(2005 McNeil Consumer Healthcare Fund) – Evergreen Action Nutrition is a nutrition education program offered to seniors at the Evergreen Senior Centre. “About half of older adults [aged 55+] continue to be ‘at risk’ nutritionally. Along with early detection and treatment of disease, adopting healthier diets and more active lifestyles can help to delay the progression of disease and decline in physical health”, stated Pat Vanderkooy, Registered Dietitian of the program.
A grant from The Guelph Community Foundation enabled the program to offer a variety of services for seniors, such as:
- Food and nutrition workshops on a variety of topics, geared to the needs of an older adult population;
- A men’s cooking group meets monthly for hands-on cooking experience in a social environment, to increase confidence with food preparation and learn more about planning healthy meals;
- One-on-one nutrition counselling with a Registered Dietitian to address health concerns, physical conditions/diseases and recommended changes in food intake for a healthier diet;
- Garden Fresh Box —a monthly depot where fresh fruit and vegetables can be purchased for a lower price. As a part of a community wide initiative, this program addresses the issue of low fruit and vegetable consumption by many seniors;
- A Diabetes Support Group meets twice per month to share information, recipes and gain new skills on living with diabetes;
- And valuable resource information.
“It helps learning how to cook healthy recipes, now that I’m alone…plus I like having lunch with the other men. My appointment with the Dietitian helped me manage my diet better too”, stated a participant.