While correcting lifestyle, do we always focus on becoming healthier and recovering from ailments?
Maybe yes, but only sometimes.
When discussing lifestyle changes, we choose the right option based on age, priorities, and current situation. Similarly, when we talk about the health of our elders, in most cases, we focus more on maintaining their health and delaying deterioration.
To delay deterioration, we need to emphasize making the best out of the current age and eliminating risk factors which can add unnecessary trouble like falls and fractures, which are the most challenging for elders due to the health of their bones. Let’s discuss this in detail.
Bone health:
Bones become thin and brittle in old age. Due to wear and tear, and low calcium intake combined with ageing, the risk of osteoporosis increases, which increases the risk of fracture.
Further, inflammation increases with age and complaint of joint pains in areas like the wrist, neck, back, ankles, knees etc., becomes frequent. Chronic pain further reduces the movement of the body, which leads to stiffness in the bones. Stiffness can further contribute to accessible falls and the risk of fracture increases. And in the case of elders, falls and fractures have become common. In some instances, it becomes life-threatening as well.
To avoid this, try implementing changes as mentioned below.
1) Exercise:
Make exercise your best friend and target to have an active life till the last days. Emphasize having a busy exercise routine. One can focus on a combination of strength (weight-bearing exercise), flexibility and balancing (yoga) and cardiovascular exercises (running, jogging) with increased physical movement by walking more steps daily. For setting up an exercise regime, consulting a professional is advisable.
Consider the following points related to walking.
- Know, walking helps. Regardless of age, aim to walk for 20 to 30 minutes daily over and above your exercise routine.
- Walk at a pace which is comfortable for you. There’s no need to force yourself to walk faster.
- Pay special attention to comfortable footwear and walk on even surfaces to reduce the chances of tripping and falling.
- While walking barefoot in the garden, make sure nothing hurts your feet. It is vital for people having diabetes.
- Remember, daily movement will reduce with increasing age. And for any reason, if the daily walking stops, it becomes difficult to restart, so never stop walking.
2) Lifting heavy objects:
Do not lift heavy objects. It is usual for women to lift heavy vessels while working in the kitchen and for a man to lift heavy bags or buckets full of water. Since they could do such daily chores easily at a young age, it is usual to miss that the strength of bones has reduced with the ageing process. They realize this after getting injured only. But it is best to accept this and be careful beforehand to avoid such incidents.
3) Bathroom falls:
It is also common to fall in the bathroom due to slippery floors. In old age, where balancing has become an issue, the chances of falls leading to fractures have become common. To prevent this, consider changing the bathroom to make it elderly-friendly.
- One should keep a water-absorbent mat should in the bathroom to prevent slippage.
- If they prefer showering while sitting on the stool, ensure the seat is heavy and sturdy.
- Consider installing grab bars to add more safety.
- Again, pay attention to not picking or moving heavy buckets full of water.
- A bell should be placed in the bathroom, which they can use for help if required.
4) Balanced diet:
Eat fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains in abundance. Consume good fats like ghee and dry fruits in moderation. Digestive health starts to decline with the ageing process. So the focus should be on optimum absorption by eating light food and adding natural sources of probiotics and laxatives. Curd, buttermilk, lemon water, green tea etc., will help digestion.
Consult a doctor for supplements for calcium and vitamin D.
Old age is like a golden period of life when one wants to enjoy the interest of their hard work. However, we do not get the required support from the body due to wear and tear. On the other hand, the body demands a little more attention and care. However, taking care of small things makes it easy to maintain our bodies and live life to the fullest.
Thank you.