One of the challenges you and your senior might face as she grows older is balancing her nutritional needs with her eating habits. Some of those habits might be a lot different than they used to be, and they might be surprising for you to learn about, too. For instance, your senior might be skipping more meals than you realize or eating a lot more convenience foods than you expect. Here are a few reasons why your senior’s eating habits have changed over time and how home care can provide support as she adapts to them:
She May Need Fewer Calories Overall
As your elderly family member grows older, she may have reduced her activity levels. That and other variables, like decreased muscle mass, may cause her to need fewer calories than her body needed in the past. The calories that she takes in now need to be full of nutrients so that her body is getting all of the building blocks it needs to keep her healthy. This might mean some changes to what and how she eats.
She May Have More Difficulty Eating
It’s also possible that your aging family member has more difficulty eating now than ever before. Dental issues, trouble swallowing, and even memory issues can make eating extremely problematic for her. Having help from home care providers can make all of this a lot easier for her to manage and can cause you to worry less about what your senior is eating.
It Might Be Difficult for Her to Adopt Healthier Habits
People of all ages find it complicated to adopt healthier habits than they had when they were younger. For your senior, she might start to feel stubborn about making some of these changes, especially if they feel like they’ll be a lot more work for her to make. It takes a lot of effort to cook from scratch, for instance, so having home care providers do the cooking can make a difference.
Eating Alone May Be More Difficult than Ever
Your elderly family member may have never had trouble eating on her own before, but aging brings a lot of changes. Because of fear or simply because of loneliness, your elderly family member may feel a lot less comfortable than ever before eating alone. Having companionship during meals can help her to feel secure and enjoy her meals.
Finding Solutions with Your Senior Is Important
You might be tempted to put solutions in place that you think are going to be the perfect ones to resolve the issues your aging family member is having. But it’s important that you keep your senior involved in the decision-making process as much as you can. Bringing in home care may be exactly the right solution for her, but if she feels that you’re forcing her to accept help, she might be more resistant to the idea.
Ensuring that your aging family member has the nutrients and the help that she needs is going to go a long way toward helping her to be safer and happier. You’ll be able to feel more comfortable when she’s getting everything that she needs, too.
If you or an aging loved one are considering home care in Granbury, TX. please contact the caring staff at Clear Path Home Care today. Call (817) 631-7710
Clear Path Home Care provides compassionate, high quality home care in Parker County, Tarrant County, Johnson County, Hood County, Somervell County, Erath County, Bosque County and Hamilton County in Texas.
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