Handbook of Clinical Nutrition and Aging

edited by Connie W Bales and Christine Seel Ritchie, 2004, 698 pages, hardcover, $145. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ.

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The Handbook of Clinical Nutrition and Aging consists of 31 chapters covering a broad range of topics, all of which are essential to understanding why there is so much concern about people in their later years. The first section provides an excellent and fascinating overview of the epidemiology of aging. The graying of America is compared with the graying of nations in both developed and undeveloped parts of the world. This section highlights China and the Asian nations as well as African and European nations. The concern that there will be too few young and middle-aged adults to care for the aging population is well illustrated. The fundamentals of geriatric nutrition, as well as a review of the literature on how medications can affect nutritional status, are illuminating. The final section includes 17 chapters, each of which is devoted to specific clinical conditions that afflict the aged. The book would have been better had it included a section on the care of the aged, ie, hospice care and care in assisted living centers and nursing homes. These care facilities have a considerable effect on the nutritional status of the elderly, and some consideration of the problems facing these organizations and the people in their care would have been useful. Nonetheless, this handbook is a treasure. The book is beautifully written and very informative. The authors have taken the time to fully explore their assigned topics and have reviewed the literature thoroughly. Some of the chapters provide guidelines for clinicians at the end of the chapter, whereas other chapters provide a list of resources for further information. The list at the end of the chapter on diabetes, for example, is quite good. This topic in particular is difficult to summarize succinctly in the pages allowed. However, because of the resource list, the reader knows where to find additional information if desired. This book should be in every physician’s office and in the library of everyone who is concerned about the elderly.