Helping Your Elderly Loved One to Lose Weight

Is your elderly loved one gaining weight quickly? Maybe they have been overweight for a while. Being overweight can cause a lot of health problems. If you want to help prevent some of these health problems in your loved one, there are ways you and their elder care providers can help them to lose weight.

Getting Quality Sleep

One of the best ways to help your elderly loved one lose weight is making sure they get quality sleep. They should be getting enough sleep every night, between 7 to 9 hours each night. They should also make sure they are sleeping through the night. If they wake up often throughout the night, they may not be getting good sleep. Without proper sleep, your loved one might be eating more than they should or eating unhealthy food. This can cause them to gain weight, not lose weight.

Taking Calories Out of Their Diet

Another way you can help your elderly loved one to lose weight is by taking calories out of their diet. It can help by starting to take just 100 calories out of their diet. As someone gets older, their metabolism decreases. This makes it more difficult for their body to metabolize food. By taking 100 calories out of one’s diet each day, this can help to knock off pounds in the long run. You or your loved one’s elder care providers can make sure they are eating fewer calories every day.

Weight Training

Weight training is another way to help your elderly loved one lose weight. However, with this tip, you want to make sure they take it easy. They shouldn’t be trying to lift a ton of weights all at once. They should ease their way into lifting heavier weights. Weight training, especially when incorporated into other exercises, can increase strength, help someone to lose weight, and make them feel better overall, too.

Added Protein to Their Diet

Another tip for helping your elderly loved one to lose weight is by adding more protein to their diet. Protein is essential to the weight loss process. It helps to build muscle mass and reduce weight. If you want to help your loved one to lose weight, pick one meal in their diet to add protein to.

Little Changes

When helping your elderly loved one to lose weight, you want to be sure they are making little changes. These little changes add up to huge strides of progress.

You can help your elderly loved one to lose weight. It may take some time as weight doesn’t fall off overnight. However, helping them to lose weight can increase their overall health.

If you or an aging loved-one is considering Elder Care in Chaney, WA please contact the caring staff at Angel Senior Care today at (509) 326-4357.

Sources

https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/health-tips-older-adults

https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/maintaining-healthy-weight