Did you know it's possible to suffer from malnutrition even if you're eating three times a day? That can happen easily to seniors who find it hard to be motivated to cook and end up just snacking throughout the day.

A changing sense of smell and taste, loneliness after the death of a spouse, medications and boredom are a few of the reasons we don't eat as well as we should. But with a little ingenuity, it's easy to fix fast, easy meals you'll actually eat! Here are some ideas:

· Use your slow cooker. All the ingredients are assembled in the pot in the morning, and are ready by dinnertime.

· The variety of cookbooks on the market is amazing. Investigate cookbooks that offer recipes with only five ingredients, diabetic recipes, meals that take less than 20 minutes to prepare, and prepared foods combined with your own easy additions.

· Double the amounts you prepare, and freeze the rest for days when you really don't want to cook at all. Be sure to label the container and use it within a few weeks.

· If income allows, consider ordering one week of a plan where meals are delivered to your door. While the cost would be prohibitive to do this constantly, having a few meals in the freezer would be handy for those times you don't want to cook.

· Take a cooking class and learn steps to fix quick meals.

· Ask your doctor for a referral to a nutritionist if you need help with creating a menu, portion sizes and nutritional values.

If you're truly stuck in a not-cooking rut, in a pinch, remember: Canned fruit and vegetables are better than none at all. Peanut butter on crackers with a banana offers nutrition. It takes only a few minutes to scramble eggs, add cheese and make toast.