Tag: Elder Care in Edina MN

February is Library Lovers Month, and if your elderly family member needs help getting to her local library, elder care providers can help. There are also more online options from the library than ever before, so that is something to look into further. Reading has huge benefits for seniors, and doing so regularly can improve your elderly family member’s quality of life in some big ways.

Reducing Stress

Stress is a huge problem for so many people, even seniors. Reading is a great way to relax and to get lost in other worlds and adventures. It turns out that reading is also a fantastic tool for reducing stress levels quickly. Your elderly family member doesn’t have to read anything fancy or complicated. As long as she’s enjoying what she’s reading, that’s the key to getting the results she wants.

Improving Overall Cognitive Function

Reading regularly helps your elderly family member to maintain and even improve her cognitive function, too. This is especially important if your senior is concerned about brain health now and in the future. Talk to her doctor about her risk factors for brain diseases like dementia and Alzheimer’s disease to determine what else might help.
Improving Memory

It is also possible that your elderly family member can improve her memory when she reads more often. Much of that possible improvement depends on other factors, such as her current brain health. But the brain makes connections as your senior spends more time reading, and she can find that her memory is at least not getting worse if she’s reading more often.

Helping with Sleep Quality

Reading, especially before bed, can be relaxing enough for your senior that she is able to sleep more easily. She may also find that her sleep quality improves, which can be tremendously helpful in reducing stress, improving cognitive health, and managing chronic health issues. If your elderly family member has lots of trouble with sleep, either getting to sleep or staying asleep, she may want to see if there are underlying medical causes.

Offering a Pleasant Way to Spend Time

Finally, reading is just a fun way to spend some time. That alone can greatly improve your senior’s quality of life. If she feels as if she doesn’t have enough time to read books when she wants to do so, it might be time to have some help from elder care professionals. Elder care providers can help your senior with tasks that are becoming more difficult, giving her time to rest and to do things that improve her life, like spend some time reading.

Not everyone enjoys reading, and some people find reading to be difficult because of eye issues, learning disabilities, and other reasons. Exploring solutions like audiobooks or reading to your loved one could help her to enjoy reading in other ways. She may also want to explore other types of books to find something that truly calls to her. All of these ideas are worth trying out for your senior.

If you or an aging loved one is considering elder care in Edina, MN, and the surrounding areas, please contact the friendly staff at CareBuilders at Home Minnesota. Call today 612-260-2273.

Does your elderly loved one have a family history of arthritis? If so, they have probably seen at least one family member struggle with this condition. It can be painful for the person who has it. Arthritis can lead to difficulty moving around, completing tasks, and even socializing. If your elderly loved one is trying to prevent arthritis, there are some tips that you should share with them to help.

Weight Management is Crucial

One way that your elderly loved one can lower their risk of arthritis is through weight management. Research shows that when someone is overweight or obese, the extra weight puts strain on the joints and bones. When this becomes a chronic problem, the strain can lead to arthritis.

If your elderly loved one is overweight or obese, you and elder care providers should help them to make a weight management plan. The first step is to find out how much your elderly loved one should weigh. Then, you can assist them in making small goals from there to achieve their goal weight. Even losing 5 pounds to start can make a huge difference on releasing some stress from the joints.

Staying Safe from Injuries

Is your elderly loved one usually active? Maybe they like to walk outdoors. If this is the case, that is great. However, elderly people are much more likely to fall than younger adults. For this reason, you or an elder care provider may want to be with your elderly loved one when they are being quite active such as during their walks or when they are exercising. This way, you can help to lower their risk of falling and getting injured. If your elderly loved one can stay safe from injuries, they can keep their bones and joints stronger. The stronger these are, the less likely they will be to get arthritis.

Limit Repetitive Activities

Research also shows that repetitive activities can lead to arthritis. For example, does your elderly loved one play computer games that involve them having to tap keys over and over again. If this is the case and your elderly loved one plays them often, it could lead to arthritis in their hands. This is not to say that they shouldn’t or can’t play these games at all. However, they should be done in short time frames and not every day.

Conclusion

Is your elderly loved one trying to prevent arthritis? If so, the tips here today can be a great start to help lower their risk of getting arthritis. Keep in mind that with many of these tips, you or elder care providers may need to be around to help your elderly loved one.

Sources
https://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/index.htm

If you or an aging loved one is considering elder care in Edina, MN, and the surrounding areas, please contact the friendly staff at CareBuilders at Home Minnesota. Call today 612-260-2273.