Health and quality of life in an aging population – food and beyond

In Europe the percentage of citizens aged 65 and over is increasing at an unprecedented rate, and is expected to account for over 30% of the population by 2050. Coupled with an increase in life expectancy, this massive demographic change calls for a major effort to ensure quality of life in our older population. A thorough understanding of the elderly as food consumers, their nutritional needs, their food perception and preferences are increasingly needed.

The role of food in healthy aging was a prominent theme at the 6th European Conference on Sensory and Consumer Research, which had quality of life across the life span as a focal point. This short paper is based on a workshop held at the EuroSense meeting, focusing on research from sensory and consumer scientists. The workshop featured contributions focusing on food-related perception, needs and behavior of the elderly, and aimed at demonstrating the relevance of sensory and consumer scientists in promoting food-related well-being in an aging population. The workshop contributions are here reviewed and summarized three main themes: nutritional needs, food perception and aging, and behavioral drivers of food consumption.