According to the US Census Bureau, 13% of residents in Kenton County, Kentucky, are aged 65 and older. Many of them are women who live alone. The Assistant City Clerk/Special Events Coordinator of Taylor Mill, Kentucky, contacted the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP-Ed) Nutrition Education Program (NEP) Assistant from the Kenton County Cooperative Extension Service to offer a basic nutrition class to the Taylored with Time Senior Group. 

The NEP Assistant taught a seven session series of Healthy Choices for Everybody. The Assistant met with the Taylor Mill Seniors once a month. Most of the participants were single women ages 65 and up. Throughout the class, the Assistant taught the seniors the importance of food safety, meal planning, and food budgeting, and knowing which foods to eat more of and which foods to limit. One participant said, “When you get to be our age, you are pretty set in your ways. I made up my mind a long time ago about the choices I wanted to make. But I am learning new things in this class and making small changes along the way.”

Even though many of the seniors voiced that they were reluctant to change, according to a Web-Based Nutrition Reporting system (Web-NEERS), as a result of the Healthy Choices series almost half of the seniors (46%) improved in their food safety practices, which included 65% of them thawing foods at room temperature less often. And at least half of them began checking their cupboards before going to the grocery (53%), started planning their meals more often (50%), and comparing prices when they shopped (56%). So even senior citizens who are set in their ways can make better choices when it comes to their health and a higher quality of life.