Benefits of Eating Well – as a senior or at any age

Eating well is vital for everyone at all ages. Whatever your age, your daily food choices can make an important difference in your health and in how you look and feel.

Eating a well-planned, balanced mix of foods every day has many health benefits. For instance, eating well may reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, bone loss, some kinds of cancer, and anemia. If you already have one or more of these chronic diseases, eating well and being physically active may help you better manage them. Healthy eating may also help you reduce high blood pressure, lower high cholesterol, and manage diabetes.

Eating well gives you the nutrients needed to keep your muscles, bones, organs, and other parts of your body healthy throughout your life. These nutrients include vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates, fats, and water.

Eating well helps keep up your energy level, too. By consuming enough calories — a way to measure the energy you get from food — you give your body the fuel it needs throughout the day. The number of calories needed depends on how old you are, whether you’re a man or woman, and how active you are.

Consuming the right number of calories for your level of physical activity helps you control your weight, too. Extra weight is a concern for older adults because it can increase the risk for diseases such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease and can increase joint problems. Eating more calories than your body needs for your activity level will lead to extra pounds.

If you become less physically active as you age, you will probably need fewer calories to stay at the same weight. Choosing mostly nutrient-dense foods — foods which are high in nutrients but low in calories — can give you the nutrients you need while keeping down calorie intake.

Your food choices also affect your digestion. For instance, too little fiber or fluid may cause constipation. Eating more whole-grain foods, fruits and vegetables or drinking more water may help with constipation.

Eating well isn’t just a “diet” or “program” that’s here today and gone tomorrow. It is part of a healthy lifestyle that you can adopt now and stay with in the years to come.

To eat healthier, you can begin by taking small steps, making one change at a time. For instance, you might buy whole-grain bread, leaner meats, or more fruits and vegetables when you shop.

These changes may be easier than you think. They’re possible even if you need help with shopping or cooking, or if you have a limited budget. If you have a specific medical condition, be sure to check with your doctor or dietitian about foods you should include or avoid.

Whatever your age, you can start making positive lifestyle changes today. Eating well can help you stay healthy and independent — and look and feel good — in the years to come.

Safety is an important issue in caring for a person with Alzheimer’s disease. Even with the best-laid plans, accidents can happen. Checking the safety of your home, keeping the person from wandering and preventing him or her from driving when driving skills decline are some ways you can minimize hazardous situations.

Home Safety

Caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s often have to look at their homes through new eyes to identify and correct safety risks. Creating a safe environment can prevent many stressful and dangerous situations.

Install secure locks on all outside windows and doors, especially if the person is prone to wandering. Remove the locks on bathroom doors to prevent the person from accidentally locking himself or herself in.

Use childproof latches on kitchen cabinets and any place where cleaning supplies or other chemicals are kept.
Label medications and keep them locked up. Also make sure knives, lighters and matches, and guns are secured out of reach.

Keep the house free from clutter. Remove scatter rugs and anything else that might contribute to a fall. Make sure lighting is good both inside and out. Consider installing an automatic shut-off switch on the stove to prevent burns or fire.

Keeping the person safe is one of the most important aspects of caregiving. Some people with Alzheimer’s have a tendency to wander away from their home or their caregiver. Knowing what to do to limit wandering can protect a person from becoming lost.

Make sure that the person carries some kind of identification or wears a medical bracelet. If he or she gets lost and is unable to communicate adequately, this will alert others to his or her identity and medical condition. Keep a recent photograph or videotape of the person to assist police if the person becomes lost. Consider enrolling the person in the Alzheimer’s Association Safe Return program if one exists in your area.

Keep doors locked. Consider a keyed deadbolt or an additional lock up high or down low on the door. If the person can open a lock because it is familiar, a new latch or lock may help.

Secure or put away anything that could cause danger, both inside and outside the house.

Driving Safety

Making the decision that a person with Alzheimer’s is no longer safe to drive is difficult, and it needs to be communicated carefully and sensitively. Even though the person may be upset by the loss of independence, safety must be the priority.

