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Maintaining Bone Density and Muscle When Elderly
During our youth, we are told to take calcium supplements to help to strengthen our bone density. Most of us blow off the advice. Many seniors struggle with osteoporosis, which comes along with muscle loss and bone density issues. Diet and exercise programs play a huge role in your muscle and bone density. To maintain bone density and muscle when you are elderly, here are some suggestions to follow:Diet
A lot of seniors struggle with eating nutritious foods. Perhaps this is caused from living alone, or living with just a spouse and you no longer have the need to make a large meal to feed an entire family. To make sure you are getting plenty of protein, calcium, and other essential nutrients, you should start introducing shakes and meal supplements into your diet. This website www.caregiverpartnership.com offers a long list of different shakes, powders, and juice drinks you can consume to make sure you are getting enough calcium and protein in your diet.
Drinking at least 1-2 glasses of milk each day will provide you with plenty of calcium that will be distributed to your muscles and your bones. Calcium supplements are another good idea to help you get all of the calcium you need and to help you replenish your bone density, which may have been lost due to poor diet and lack of exercise. If you do not like to take supplements or drink milk, try eating pudding that includes calcium: www.caregiverpartnership.com/product-browser.aspx?SegmentID=34. This provides you with 25% of your daily calcium needs and it will help to replenish your bone density.
Increase your intake of vegetables and fruits. Vegetables and fruits contain several nutrients that are necessary for the body to function properly. Deep green vegetables and brightly colored fruits contain vitamins that can prevent you from getting ill. When elderly patients become ill, many of them do not continue to exercise, and over time they stop exercising altogether, thereby reducing their quality of life.
Exercise
You can increase your bone density by approximately 1% if you exercise each day for at least one year. You need to participate in strength training exercises at least 2 days a week in order to strengthen your bone density. Strength training exercises will not only strengthen your bone density, they will help to improve your muscles as well.
Some exercises you can do include lifting 3-5 pound weights each day. Yoga is a great strength training exercise, as it focuses on building your core muscles and improving your bones. Doing yoga 2-3 days per week will greatly improve your muscles and it will actually reduce stress and tension that you may be feeling.
Several research programs have shown that daily exercise will help to decrease your risk of osteoporosis. It will also help you maintain proper balance as the body is stronger and healthier. The joints are also stronger and these small exercise steps can help to prevent falls which could lead to broken legs, hips, and other bones.
Exercise helps to aid in the placement of calcium in the bones and muscles. What types of exercises are safe for elderly patients? There are a number of exercise routines you can use, the trick is to tone down your intensity level a little bit so you don’t work the muscles and joints too hard. Aerobic exercise is important for the cardiovascular system. Do aerobic activity at least 2-3 days per week for about 15-30 minutes. Brisk walking, swimming, and biking are wonderful aerobic activities you can do that will strengthen the bones and muscles. On the days in between aerobic activity, do some strength training exercises like toning cords or weight lifting.
Elderly Travel Comfort Tips
Traveling in your elderly years can be difficult and often times it is uncomfortable. Whether you are planning a trip for yourself or you are planning a trip with your children, there are a few things you can do to make elderly travel fun and comfortable.- The planning stage. During the planning stage, you need to take into consideration all of the special needs you have. Do you suffer from arthritis or how about leg pain? Bring along some compression stockings and leg wraps that will make the journey enjoyable for you. Writing up a list of all your needs and concerns will make it much easier for you and your children to find solutions for those problems.
- Are you planning to travel by car, bus, boat, or plane? Car, bus, and plane travel can often be difficult for elderly individuals as they are required to sit for long periods of time. When you travel by bus and car, you know that you will have a few stops along the way where you can get out and stretch your legs but you don’t have this same option on a plane. Before you consider taking such a long-distance vacation, contact your doctor to find out what precautions you may need to take. Individuals that have suffered from strokes or blood clots are at an increased risk of suffering from one while they are traveling so you must take the proper precautions before you book your vacation.
- What are you planning to do once you reach your destination? If you are planning to walk long distances, you should look into purchasing a walker or wheelchair to use every now and then. Scooters are also beneficial for getting around if you know you are going to be walking for several hours. No matter what type of support walker you purchase, make sure it is a good fit for your needs. Depending upon where you sit in an airplane, you may be able to keep your walker in front of you and you can use it as a foot rest to keep your legs elevated, allowing the blood to circulate easier.
- Traveling for long distances can be uncomfortable at times. Always wear loose-fitting clothing that is comfortable. Constipation is common on vacation as you are sitting for several hours at a time and you are not drinking as much water to aid the digestive system. If you wear tight clothing, it can cause pressure on the bowels, and this will leave you in pain while you are traveling.
- Have your medications filled before you leave on vacation and bring along a pill opener if you have a difficult time opening the bottles. Quite often arthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome will start to happen as you reach your elderly years. Using a bottle opener will help you avoid straining your wrists and it allows you to open your prescriptions without asking everyone else to open them for you.
- Bring plenty of water with you on vacation because dehydration is quite common. Of course when you drink more, it will cause you to use the restroom often. Elderly people tend to have inconsistence problems so it may be a wise option to wear some absorbent disposable pull-on underwear. To find the right type of incontinent underwear best for you, use this helpful incontinent product finder www.caregiverpartnership.com/incontinence_finder.asp. It will help you easily sort through over 400 choices.
- To find all of the products we have talked about in this article, use the following link www.caregiverpartnership.com to browse for a large selection of products like compression stockings, walkers, and pill bottle openers.
Source: National Caregiving Institute
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