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Five Important Dental Hygiene Tips for Seniors

Home Care in Braselton GA
Home Care in Braselton GA

Did you know that October is National Dental Hygiene Month? This time of year is the perfect time to take a closer look at what issues your senior might be having around dental hygiene. Evaluating what’s working and what isn’t helps you to figure out what solutions you can put in place for her. Ignoring dental hygiene can create bigger problems than your senior might expect.

Aging Causes Lots of Changes in Dental Health

There are lots of changes your senior is facing as she grows older, and dental health is on that list. Your elderly family member may start to experience things like dry mouth, darkening teeth, or just regular wear and tear on her teeth that she’s not used to managing. Her dentist can help her to manage these issues and develop a plan for handling conditions that are new to her.

Hydration Is Crucial

When your elderly family member isn’t drinking enough water, that can contribute to a lot of different health issues. This even affects your aging family member’s dental hygiene and dental health. Keep water available and find creative ways to help your senior to get as much water as she needs. That might mean including hydrating foods, like gelatin, soup, and fruits or vegetables that are high in water content. 24-hour home care providers can be a huge help in keeping your senior properly hydrated.

Medication Side Effects Can Include Dental Symptoms

The medications that your elderly family member takes can have a variety of different side effects. Some of those side effects make keeping her mouth and teeth healthy a little more difficult. Some of those side effects are ones that you can mitigate with some new habits or at least knowing what is going on. Working with both your senior’s doctor and her dentist can help you put a plan together.

Health Issues Can Also Affect Dental Health

Your elderly family member may have health issues that impact her dental health. Diabetes, for instance, can cause blood sugar issues that lead to periodontal disease. Keeping blood sugar under control suddenly becomes something that also helps your elderly family member to maintain her dental health, too.

Your Senior May Need a Help from 24-Hour Home Care

Everyone needs a little bit of help now and then, and your elderly family member is no exception. Home care providers can assist with a variety of different situations, but your senior may start to need more personal help and at varying times. 24-hour home care providers are there to help your senior to manage those situations, including personal care tasks like dental hygiene and caring for her body in other ways. This is essential if your elderly family member is finding these tasks impossible to manage on her own.

Proper dental hygiene is so important for your elderly family member’s mental and physical well-being. Getting her the additional help that she needs for some of these tasks ensures that your senior is not left struggling on her own.

Source
https://www.webmd.com/oral-health/guide/dental-care-seniors

If you or an aging loved one is considering 24-hour home care in Braselton, CA, please contact the caring staff at Golden Heart Senior Care of Walnut Creek. (925) 203-3039.

Best Tips for Creating Low Sodium Meals for Seniors

Home Care Assistance in Concord CA
Home Care Assistance in Concord CA

Just because someone has to eat low sodium doesn’t mean they can’t enjoy their food. Not all seniors know how to cook low-sodium meals, but this is a lifestyle choice that a doctor may recommend for a senior. If you are worried about the health and nutrition of your senior, it is time to look into home care assistance providers who can help monitor nutritional needs. A low sodium diet, sometimes known as a no salt added diet, includes very little sodium.

Although it is tough to have a sodium-free diet, at-risk seniors may frequently reduce their risk of sodium-related health disorders by removing additional sodium, such as table salt. The CDC advises that consumers limit their salt intake to less than 2,300mg daily. You should always visit your doctor to determine what daily consumption is optimal for you since it varies from person to person. Before making any dramatic dietary changes, always consult with your doctor. Here are some tips on keeping sodium low in every meal.

Track Your Sodium Intake

Once you’ve determined how much sodium you or a loved one should consume based on their health requirements, you should begin monitoring your daily salt consumption. There are many approaches to keeping track of everything. If you prefer more traditional approaches, you may maintain a diary. Simply keep a notebook and record daily how much salt you ingest at each meal or snack. Make careful to maintain the record up to date and precise — no sneaking odd pieces of food without documenting them, since that sodium will rapidly pile up. The second, and probably quicker, option is to utilize a food monitoring app. Several applications are available, but the majority enables you to monitor each meal and salt intake. You may also monitor things like calories and sweets. It may seem difficult initially, but the more you do it, the simpler it will get. Tracking salt consumption will become second nature after a time.

Plan Meals In Advance

Making a plan is the greatest approach to preparing for anything. Create a meal plan based on low sodium recipes for seniors if you need to start lowering your salt consumption. Everyone’s approach to meal preparation differs. Some individuals like to simply plan out a menu for each day of the week, while others prefer to spend an hour planning meals and ensuring they have everything they need. Home care assistance can help a senior prep foods and cook meals in advance. This allows them to just reheat things that have already been made. It can help your elderly loved one stick to their diet easier.

Make Wise Decisions

Try to consider wisely before picking what to eat. What is the healthier alternative? Consider it assisting your body in feeling its best and being as healthy as possible. You must make sound decisions for the sake of the rest of your body. This means seniors need to read labels and avoid things with high sodium. Things like canned foods, lunch meat, and freezer meals tend to have many preservatives that are not always the best. They tend to be convenient foods but not the wisest decision for elderly people.

Source
https://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/heart-failure/low-sodium-eating

If you or an aging loved one is considering home care assistance in Concord, CA, please contact the caring staff at Golden Heart Senior Care of Walnut Creek. (925) 203-3039.