Growing older is a natural part of life you can look at and embrace.
Gracefully aging is something you want to see with your parents, aunts, uncles and other family members.
Physical health may decline gradually, but there are still ways you can help keep your older family healthy.
This guide will show six things you can do to help them through the golden years.
1. Remind Them of Appointments and Medication
As your family ages, they may need to visit physicians or specialists more frequently. Older adults are more susceptible to health problems.
They may face hearing loss, back pain, arthritis or other conditions.
Even if they have a clean bill of health, you should encourage them to schedule checkups regularly and see a doctor if they feel something is wrong.
Early detection is critical for managing diseases and healthy living as you age.
Once they leave their appointment, your loved one will likely have prescriptions for medicine they need to take.
Memory can be an issue for older adults, so help remind them to take their medications. You could write down a schedule of what days they need to take each pill and what time.
2. Help Their Sleeping Habits
Sleep is an integral part of daily function of everybody.
The hours of sleep people get at night determines how much energy they have for the next day. Most adults between 18 and 60 need seven to nine hours of sleep per night.
The same goes for older adults once they reach age 65 and higher.
Sleep can be challenging for older people. Lack of sleep can lead to tiredness during the day and an increased risk of falls and other injuries.
Sleeping problems in seniors are more common than you may think. About 40 to 70% of older adults have sleeping issues, and nearly half go undiagnosed.
If your loved one has trouble sleeping, help them talk to a doctor or specialist to diagnose the problem.
3. Encourage Easy Exercise
One of the best ways to keep an older family member happy is to encourage them to exercise.
People of any age group can benefit from physical activity, but it’s vital for older adults. Staying active can help keep senior citizens healthy in their physical and mental health.
The good news is there are many effective exercises for older adults.
The exercise your older family can do will depend on their mobility.
A good start for most seniors is walking. It’s something you’ve done your whole life and can lower the risk of diabetes, stroke and other diseases. You can find a park, shopping mall, neighborhood or any venue suitable for walking.
Other exercises may include resistance band training, chair yoga or water aerobics. They aren’t strenuous, but they’re still terrific exercise for older adults.
4. Support a Healthy Diet
Like exercise, a healthy diet is another critical factor in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Eating nutritious foods can help older adults age better and stay fit.
Their physician or dietician can advise your loved one, but there are some ways you can help a senior citizen stay healthy.
One priority in their diet should be getting enough protein.
Older adults can suffer muscle loss as they age, so protein is an excellent way to maintain strength.
They can get protein through many sources, such as nuts, beans, seafood, Greek yogurt and conventional lean meat like chicken and turkey.
You can encourage fruit and vegetable consumption by slicing them beforehand, especially if their hands have trouble using knives.
If your loved one has vitamin deficiencies, you could provide them with foods or supplements to fulfill these needs. Try to find foods with a low amount of added sugar, sodium and saturated fats.
5. Keep Sick People Away
The COVID-19 pandemic caused people to become more conscious about who they spend time with.
Even though the pandemic has slowed, you should still help your older family stay vigilant when they go to public places and gatherings.
If you see influenza or COVID-19 outbreaks, you should encourage your loved one to stay at home or wear a mask and limit contact with others who aren’t feeling well.
Holiday gatherings with family and friends are still manageable, despite the risks. You can help your older family by ensuring that everyone at the party is vaccinated.
Encourage your family to have proper protection by wearing a mask for indoor gatherings. Outdoor gatherings have lower disease transmission, but you should still be cautious.
6. Make a Senior-friendly Home
Older adults can lose their mobility as they age. Regular exercise and healthy eating can prolong their good health, but losing mobility happens to most seniors.
As they age, their home could become more of a burden than a place of relaxation.
Falls are a top concern for senior citizens because about one in four reports a fall annually. In 2020, over 36,000 older adults died from falls.
The rate of falls has increased for the last three decades, so creating a senior-friendly home is crucial.
A practical place to start is the bathroom by replacing the bathtub with a walk-in shower.
Another bathroom change could be using rubber-backed bathmats, so they stick to the floor and reduce the risk of falling. In the bedrooms, you could move the light switch so that it’s easy to reach from their bed.
Staying Happy and Healthy in the Golden Years
Aging is a part of life that most people go through.
The human body changes and may see a decline physically. However, there are still ways to keep your health going as you age.
Use this list of six tips to keep your older family healthy as they journey into their golden years.