Live Free Home Health Care, LLC. - Bristol, New Hampshire

All posts within: Nutrition

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Fighting Dementia With Apples

There is hope for those with cognitive impairments: whereas in the past, a diagnosis of progressive dementia may have been a cause for little treatment, new evidence suggests a more proactive approach to cognitive impairment and dementia. This proactive approach includes promoting not only healthy eating and dietary supplementation, but exercise and cardiovascular treatment (when necessary).

The new studies suggest that young, old and impaired human brains may be able to respond to the demands of activity, experience and environmental factors by creating new functional synapses, neurons and networks. Since dementia is in part an inability for the synapses to connect properly, this is exciting news!

And the news is all the more exciting in relation to the coming together of evidence regarding the contributing factors of vascular risk, genes, diet, physical activity, cognitive activity, psychological functioning and social functioning to the causes of acquired cognitive impairment and dementia.

This means that changing diet, adding exercise and being with people actually can contribute to better mental functioning!

If you’d like to learn more about obtaining the best nutrition for seniors, click here and consider using Live Free Home Health Care for menu planning, assistance with food shopping and meal preparation. Live Free Home Health Care, servicing Concord New Hampshire and the rest of the Lakes region and central New Hampshire, can help with all of your home care needs. Call (603) 217-0149 today.

Tags:   Nutrition

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Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Why Old Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard Was Bare

Have you been to your elderly parent’s home recently and been concerned over the sparseness of the contents of the cupboards and refrigerator? You’re not alone. As seniors age and start to become more frail, new sets of difficulties crop up in regards to eating nutritiously. For seniors who live alone, sometimes the tasks of planning, purchasing and preparing meals may not feel worth the effort. Other seniors may have difficulty chewing or suffer from an upset stomach. However, there are ways to bring the joy back to mealtimes and enhance the nutrition and thus the health of an elderly loved one. Here are a few tips:

Problem: Can’t chew

Those who have trouble chewing may have trouble eating foods such as meat, fresh fruits and vegetables.

- Instead of fresh fruit, try fruit juices and soft canned fruits, such as applesauce, peaches and pears

- Instead of raw vegetables, try vegetable juices or creamed, mashed and cooked vegetables

- Instead of whole meat, try ground meat, eggs, milk, cheese, yogurt and foods made with milk, such as pudding and cream soups

- Instead of sliced bread, try cooked cereals, rice, bread pudding and soft cookies

Problem: Upset stomach

Too much gas and other stomach problems may cause people to stay away from foods they think cause the problem. This means they could be missing out on important nutrients, such as vitamins, calcium, fiber and protein.

- Instead of milk, try milk foods that may not upset the stomach, such as cream soups, pudding, yogurt and cheese

- Instead of vegetables such as cabbage and broccoli, try vegetable juices and other vegetables, such as green beans, carrots and potatoes

For single seniors or for an aging couple who live at home, consider using Live Free Home Health Care for some menu planning, assistance with food shopping and meal preparation. Our caregivers are trained to factor in good nutrition while making meals more pleasant and flavorful. Live Free Home Health Care, servicing Concord New Hampshire and the rest of the Lakes region and central New Hampshire, can bring the joy back into dining—using eye-catching table settings and companionship to lift the moods of those needing care as well as providing fundamental nutrition.

For more tips on overcoming obstacles for seniors to eat well, click here, and to learn more about how Live Free Home Health Care can keep a loved one safe and provide care in the comfort of home, call (603) 217-0149.

Tags:   Nutrition

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Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Malnourished Seniors in Concord, New Hampshire: More Common Than You Think

Eating properly can be a serious issue facing seniors who choose to age at home. Planning and preparing meals and cooking them for one or two gets more difficult over time, especially if there is little joy around the actual event of sitting down and eating. Why the concern? Malnourished elderly are:

- 2 times more likely to visit the doctor

- 3 times more likely to be hospitalized

- 2 to10 times more likely to die earlier than if they were well-nourished

Additionally, they will suffer from diminished muscle strength and poor healing. In fact, malnutrition is a greater threat than obesity.

Weight loss, lack of appetite and low energy signal the need for a nutritional screening to determine if there is a potential problem. The purpose of a nutritional screening is to identify early signs of malnutrition and prevent it from becoming a major co-factor in organ dysfunction, morbidity and mortality.

Click here to download a complimentary nutritional screening tool, and then seek medical assistance if a nutritional assessment is needed. At Live Free Home Health Care, servicing Concord New Hampshire and the rest of the Lakes region and central New Hampshire, we not only can provide tasty and nutritious meals for one or two persons, but can provide complete nutritional counseling as well. Call us today at (603) 217-0149 for further information.

Tags:   Nutrition

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Tuesday, August 03, 2010

The Importance of Nutrient-Dense Foods for Elderly

Everyone knows that you can’t eat at age 30 what you ate at age 15 without some sort of consequences. However, many people don’t know that you can’t eat at age 70 what you ate at age 30 without consequences. Elderly over 70 have unique dietary needs. They tend to need fewer calories because they are not as physically active as they once were and their metabolic rates slow down. However, and here’s the important bit, their bodies still require the same or higher levels of nutrients for optimal health.

So what is the solution? Nutrient-dense foods. Nutrient-dense foods are foods high in nutrients in relation to the calories they contain. For example, low-fat milk is more nutrient-dense than regular milk. Its nutrient content is the same, but it has fewer calories because it has less fat. In other words, nutrient-dense foods are high in nutrients in relation to the calories they contain.

Reducing the overall fat content in the diet while still choosing nutrient-rich foods is the best way for the older adult to reach optimum nutrition and help protect against diseases such as dementia or cognitive decline.

Want to learn more about the detailed nutrient needs for older adults? Click here. At Live Free Home Health Care, servicing Concord New Hampshire and the rest of the Lakes region and central New Hampshire, we not only can provide tasty and nutritious meals that encourage appetite, but can provide complete nutritional counseling as well. Call us today at (603) 217-0149 for further information.

Tags:   Nutrition

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