Keeping your elderly family member healthy involves ensuring that her immune system is healthy and functional, too. These ideas can work on a general level, so it’s important to make sure that your senior talks to her doctor about what she needs specifically in order to keep her immune system working well.
Get Plenty of Quality Sleep
Sleep is a huge factor when it comes to overall health. When your elderly family member sleeps, and she’s getting quality sleep, her body and her brain are able to restore themselves. That’s something that they can’t do while she’s awake. Troubleshoot any sleep issues and see what you can do to help your elderly family member to get the sleep that she needs.
Use Common Sense Tips to Avoid Infections
Infections wear down the body’s immune system because the body is too busy fighting off whatever it sees as a threat. That’s why making sure to use proper food handling procedures to prevent food-borne illnesses is so important. It’s also why regular handwashing can be so effective against common illnesses.
Exercise on a Regular Basis
Talk to your senior’s doctor about the exercise that she’s currently getting and how much exercise she needs. Even starting out slowly and with a few minutes of exercise each day can help your elderly family member to make big improvements in her strength and stamina. Exercise helps her body to release chemicals that improve how well her immune system functions.
Eat a Diet That Supports Her Health Goals
Your senior’s immune system, like every other system in her body, requires the right fuel to keep it going. Eating a diet that properly supports her health goals means getting plenty of fruits and vegetables along with lean proteins. Working with a dietician can be incredibly helpful, too.
Reduce Unnecessary Stress
Stress causes cortisol levels to rise, and that can affect how well your senior sleeps, whether she’s eating properly, and whether she’s moving enough. All of that can bring her immune system crashing down, which is definitely something to avoid. Mindfulness techniques, like meditation, can help to reduce your senior’s stress levels dramatically.
At first, your elderly family member might find some of these ideas to be more difficult to implement. It might be helpful to have a caregiver there with her who can take over the tougher aspects so that she can concentrate on keeping herself as healthy as possible.
If you or an aging loved one is considering caregivers in Purcellville, VA, please contact the caring staff at Assisting Hands today. (703) 782-3655.
