Walkers for Seniors

Walkers for Seniors

Stay Mobile!

If you have a senior citizen in your home, you know how difficult it is for them to maneuver through the house. Whether they are affected by arthritis or joint replacement recovery, a rollator will help them get around on their own.

A rollator is essentially a framed support that enables an individual the ability to stand and walk around if they are unable to support themselves. Unlike a wheel chair the operator actually stands up and uses the walker for balance and support as they move around.

How to pick the best walker for your senior

Depending on the specific needs of the individual you should consider the following when doing your research:

1. Construction materials - Is it sturdy enough for the individual who will be using it. Some units are poorly made and will not provide the needed support when used. Look for heavier gauge aluminum and ensure the bolts and nuts do not work their way loose during use.

2. Does it fold up – Folding walkers are more versatile and easily put into use when they need to go to the grocery store. The design should allow the unit to fold, but also make it easy to collapse and unfold without much effort.

3. Does it have wheels or just rubber tipped legs. For maximum use, wheeled systems are more efficient in helping the senior move about the home or store. If it has wheels on the bottom, there will be hand brakes to help control the dev ice more effectively.

There are many rollator designs to choose from. Based on your senior citizen’s needs, a rolling walker can help them stay mobile and more self sufficient as they heal.

Look Younger live Longer

A study conducted in Denmark late last year studied over 1800 Danish twins over the age of 70. The study wanted to determine if there was a link between the how old each person looked and how long they lived.

Evaluators were male and female nurses, student teachers and older women over 70 years of age.

Each evaluator was tasked with reviewing pictures of the subjects to try and gauge their ages just by looking at the faces.

There was no information given regarding the subjects so the evaluators could only formulate their opinion based on the pictures they were reviewing.

The team concluded that the difference in perceived age between each set of twins the more likely the twin that was perceived as older died first. Each evaluator group who assessed the age of each subject helped to determine the overall perception of age. This data was then compared to death records that helped researchers to determine the potential link.

As this information is further analyzed, it spawns additional questions like:

1. Does the twin who lives longer actually take better care of themselves and is actually healthier?

2. Does the twin who dies first look older because they perceive themselves as being older? Does this self perception cause the individual to actually feel older and give up on life sooner.

3. Does your perceived age based on your actual health or positive outlook on life?

In summary, further studies may support the popular idea that people who take care of themselves feel better, look younger and live longer.

How to Deal with Liver Spots

Liver spots are a natural side effect of aging and usually appear on the hands, face and arms and begin to show after the age of 30. Liver spots are more pronounced in people who have spent a great deal of time in the sun without the use of sunscreen.

A lifetime of Sun exposure eventually takes its toll on a person's skin as they age. Unfortunately, the presence of age spots in combination with thinning of the skin can make an individual look much older than they really are.

If you have red or brown patches showing on your hands and skin, the damage has already been done. Ongoing sun exposure will only increase the number and intensity as you continue to age. Here are some tips to help reduce the number of liver spots:

1. Reduce the amount of sun exposure and use sunscreen whenever possible

Some newer formulas used in sunscreen products contain Mexoryl SX (ecamsule). Products that contain this ingredient are offered by L'Oreal and Neutrogena, very well known cosmetic companies.

Skin lightening products can reduce some age spots to a certain degree. The success of creams and lotions are dependent upon level of darkness. Additional age spots can appear over time so continues use is recommended.

2. A more permanent solution but more costly solution to rid yourself of these pesky spots can be done through the use of lasers. Laser technology can be used to reduce skin pigmentation on a more permanent basis but can cost several hundred dollars. Laser treatment is considered safe, but some studies have shown that it can reduce the number of free radicals in the treated areas similar to long term sun exposure.

In summary, even though laser treatments can be a more permanent treatment in removing age spots over creams and lotions, healing can take much longer due to a lesser amount of blood vessels in the hands compared to other parts of the body..

3 Steps to long term Health and Wellness

Health and wellness is not a quick walk around the track after a stop at your local burger joint. It is a long term plan and strategy that you define and execute consistently. Sensible eating and moderate exercise are the true combination to assist in losing weight and becoming more fit and healthy.

So, if now is the time to pick up a new lease in life, increase your stamina and decrease your level of fat and sugar intake, then by all means look to develop a plan around your goals and objectives.
Here are 3 steps to get started:

1.    Before starting any new program, get a physical and discuss your desire with your doctor. They will give you guidance and point you in the right direction based on the results of your physical and long term goals. Ask about recommendations around nutrition, and your current physical state to determine if the activities you might enjoy are feasible.

2.    Before you decide to change your eating habits, document all the foods you eat over a week or two. This will help you set a baseline of your current dietary habits and choices. Once you see what you have been consuming, determine the areas you might want to address first, like sugar or fat intake.

3.    Develop a plan around the type of food and exercise choices you are willing to make initially. Keep it simple and reasonable in the type of change you are willing to make in the beginning.

If you start to make small changes with gradual adjustments, you are more likely to stick with your program. If you try to make drastic changes all at once, your willingness to continue will be less successful because you will feel that it is too difficult and abandon your plan.