90 percent survived after reversing their pattern of weight loss.
"Numerous studies have shown that weight loss in older persons leads to illness and death," Morley said.
Older adults stop eating for many reasons. They lose their sense of taste and smell or have gastrointestinal problems. Their bodies release too much of the hormone that tells them they are filled up and too little of the hormone that tells them they're hungry. They may not feel like eating because they are socially isolated and depressed.
In addition, many have chronic inflammatory diseases, such as arthritis and sinusitis, which can cause excess proteins called cytokines to accumulate. Cytokines cause loss of appetite, anemia, memory problems, a decline in muscle strength, osteoporosis and other health problems.
"The less they eat, the less they are able to eat," Morley said. "Then, when older persons develop a disease such as cancer, cardiac failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, they already are set up to develop severe anorexia, malnutrition, emaciation and frailty."
Eating problems in the elderly must be taken seriously, he said, because older adults who stop eating lose weight and enter a downward spiral in health that ultimately can cost them their lives.
"They begin a cycle of starvation that is difficult to break and plunges them into malnutrition and an increased risk of death," Morley said.
The current issue of Aging Successfully, a newsletter produced by Saint Louis University School of Medicine, the Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), St. Louis Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the Gateway Geriatric Education Center of Missouri and Illinois, examines appetite problems in the elderly. To receive a copy, contact Nina Tumosa at 314-894-6510.
Established in 1836, Saint Louis University School of Medicine has the distinction of awarding the first M.D. degree west of the Mississippi River. Saint Louis University School of Medicine is a pioneer in geriatric medicine, organ transplantation, chronic disease prevention, cardiovascular disease, neurosciences and vaccine research, among others. The School of Medicine trains physicians and biomedical scientists, conducts medical research, and provides health services on a local, national and international level.
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