The elderly snack market is yet to be tapped

On the online shopping platform, elderly snacks are used as keyword searches, and the top ones are steamed and baked pastry snacks, bread, biscuits and other goods
.
In addition, elderly snacks tend to emphasize their health effects, often adding some kind of minor ingredients, or even close to a certain taste, just flaunting a certain nutritional concept
.
For example, many lactic acid bacteria bread write "lactic acid" and "lactic acid bacteria" very large without the actual addition of lactic acid bacteria, with a small "flavor" next to them, making people mistakenly think that such pastries can play a role
in regulating the stomach.
Elderly consumers are generally confused about snacks and are afraid of not buying well
.
In most cases, "the child can't eat it when he buys it, and he follows the 'cleaning', what to eat"
.
Some elderly people have the impression that snacks are "unhealthy", thinking that packaged foods are not good and have additives
.
When asked if snacks are good for the body and can ensure the taste, most elderly people are interested and willing to try
.

"Snacks for the elderly? There are no distinctions between old people and children, find them yourself
.
"When I consult with the clerk at an offline supermarket, I can't get recommendations
for snacks for the elderly.
Some clerks will ask: Do you want to buy health food? Or directly point to the container
of milk powder, lotus root powder, black sesame paste and so on.

In addition to the elderly buying in person, there are many juniors who will buy some snacks for the elderly at home to express filial piety and love, but it is also not easy
to choose.
On social platforms, there is a high degree of discussion around snacks for the elderly, and there is also a lot of controversy
.

A recommended post about snacks for the elderly has accumulated more than 30,000 likes and 20,000 favorites, as well as nearly 1,000 comments
.
In the comments, netizens often recommended jellies, biscuits, bread, etc.
that the elderly love to eat, and the following was pointed out by others that "jelly is slippery and easy to be dangerous", "margarine for bread, containing trans fatty acids", "the shelf life is too long, there are a lot of preservatives".
.
.

"At present, I don't have much impression of seeing snack products
that are specially developed for the physical characteristics of the elderly.
" Fan Zhihong, a professor at China Agricultural University, believes that when the elderly buy snacks, they should understand some common sense and then judge
from their own situation.

First of all, eating snacks outside of meals, is it good or not? Fan Zhihong said that from the perspective of eating behavior, there is no problem
for the elderly to eat some snacks appropriately.
On the one hand, it can obtain the pleasure of eating, and it can also provide certain nutrients
.
"Especially for the thin elderly, it is beneficial to supplement some energy through snacks outside of three meals, which is not prone to the problem of oligosarcosis
.
"

If you choose to snack, what is more important to eat? Ma Guansheng, a professor at the School of Public Health of Peking University, stressed that whether the elderly buy by themselves or their children buy on their behalf, they must look at the food label and then choose, with less oil, less salt, no sugar, and less sugar as the core
.
Especially for the elderly with chronic diseases such as diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and high blood pressure, more attention should be paid to the content
of sugar, oil and salt when choosing snacks.

"It is not recommended for the elderly to eat snacks such as spicy strips, which often contain too much
salt.
Some fruit and vegetable chips are usually fried at low temperatures, and factors with more oil content need to be considered
.
The decline in taste function in the elderly affects the feeling of sweetness, and it cannot be judged
by whether it tastes sweet or not.
Also pay attention to cocoa butter, in which hydrooleic acid is a trans fatty acid, which is difficult to metabolize in the human body, which will increase the risk of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease
.
Ma Guansheng said
.

"Overall, it's not worse
than three meals.
" Fan Zhihong said that the elderly have limited appetite and should not waste food space on low-value snacks
.
If you can chew it well, nuts are a better choice
.
The nutritional value of various freeze-dried snacks such as dates, dried apricots, and raisins is also relatively high
.
Elderly people need sufficient animal food and high-quality protein intake, and protein content
can be properly considered when choosing snacks.

For the elderly who do not digest well, it is a good idea
to choose baby snacks under the premise that economic conditions allow.
They are usually chewy and absorbed, and they are also rich in nutrients
.
Even high-quality snacks are very particular
to eat.
Ma Guansheng put forward four principles: eat small and frequent meals, do not eat too much at a time; The variety is as rich as possible, and the snack (meal) food is complementary to the main meal to avoid monotonous repetition; It is not recommended to eat 1 hour before going to bed at night, so as not to affect sleep; After meals and snacks, you should brush your teeth and rinse your mouth in time to protect your dental health
.

(Wei Jing)

China Food News(November 29, 2022, Version 07)

(Responsible editor: Zhu Meiqiao)