What are the meal patterns of elderly women and how is eating and drinking integrated in every day life activities. In a qualitative study "eating and drinking in the life course" out of a sample of 60 women age 64 to 94 years, 43 women kept 3 days food records and activity protocols. All women were living independently in their homes in Giessen, a city 60 km north of Frankfurt/M Germany. A total of 124 days including weekend and holidays with 592 reported meals were analysed in respect to duration, timing and meal patterns. Meals play an important role for structuring the day. Lunch is the main meal of the day, with cooked "meat-legume-starch" components. Breakfast and dinner are based on bread. Eating times can be characterized as "8 am-12 am-18 pm-pattern". Breakfast contributes 21%, lunch 31% and dinner 25%, all snacks and interim meals 22% of total daily energy intake. Nutrition counselling and education of elderly women has to acknowledge culturally based meal patterns as well as culturally based timing and duration of meals.