Look for clues that safe driving is no longer possible, including getting lost in familiar places, driving too fast or too slow, disregarding traffic signs, or getting angry or confused.

Be sensitive to the person’s feelings about losing the ability to drive, but be firm in your request that he or she no longer do so. Be consistent — don’t let the person drive on “good days” but forbid it on “bad days.”

Ask the doctor to help. The person may view the doctor as an “authority” and be willing to stop driving. The doctor can write a “prescription” to “stop driving,” and also can contact the Department of Motor Vehicles and request that the person be re-evaluated.

If necessary, take the car keys. If just having keys is important to the person, substitute a different set of keys.

If all else fails, disable the car or move it to a location where the person cannot see it or gain access to it.

You can never know for sure if you will need long-term care. Maybe you will never need it. But an unexpected accident, illness, or injury can change your needs, sometimes suddenly. The best time to think about long-term care is before you need it.

Planning is Good

Planning for the possibility of long-term care gives you time to learn about services in your community and what they cost. It also allows you to make important decisions while you are still able. You will need to make

health decisions
legal decisions
financial decisions.

Begin by thinking about what would happen if you became seriously ill or disabled. Talk with your family and friends about who would provide care if you needed help for a long time.

You might delay or prevent the need for long-term care by staying healthy and independent. Talk to your doctor about your medical and family history and lifestyle. He or she may suggest actions you can take to improve your health.

Healthy eating, regular physical activity, not smoking, and limited drinking of alcohol can help you stay healthy. So can an active social life, a safe home, and regular health care.

Planning for long-term care includes legal planning. That means creating official documents — often called “advance directives” — that state your wishes for medical care in an emergency and at the end of life. You can also decide who will make health care decisions for you if you cannot make them yourself.

It is important to consider what you want before you need long-term care. Discuss the options with family members, a lawyer, and others. These discussions can be hard, but telling others your wishes ahead of time answers questions they might have later and takes the burden off your family.

Experts recommend creating three types of legal documents, or advance directives. These are

a health care power of attorney
a living will
a do-not-resuscitate order, if desired.

A Durable Power of Attorney

A health care power of attorney, also called a durable power of attorney for health care, is a legal document that names the person who will make medical decisions for you if you cannot make them yourself. This health care “agent” or “proxy” is your substitute decision maker. The person you choose should understand and respect your values and beliefs about health care. Talk with that person to make sure he or she is comfortable with this role.

A Living Will

A living will, also called a health care directive, is a legal document that records your wishes for medical treatment near the end of life. It spells out what life-sustaining treatment you do or do not want if you are terminally ill, permanently unconscious, or in the final stage of a fatal illness. For example, the document can state whether or not you want to receive artificial breathing if you can no longer breathe on your own.

A Do-Not-Resuscitate Order (DNR)

A do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order tells health care providers not to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) or other life-support procedures if your heart stops or if you stop breathing. A DNR order is signed by a health care provider and put in your medical chart. Hospitals and long-term care facilities have DNR forms that a staff member can help you fill out. You do not have to have a DNR order.

Get Professional Help

Lawyers and other professionals can help you create legal documents to ensure that your health care wishes are expressed. These experts understand state laws and how changes, such as a divorce, move from your home, or death in the family, affect the way documents are prepared and maintained.

Financial planning is another important part of long-term care planning. Government health insurance programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, pay for some long–term care services but not others. Most people do not have enough money to pay for all of their long-term care needs, especially if those needs are extensive or last a long time.

Think about your financial resources and how you feel about using them to pay for long-term care. These resources may include Social Security, a pension or other retirement fund, personal savings, and income from stocks and bonds. Your home is another type of asset that could be used if needed.

It’s a good idea to review your insurance coverage, too. Many health insurance plans provide little, if any, coverage for long-term care. Review any private health insurance, Medicare, and Medigap policies to learn exactly what is covered and what is not.