[para transit fellow]

Originally Posted by First Lady

Well John Gilchrist (Calgary food writer) also points out it doesn't even have an aroma. Or do seniors lose their sense of smell too?

Here is more from John on this topic at Alberta Primetime.

http://www.albertaprimetime.com/Stories.aspx?pd=3829

Smell is another sense that deteriorates with age. 20 - 35% of seniors apparently lose their sense of smell... and smell is a key part of the emjoyment of food.

I know families that took in an elderly relative and were exasperated by the senior's complaints about dinner... Until I mentioned the change in taste/ smell. Similarly, I have heard seniors complain about the daughter's cooking until i gently tell them that not only has their vision been changing but the senses that enjoy our food have changed. (one lady thought her daughter was intentionally making the food awful until i pointed this out).

I point out the changes related to aging because i think the problem is more complicated than just dropping the cheap re-thermalized food. This odourless re-thermalized mass-cooked stuff has been on the markets for decades, but even Calgary places with on-site kitchens have been known to be on leading edge of food taste complaints.

Cooking the food locally will probably help, getting someone who can cook for the senior palate would also probably help.