Food Safety for Seniors - Comfort Keepers San Mateo

As we age our body undergoes many changes. Both internal and external. Due to this our whole digestive system also undergoes some changes. And the importance of food safety and following a healthy diet and all the rules of food safety becomes increasingly important. Specifically for the seniors above the age 65 has to be treated with utmost care in terms of food safety.

Seniors above the age of 65 are at much higher risks of getting foodborne illnesses than other age groups. Moreover, seniors who are living in nursing homes are ten times more likely to get affected by bacterial gastroenteritis than others. So, getting acquainted with the food safety rules and techniques is a must, if you are a senior or have one senior loved one around you.

Why Seniors Are More Prone to Get Affected by Foodborne Diseases?

●     The gastrointestinal tract holds on to food longer than usual. Hence, there opens up the scope of bacterial growth.

●     Our Liver and kidney gradually becomes less efficient removing foreign toxins and harmful bacteria out of our bodies.

●     The production of acids in the stomach becomes lesser and slower. Proper amount of acid helps to run the digestive process smoothly and reduces the growth of bacteria. So, lesser amount of acid means the scope to bacterial growth in the gastrointestinal tract.

●     Other chronic conditions like diabetes, cancer also increases the risk of getting foodborne diseases.

Signs of Foodborne Diseases

Food borne diseases often regularly known as food poisoning often is accompanied by some common signs and symptoms. These are signs are the following-

●     Upset Stomach

●     Diarrhea

●     Vomiting

●     Fever

●     Abdominal Cramps

●     Dehydration

However, these symptoms can very swiftly increase to create some severe conditions including death.

Tips for Maintaining Food Safety

Our caregivers from Comfort Keepers are very much experienced in food safety issues and have proper understanding of the techniques. So, here we have brought out some tips from them for maintaining food safety in senior years

Clean

●     The childhood rule of washing your hands applies the same all through our lives. Cleanliness is a virtue, we all know that. So, keep everything from your hands to your kitchen and everything related with food.

●     Clean your cooking utensils and countertops with hot water and soap before and after you cook each and every item. Periodically use kitchen sanitizers.

Food Management

●     Always separate raw food like meat and vegetables from ready to eat foods while carrying and storing. 

●     Always chill raw meat, poultry, cooked leftovers and ready to eat foods within 2 hours.

Cooking

●     Always cook up to the right temperature. Cook raw meat and poultry properly.

●     If you rely on delivered meals then take the service from a very reliable source and try be careful to keep them safe

Follow a Healthy Diet

●     Food safety and following a healthy diet go hand in hand! With age following a healthy and custom diet targeted towards wellbeing is of essential importance.

So, here you go, with these easy to digest tips from Comfort Keepers you will definitely be able to keep your digestive system safe and sound. For any type of help and support for ensuring your loved one’s well-being contact Comfort Keepers San Mateo right away!

7 Effective Ways to Avoid Back Pain in Senior Years - Comfort Keepers San Mateo

Back pain becomes an ever concurring phantom as we age. National Institute for Health reports that at least 25% of American adults encounter back pain in every three months. Although it tends to occur after we cross the threshold of 30 it gradually becomes more frequent as we reach our senior years. But do you know with some easy and simple lifestyle changes you can very effectively fend off back pain entirely?

We here from Comfort Keepers thought of sharing with your 7 such tips that you can adopt to avoid back pain as you age.

1. Do Hip Stretching Workout

In case of fending off back pain it is very important that you keep your abdominal muscles stronger to support your back as well as keep your hips muscles strong. For this you have to do some regular hip stretching exercises.

One easy way to do that is lying on your back and pull your knees upwards to your chest and hold it there for up to 15 to 20 seconds. Repeat it for three or four more times. This way you move and stretch both of your abdominal muscles and hip muscles and keep them in perfect condition.

