Excessive Weight Loss In Elderly

Rapid unintentional weight loss in elderly is usually indicative of underlying disease and accelerates the muscle loss which normally occurs with aging.

Excessive weight loss in elderly. Accurate evaluation is essential however because this problem is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. But they are already in the best range of bmi for their age with the lowest risk of mortality. As a caregiver or family member here are some of the possible causes of weight loss to explore with your older relative and their doctor.

It follows that unexplained weight loss in an older person almost always is a marker of an underlying illness. Unintentional weight loss i e more than a 5 reduction in body weight within six to 12 months occurs in 15 to 20 of older adults and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality 1 in. And weight loss in older adults can lead to muscle loss.

Many older adults lose weight as they age which is not necessarily a good thing. Older adults have less muscle to start with we ll dive into that soon. This is a very well thought out article about the complexities of unexplained sudden weight loss in older adults.

But many doctors agree that a medical evaluation is called for if you lose more than 5 percent of your weight in six months to a year especially if you re an older adult. When an older adult loses five percent or more of their weight over a period of six months and they are not specifically working on weight loss this could be cause for alarm. For example a 5 percent weight loss in someone who is 160 pounds 72 kilograms is 8 pounds 3 6 kilograms.

Sudden unintentional weight loss in the elderly can signify a number of underlying medical concerns. Your body is made of fat mass and. Here the weight loss was more subtle but still clinically significant.

Especially if an older adult is living on his her own far away from adult children who can help and monitor. Muscle loss or muscle wasting can lead to unexpected weight loss the major symptom is muscle weakness. Unintentional weight loss in the elderly patient can be difficult to evaluate.