Why do some older people eat more than others?
Fat-Free Mass and Total Daily Energy Expenditure Estimated using Doubly Labelled Water Predict Energy Intake in a Large Sample of Community-Dwelling Older Adults.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Fat mass showed no link to energy intake, while muscle mass and total energy expenditure did.
Common belief is that body fat regulates hunger (via leptin), but this study found no such link in older adults—muscle and activity were the real drivers.
Practical Takeaways
Encourage older adults to maintain muscle mass through resistance training to support natural hunger signals and nutrient intake.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Fat mass showed no link to energy intake, while muscle mass and total energy expenditure did.
Common belief is that body fat regulates hunger (via leptin), but this study found no such link in older adults—muscle and activity were the real drivers.
Practical Takeaways
Encourage older adults to maintain muscle mass through resistance training to support natural hunger signals and nutrient intake.
Publication
Journal
The Journal of nutrition
Year
2021
Authors
Mark Hopkins, Nuno Casanova, G. Finlayson, R. Stubbs, J. Blundell
Related Content
Claims (4)
Older people with more muscle tend to eat more, but this link gets weaker as they get older.
The link between muscle mass or calorie burn and how much you eat gets weaker the older you get.
Older adults who burn more calories each day tend to eat more, but this link gets weaker as they get older.
How much fat a person has doesn’t seem to affect how much they eat, but how much muscle they have or how many calories they burn does.