2. Forget about Posture Strengthen Your Hip Muscles Instead 

Many often worry that our sitting or standing posture affects the back pain but it is actually not the situation. If you have strong muscles than no matter in whatever posture you sit and stand it doesn’t matter.

So, you have to solely focus on staying fit and keeping your hip and abdominal muscles stronger. Follow the exercise described above along with some other such muscle strengthening exercises.

3. Take Frequent Breaks from Your Chair

Sitting for too long at a stretch on the chair is bad for your hip muscles. It makes it too relaxed. So, take a break after every 30 minutes to one hour and do some light stretching or have a walk. This way your muscles will be much healthier and stronger.

4. Lift Heavy Objects Carefully

It has been observed that lifting heavy objects in inappropriate way can cause damage to your back muscles. So, whenever you are lifting anything heavy, such as your grand kids, be careful and follow standard procedure.

Bend your back and knees carefully keeping one foot slightly ahead of the other and straighten up your legs before your back. So, that the primary pressure remains on your legs instead of your back.

5. Have a Daily Walk around the Park

Nothing can be better for your back health along with your overall health than having a walk daily. As you walk you release the pressure on your spine and strengthen your back muscle.

One more thing about walking and back pain is that if you are having back pain like right now, start walking! Then you will notice that the pain will gradually decrease. So, even if you can manage to walk for only 10-15 minutes, do that and gradually try to increase the amount of time you walk as much as up to one hour.

6. Work Carefully

Whenever you are engaged with physical labor like shoveling snow or some heavy tasks like that you have to be extra cautious. Tasks that involve you to bend frequently and handle heavy things must be done with extra care for the safety of your back muscles. One rule of thumb can be to have a bit of warming up before starting, working with as little load as possible with frequent intervals.

7. Release Stress

Stress is an arch enemy to your peace. It has been proven in many research that stress increases your susceptibility to pain and aches. Besides, worrying about any specific type of pain will increase the likelihood and the intensity of it significantly.

So, follow de-stressing activities like relaxation exercises, yoga, meditation, aerobics etc. There are often some personal de-stressors for every individual; try to find out yours and carry out whenever you are stressed.

So, with these lifestyle incorporations you will be able to deal with back pain forever. Follow these and stay happy and healthy as you age. And for any kind of support regarding elder care contact Comfort Keepers.  

Seniors and Osteoporosis: Symptoms, Causes, Treatment and Prevention - Comfort Keepers San Mateo

 1 in every 5 men and 3 women above the age of 50 suffer bone fracture due to osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis means weak or brittle bones. Our bones undergo a gradual renewal process over the years. When we are young this decay and regeneration process goes faster and the lost amount of bone gets cover up faster than the breaking down process through new bone buildup. So, at the age of 30 our bone mass density remains at the peak. But gradually the speed of regeneration slows down but the bone mass loss continues hence gradually the bones become weak and brittle. In this line if the bone mass density becomes too low then it is medically termed as osteoporosis. In this condition our bones can get fractured very easily along with causing other physical problems.

Symptoms                                     

The visible symptoms of osteoporosis aren’t many. Our loved seniors even may not realize that they have osteoporosis until they get fractured and then tested. However, early signs can be noticed in the form of back pain and changes in the posture. Another symptom of osteoporosis that occurs much later in the development is decreased height.

Causes

Declining age is the main cause of osteoporosis. In the senior years the speed of bone breakdown far exceeds the speed of new bone buildup. This is the reason for which the bone mass density decreases significantly and causes osteoporosis.

Osteoporosis is more prevalent in women than in men. It is often considered as a ‘women's disease’. This is because the bone density of women are lesser than men and after menopause the bone loss occurs much faster in women. That’s why around 80% of people suffering from osteoporosis in America are women.

Risk factors

There are some risk factors for osteoporosis that you can control and there are some that you can’t. Among the risk factors that you can’t control are age, sex, ethnicity and heredity. Another such uncontrollable risk factor is having a small bodily frame. Whites and Asians are seen to get osteoporosis more than the seniors of other racial descent. Apart from these some other health condition like type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and some hormonal disorders can also be risk factors for developing osteoporosis.

