Regardless of one’s age, In order for anyone to stay strong and healthy, consuming a balanced and healthy diet is important. One should consume enough vitamins, minerals and calories to keep bodily functions working efficiently for our health. This also gives us ample energy for our body to combat any illnesses that may arise.
Unfortunately, for many senior citizens, eating can become a struggle. Loss of appetite is a common condition faced by the elderly which can leave a mark on their health. This is a concerning situation that should be looked at by their doctor, should the condition persist.
In other cases, you may wonder, are there ways to stimulate the appetite in seniors? The answer is yes. In this article, we cover three methods you can use to help your loved one regain their appetite again.
Taking Up Social Meals
Eating your meals alone can dampen one’s mood and may even make your loved one lose their appetite quickly. Unfortunately, many seniors are prone to eating alone at home due to mobility issues. If the situation allows, you can try to provide your loved ones with some access to taking up social meals. For example, you can encourage your family members to go for social meals available in venues such as community centers, churches and senior centers.
Increase their Nutrients Without Increasing the Size of Portion
Many seniors can get overwhelmed by large portion sizes of their meals which can discourage them from consuming their meals in the first place. To tackle this issue, you can consider providing your loved one a smaller meal portion instead of larger portions.
A nutrition tip you can consider is to switch your loved one’s meal routine to consume five meals with smaller food portions each day. This helps your loved one to consume the required daily calorie intake in order to stay healthy.
Should you choose to change to the five-meal routine, it is important to ensure that each meal can still pack ample amounts of nutrients for your loved ones. As such, you can look to prepare meals that are cooked with vitamin-packed protein foods and ingredients that are high in nutrients in order to provide your loved ones with as many healthy vitamins, nutrients and calories as possible.
Exercising
An alternative way to stimulate appetite is to keep them physically engaged. As they age, the decrease in metabolic rate and need for energy can lead to suppression of appetite among the elderly. To tackle these factors, one can consider engaging your loved one in safe exercises for seniors.
Engaging in physical activities can help to increase their energy needs, thereby increasing their feeling of hunger. Exercising can provide an additional benefit of boosting the metabolic rate amongst the elderly, which helps to stimulate their appetite.
Senior Living Programs at Discovery Village At Alliance Town Center
There are many other ways you can help your loved ones increase their appetite and consume a more healthy and balanced diet in order to stay healthy. This is especially significant for your loved ones who are staying alone since they have to be physically well to take care of their own needs. If you are concerned for your family members living in isolation, Discovery Village At Alliance Town Center provides an array of senior living options your loved ones can be cared for by our health professionals whilst retaining their independence. If you are interested in our senior living programs, contact us to learn more today!
