Today most adults lead a partially sedentary life, and often the foods they eat contain significantly more calories than necessary for the amount of energy normally expended. For this reason many adults are overweight, and quite a few are obese. Men and women can determine an optimal diet for themselves in accordance with their weight, activities and the climate they live in. For a well-balanced diet, calories of food ingested each day should be allocated to different kinds of nutrients as follows: carbohydrates: 50%/60% (including up to a maximum of 15%-20% simple sugars); lipids: 30% maximum (10% saturated, 10% monounsaturated and 10% polyunsaturated); proteins: 10%, one half animal and one half vegetable.

Olive Oil in adult age:
In this stage of life, we want to delay the aging of our cells as much as possible. It has been demonstrated that olive oil has ideal characteristics for helping the body to age more slowly. Our main enemies are the free radicals produced by the peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids (present in seed oils). Its use is highly recommended for two reasons: its low level of polyunsaturated fatty acids, and the presence of antioxidizing agents (tocopherols, polyphenols, carotenes) that deter "cell-killers". It must also be pointed out that during adulthood olive oil improves bone mineralization and reduces calcium loss connected with aging.

Nutritional Suggestions

Calorie requirements:
If we consider that a common and enjoyable food such as a pizza amounts to about 700 calories, and a cheese or salami sandwich, as much as 550 calories, and that an average woman weighing 54 kg (119 lb) needs 1,800 calories per day, and an average man weighing 70 kg (154 lb) needs 2,150 calories, it is quite easy to imagine how simple it is to overeat and how often it happens!

A sound basis for eating is to distribute calorie intake in different moments of the day:

• 20% breakfast;
• 5% snack;
• 25-30% lunch;
• 5% snack;
• 40-45% dinner

The following are simple suggestions for eating properly during an average day:

• have a good breakfast, rich in carbohydrates (fruit juice, bread, honey, jam); avoid butter and whole milk;
• eat a two-course lunch, avoid complicated sauces and too many saturated fats; take a short walk after lunch to aid digestion;
• eat at least 45 grams (1.6 oz) of fiber every day (cereals, vegetables, fruit);
• make moderate use of alcohol at lunch, to avoid drowsiness;
• enjoy fresh fruit for snacks, a good source of fiber, minerals, and vitamins;
• at dinner eat protein-rich foods (fish, meat, eggs, cheese), if at lunch have only pasta and a salad;
• use olive oil as a dressing and in cooking; it is easily digestible and rich in monounsaturated oleic acid