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Some people say that age is just a number, but the reality is that age really does creep up on all of us at some point. Aging doesn’t mean we have to give up our passions and hole ourselves up in the house, though. As a matter of fact, keeping healthy and active is critical to a senior’s mental and physical health. There are many healthy aging tips to help you and loved ones age happily.
We’ll explain why these healthy aging tips are important – and how you can contribute to your loved one or friend’s health – in this post.
8 Simple Healthy Aging Tips to Improve Your Health
Aging healthy and happily is extremely important. It ensures that you continue to pursue your passions and hobbies, and lets you live to your fullest potential.
However, sometimes our health can throw us some curve balls. To avoid this, there are simple tasks you can do to age healthy with our top 8 healthy aging tips:
- Talk to your doctor
- Proper medication management
- Being social
- Staying active
- Eating healthy
- Utilize support systems and groups
- Keep up appearances
- Engage with others regularly
Whether for you personally, or for a loved one, these healthy aging tips can help improve quality of life.
1. Talk to the Doctor
It’s important to talk to your loved one’s doctor about some of the more common conditions that tend to sneak up on us as we age.
Osteoporosis is a condition in which your bones become brittle, increasing your risk of a break if you fall.
You should also talk to their doctor about what they should be doing to keep their bones strong as well as the exercises they can do to ensure they are strong, stable, and balanced, as reflexes change with time as well.
Heart health, memory issues, vision care, and dental care should also be considered on a regular basis.
The good news is that there are so many ways to improve health in these areas with the right support.
2. Equipment & Medication Management
Speaking of health and wellness, make sure someone in your family checks in on your loved one from time to time to make sure they are still capable of managing their medications.
Pill cases are a great way for people to keep track of what they need to take daily, especially if they are on a lot of medications or have to spread them out at different times throughout the day.
It also helps you to track whether or not your loved one is remembering to take their medications on a regular basis.
In addition, ensuring their mobility equipment is still working, and being managed is incredibly important as well.
It’s extremely important for older adults to have some independence, and ensuring their medical equipment is up to par will help with this.
3. Stay Social
A lot of people find it easy to stay social, especially after retirement, as they have more time to travel, volunteer, or participate in social clubs.
The older you get, the more important is becomes to find ways to maintain some level of social activity to avoid loneliness and seclusion.
Many seniors become especially withdrawn when their friends begin to pass away and their familiar social circles shrink.
If your loved one no longer drives, try finding an adult activities program with a bus service to pick up and drop off each day.
The games, crafts, day trips, and interaction with peers will keep them active and engaged, allowing them to age healthy and happily.
Those that are still independent may enjoy finding a local senior group that can run bus trips to casinos, theater shows, and other fun events.
4. Stay Active with Exercise
Seniors don’t need to stop exercising simply because of age.
Don’t be alarmed if your loved one continues to golf, run, spend time in the gym, swim, bike, or do any of a myriad of other physical activities.
As long as they are healthy and the doctor doesn’t object, exercise can and should remain an important part of their routine for as long as possible.
5. Clean Up Those Eating Habits
We know, we know. Old habits are hard to break – especially eating habits.
The truth is that a lot of seniors are living on a budget and don’t believe they can afford the healthiest, well-balanced foods in addition to medications and their other needs.
There are a few things you can do to help; let’s explore them together.
First, make sure your loved one has access to a weekly grocery store trip.
This may mean taking them along with you or going for them. Either way, you can make sure there are a few daily staples in the house.
If your loved one simply doesn’t love to cook, consider packing up some of the meals you cook at home.
Grab some inexpensive storage containers and put them in your loved one’s freezer so they can be reheated like TV dinners.
If money or accessibility is an issue, look into food service programs in your loved one’s community.
Meals on Wheels and other programs offer free or reduced meals for seniors, delivered to their homes on a regular basis. You won’t have to worry about whether or not they’re eating each day.
6. Encourage the Use of Support Groups
No matter what your age, support groups can prove incredibly valuable to your mental and emotional health.
Change happens – whether it’s retirement, a major medical diagnosis, or the death of someone close to you.
Connecting with people who have been through similar experiences will help your loved one to feel supported.
Realistically speaking, health issues and disabilities can make people depressed but the reverse is true as well.
Depression can lead to the development of disability through a decline in movement and self-care.
Keep a close eye on your loved ones if they have had a significant life change or loss, or even just a change in routine.
7. Keep Up Appearances
It sounds vain, but it’s not.
Seniors especially tend to take pride in their appearances and it’s true that you feel good when you look good.
This doesn’t mean your loved one needs fancy clothes or expensive perfumes.
Just make sure they are able to get regular haircuts, have the basic skin care products they need (including sunscreen), and have whatever other personal care items make them feel good (makeup, cologne, hairspray, etc).
Take them shopping from time to time, if that’s what they love!
8. Regular Engagement
Even if your elderly loved one isn’t active outside of the home, there are plenty of things you can do to keep them engaged.
Make sure family members and friends visit regularly and/or take them on outings. You may also want to ensure they have access to a working TV or their favorite music.
Stimulation is critical to keeping the brain active.
If it is safe to do so, consider encouraging your loved one to get a pet.
Small dogs or cats are great if they have the physical ability to care for them, but small animals like fish or birds are great for daily interaction as well.
Conclusion
Happy, healthy aging is something that everyone deserves — and it can be achieved.
These healthy aging tips will help ensure you or your loved ones are getting the proper love and care they need.
Keeping up with mental stimulation and physical well-being, staying social, cleaning up eating habits, and regular communication with your doctor and pharmacist can all help.
These healthy aging tips are essential for happy aging.
Everyone ages differently, but with a little bit of support our senior family members can enjoy their golden years in happy, healthy atmospheres whether they remain completely independent or begin to need a little extra assistance and care.
I would like to add that reading is also a great way for stimulating brain and boosting the cognitive skills among individuals. Along, with that play is another great method for boosting mental stimulation in elderly people whether it be playing a sport like gold, or snooker or playing board games like chess. Elderly people often suffer due to social isolation at home, therefore it would be best to place them in assisted living facilities like Avantgarde, where they get the opportunity to engage in debates and other socializing activities with people their own age.