Why Does Hydration Matter?

The human body relies on water to keep organs functioning properly and to support major bodily functions. Mild dehydration can affect how the brain works, leading to confusion, trouble concentrating, and memory problems. Dehydration also contributes to urinary tract infections, kidney problems, low blood pressure, and digestive issues. Proper hydration also helps the body regulate temperature and keeps the immune system functioning properly.

Encouraging Hydration

As important as hydration is for seniors, they don’t always get as much water and other fluids as they should. Home care providers can offer lots of reminders for seniors to sip fluids throughout the day. They can also help seniors to keep track of how much water they’re getting. Drinking a variety of different fluids helps with the boredom that many seniors experience when focusing on water only. Milk, herbal tea, and clear broths are all excellent ideas.

Serve Smaller Portions More Often

One way to help seniors stay better hydrated is to encourage them to eat smaller meals more often. This is especially helpful for seniors who might experience trouble with bloating or conditions like COPD, where the lungs affect how much seniors can eat or drink. Snacks and meals offered with a glass of water each time can help seniors get more water with less effort.

Track Fluid Intake

For most seniors, a general estimate of how much water they’re drinking is really all they need. If seniors need to be more precise about how much water they’re taking in, their healthcare providers can help them determine how much they need. A simple log works, but there are also smartphone apps that make fluid tracking more fun.

Create Hydration Routines

Having a hydration routine is a good plan for seniors who aren’t usually getting enough water. Senior home care providers can help seniors figure out routines that allow them to meet all of their goals, including drinking more water. When water and other fluids are easy to access, seniors are more likely to drink as much as they should. Seniors may also have more preferences around water than they realize. For instance, they might enjoy water with ice more than without ice or drinking through straws instead of from a glass.

Proper hydration is an easy way to solve a lot of potential issues for seniors that they might not realize are related to lack of adequate fluid intake. Reminders, routines, and figuring out what works to make hydration more enjoyable for aging adults is a lot easier with the help of senior home care providers. Home care services can also help seniors solve other challenges they face as they try to age in place.

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

The post Why Is Staying Hydrated Key for Seniors? appeared first on Golden Heart East Bay.

When seniors are aging at home, there is a risk that they will become the victims of a scam. Many seniors fall for scams that are cleverly designed to trick them into giving up their personal information, bank account information, or credit card information. Scammers have created very sophisticated scams that anyone could fall for, especially seniors who may not be very tech savvy. If your senior loved one is the victim of a scam they may not realize it, or they may be too embarrassed to tell you about it. But if you see any of these four signs you should act as if your senior loved one has been scammed and take action immediately to try and mitigate the financial damage:

Money Disappearing

If you are a signer on your senior parent’s accounts or if you keep track of their finances for them and you notice that money is disappearing that could be a sign they have been scammed. Carefully check where the money is going. If the money is going to the pharmacy or to local businesses then it could be money that your senior loved one is spending. But if the money is only going to online businesses and the amounts are more than your senior loved one usually spends you should freeze those debits and credit cards and look into those purchases.

Your Senior Loved One Skimping On Things

Is your senior loved one not keeping as much food in the house? Or have you noticed that they have cut back on cable TV or other services that they used to have? If your senior loved one is skimping on things they may have lost money to a scam and they are too embarrassed to tell you. If your senior loved one has senior home care as the provider why those services are disappearing. And ask the home care provider to keep an eye on things like how well the pantry is stocked and to let you know if it seems like your senior loved one is worrying about money.

Bills Not Getting Paid

Many seniors set up automatic payments for their bills to make sure that the bills are paid on time. If you notice that your senior loved one is getting bills in the mail that haven’t been paid even though they are on automatic payments check to make sure that the automatic payments are going through. If there is low money in your senior parent’s accounts the bills could be bouncing because of that.

Debt Collection Calls

If your senior loved one is starting to get debt collection calls but they don’t owe any debts that could be a sign they were scammed. If scammers opened up accounts in your senior parent’s name using their personal information your senior parent could get calls from collection companies when the scammers default on the debt. Ask the debt collectors for information like account numbers and any evidence of the debt. You may need that documentation to fight the debt and prove that your senior parent never opened the account.

Source
https://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/news/20050516/why-elderly-people-may-be-more-easily-misled

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

The post 4 Signs Your Senior Parent Was Scammed appeared first on Golden Heart East Bay.