And the risk factors that you can control mostly belongs to the way you lead your life. Smoking, leading an inactive life, following an irregular diet containing low amount of calcium and vitamin D, excessive drinking all these can increase the risk of developing osteoporosis through increasing the amount of bone loss as you age.

Treatment

There are multiple treatment options available in case your senior loved ones are diagnosed with osteoporosis. First option is to prescribe bone boosting drugs containing bisphosphonate. This will help decrease the bone loss and build new bone mass. Bisphosphonates can be taken either by mouth or through injections but comes with some significant kinds of side effects.

Other treatment options include hormone therapy and antibody injection. But all these alternatives have their own share of unavoidable side effects.

So, in such condition the best possible option would be to remain aware of it from the very early childhood so that you can maintain the healthy amount of calcium and vitamin D from the very beginning up to the age of 30. This way your bone bank will be full and the gradual bone loss will never reach the point where it can be diagnosed as osteoporosis.  

Bone Building Foods

Foods that are rich in calcium and vitamin D are the bone building foods. Milk is the first priority. Then you can have fish like salmon, tuna, herring etc. You have to add some leafy green vegetables into your diet. Vegetables also provide magnesium that improves the bone quality. Another such calcium fortified foods are cereals and orange juice. Whereas, it is always a good idea to avoid foods that decrease the absorption of calcium in the body.

Exercise

The importance of exercise in case of osteoporosis management, treatment and prevention is essential. Exercise keeps the bones in good condition and helps the treatment process of building new and strong bones.

Exercises that involves bearing your whole body weight are the most favorable. Exercises like walking, jogging, running, playing tennis etc. Using small weights while exercising the various body parts also help in this regard. Research have found that women who walk one mile every day have four to seven years of added bone reserve.

Yoga, tai-chi can be a great way to improve balance but some postures involving too much bend or stretch should be carefully avoided in such situations.

Fall Prevention

While living with osteoporosis even a bit of pressure on the bones can cause fracture. In severe cases there are records of getting fractured just by coughing. So, whenever your loved one is diagnosed with osteoporosis the first thing that you should do is to make the surroundings totally fall proof. Contact Comfort Keepers San Mateo we have proven techniques and methods for fall prevention.

Always remember that it is never too late to care for your bones. No matter at whatever age you are right now, start right away!

Start having the right amount of healthy diet, have regular physical exercise- as much as you can- even if you can just walk with the help of a walker then do that, and avoid the negative habits that are active risk factors for osteoporosis. This way you can very well live a healthy, happy and independent life in your senior years with osteoporosis. 

7 Ways to Help Seniors with Depression - Comfort Keepers San Mateo

 Seniors suffering from depression can undergo terrible inner distress the severity of which we may not even comprehend. Depression literally sucks the life out of people and seniors are often seen to be the worst sufferers of depression. There are also quite a high number of suicide instances of seniors due to depression.

So, learning to cope with these issue is very much important. Here we give to you 7 tips from Comfort Keepers Senior Care San Mateo to help seniors with depressions.

●     Always be on the lookout for depressive symptoms. Depression is different from ordinary feeling of grief or sorrow. If such depressive instances become persistent than probably you better start seeking help.

●     It becomes the most troubling when the senior refuses to accept medical or therapeutic help as they might assume it will become a burden to the family or they might just simply do not want anything they are not feeling good about. So be on guard for the signs.

●     Try to see things from their perspective. Talk to them to discover exactly what's bothering them. Offer humble and cordial help.

●     Talk to them in their way. Do not impose words like drugs, therapy, care, counselling as these might frustrate them even more. Just try to persuade that medical help actually works and might even help them to sleep better.

