Senior Nutrition Tips for Home Health Care Franchise Caregivers

As the body gets older, its changes and its nutrition needs adjust. Because of these changes, seniors are predisposed to a higher risk of falls and injury, reduced metabolism, central weight gain, and dehydration. Home health care franchise caregivers can watch for signs of malnutrition in their elderly clients to prevent these things from happening.

No matter where they are, including at home, in full-time nursing home care or in the community, elders are under a high risk of malnutrition. It is estimated that over 30% of all seniors in the US require help with grocery shopping. Currently, reports indicate that about half of all seniors who are in the care of other people or organizations are malnourished. Sometimes, the signs of poor nutrition can be easy to spot, but other times the signs can be hidden.

If caregivers are aware of these signs and know what to watch for, they can catch the malnutrition and the habits that lead to it early and quickly, preventing elders from suffering lasting effects from not getting enough nutrients in their diet.

Seniors are at a high risk of becoming dehydrated. It is recommended that each senior drink at least 8 servings of water every day. Sometimes seniors do not get enough water to drink because they forget. But in other cases, seniors have intentionally restricted the amount of water they drink in an attempt to reduce urinary frequency. When caregivers are around senior clients, they can observe how much the seniors drink. They can also look for drinking glasses and dirty dishes in the sink for other hints as to the senior’s true eating and drinking habits.

Many times, seniors’ self-eating reports are not accurate. Sometimes seniors do not eat regularly, they get less than the amount of food that they need, or, in cases of Alzheimer’s or other dementia-related conditions, seniors can forget to eat for up to days at a time. Comfort Keepers® is a compassionate and professional network of home health care franchise service providers who work to provide in-home senior care to elders who live independently. Because Comfort Keepers caregivers often spend mealtimes with their clients, the caregivers can get an accurate picture of the senior’s eating habits.

Comfort Keepers’ home health care franchise caregivers are specially trained to watch closely for malnutrition in senior clients, and to make sure each senior is getting enough of the right nutrients to avoid malnutrition and promote happier and more fulfilling lives.