Seniors often struggle to manage their weight. Losing weight can be very difficult for seniors because they often can’t exercise. Some medications, like steroids, recommended for conditions like arthritis or asthma, can make seniors more prone to gaining weight. That means seniors need to be very careful about what they eat because diet is one of the few ways they can manage their weight.
Being overweight increases the chances that your senior parent will develop diabetes, heart disease, and other medical conditions. So, managing weight really is something that seniors need to be concerned about.
In-home care services can help your mom or dad if they struggle with weight. Your mom or dad may find it easier to accept help and suggestions from an in-home care provider instead of you. They may feel like you are criticizing them or judging them if you try to help them manage their diet or weight.
Some of the ways that in-home care can help seniors manage their weight and potentially lose weight are:
Shopping
It’s common for seniors to eat a lot of processed foods that aren’t very healthy because they are having a hard time shopping. So instead of walking around the grocery store and choosing fresh fruits and vegetables and whole foods they pick up processed meals so they can leave the store quickly.
If your mom or dad has in-home care, the care provider can do the grocery shopping so that your mom or dad will be eating fresh fruits and vegetables, healthy whole grains, and other foods that can improve their health.
Meal Preparation
Your mom or dad also may have issues like poor manual dexterity that make meal preparation and cooking painful or too difficult for them. An in-home care provider can take care of the cooking so that your mom or dad is getting home-cooked meals made from healthy ingredients instead of processed foods that have low nutritional value.
Making Healthy Snacks
Another way that in-home care can help your mom or dad control their weight is by making them plenty of healthy snacks. A home care provider can prepare an entire day’s worth of healthy snacks and leave them wrapped up on the counter or in the fridge so that whenever your mom or dad wants a snack, they can have a healthy one like some cheese and crackers, a smoothie, or cottage cheese with fruit.
Encouraging Movement
Your mom or dad may not be able to exercise, but they can still do some movement exercises that will get their heart rate up a little and provide some muscle stretching. There are lots of videos on YouTube for seniors that show seniors how to stretch and gently move to burn some extra calories.
An in-home care provider can encourage your mom or dad to move more by watching videos with them or playing games like bean bag toss or balloon volleyball.
Encouraging Seniors To Try New Foods
An in-home care provider is a great resource for new healthy meal ideas too. They can encourage your mom or dad to try new cuisines and new foods that they haven’t had before.
If you or an aging loved one are considering In-Home Care in Englewood, CO, please contact the caring staff at Talem Home Care & Placement Services of Denver, CO, today. Call (303) 647-1800
At Talem Home Care & Placement Services of Denver, CO, we provide passionate, understanding, and flexible caregivers in Denver, Englewood, Lakewood, Aurora, Littleton, Highlands Ranch, Parker, Centennial, Lone Tree, Castle Pines, Castle Rock and surrounding areas in Colorado.
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