●     Depression is actually an illness. So, acknowledge the limitations that it might impose upon oneself and never force our loved seniors beyond those known limits.

●     Always let the loved seniors do the tasks that they are capable of doing. That will make them feel good and more independent. And that’s exactly Interactive Caregiving from Comfort Keepers Senior Care San Mateo does.

●     Try to be as much involved with the medical care that our loved seniors are getting so that you know what to do and how to help when it may become necessary

For any help regarding elder care and support do not hesitate to contact Comfort Keepers Senior Care San Mateo.

10 Fantastic Gift Ideas for Our Loved Seniors - Comfort Keepers San Mateo

Choosing the perfect gift for our loved ones is a very confusing task. Very often we come across such dilemmas of selecting the appropriate gift item for an occasion. And when you are buying gift for a senior loved one then the task becomes even more complicated because there are so many issues to think about and be sure of while making the final decision.

To make this bewildering task easy for you Comfort Keepers elder care services thought of sharing with you 10 very intriguing gift ideas for seniors that you can consider while buying gifts for your senior loved one.

1. Medical Identification Device

Medical Identification tools or devices carry all the emergency medical information of a person. It is one of the must have safety devices for our loved seniors in case of any unforeseen emergencies. Today in the market there are many devices that are very easy to carry and very handy. You can browse online for these and choose the perfect match for your loved senior very easily.

2. Walking Toolkit

Walking is the best form of physical exercise for our loved seniors. Hence, we should always encourage walking. So, gifts that would help our senior to have their daily walking sessions is a great gift idea for seniors. You can make a gift pack combining water bottle, sneakers, pedometer and other such accessories.

3. Indoor Exercise Devices

Another such great gift idea for seniors would be indoor exercise devices like pedal exerciser, walking exerciser, light weights, exercise resistance bands etc. All these can be fantastic idea to encourage senior to have regular physical exercise.

4. Massage Gift Vouchers

Gifting a soothing massage to our loved seniors will give them a perfect chance be relaxed. So, whenever in doubt about what to gift an elderly give them a massage gift voucher to their nearest spa or massage parlor.

5. Gym Membership

You can always gift a gym membership to your loved senior to help them lead a healthy, happy and prolonged life. Or you can also gift them a personal trainer to help them have quality physical exercise time in the comfort of their homes.

6. Heating Pads or Gel Wraps

Often in declining years our senior loved ones feel various pains like muscle pain, joint pain etc. To sooth these pains away gifting them with heating pads and gel wraps is a marvelous idea. You can easily find these for various body parts and shapes and sizes in amazon or any other local retailer.

7. Get a Meal Delivered

There are many meal delivery services that will deliver your ordered meals to your specified address. You can always opt for a healthy and delicious meal delivered to your senior loved one. You can also specify meals and cooking details according to the taste, preferences, and medical issues of your loved one.

8. Tools to Help with Household Chores

There are various household tools manufacturers like OXO who make devices and accessories to make daily household tasks easier for our loved seniors. There are gardening tools, kitchen accessories, hardware tools that are easy to hold, control and use. You can always try these great gift options for our loved elderly.

9. Blenders or Smoothie Makers

To help fulfil the nutritional needs of your loved ones you can opt gifting a blender, mixer or a smoothie maker to them. With it they will be able to make their favorite fruit delight in a minute and have their daily dose of the delicious and nutritious.

10. Medical Devices and Adaptive Clothing

There are various types of medical devices available for our loved seniors in the market for various health conditions. There are vision and hearing aids, mobility products, fall prevention products, medical emergency toolkits, adaptive clothing options and many other product option for specific medical conditions. These tools and devices can be fantastic gifts for seniors.  Browse the internet to find out the one you need.

So, here you go! Hopefully with these great gift options at your disposal you will never feel at a loss while choosing a gift for your senior loved one. For any additional information and any help or support on elder care related concerns do not hesitate to contact Comfort Keepers San Mateo Senior Care Services.