Caregivers Share Foods That Can Help Seniors Manage or Better Prevent Osteoporosis in Rochester Hills, MI
You’ve probably heard of osteoporosis, whether it’s through ads for treatment or a health professional, but, how much do you really know? Are you aware of the simple ways you can help your senior loved ones prevent osteoporosis?
A Few Facts About Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis is a common disease that is caused when bones lose minerals, such as calcium, faster than they can be replaced. This causes bones to become fragile and more prone to fractures. In fact, although any bone can be affected, there are often no symptoms prior to a fracture.
Osteoporosis is called the ‘silent disease’ for this reason.
If left untreated and repeated fractures occur, osteoporosis can cause a number of health problems including, chronic pain, loss of mobility or independence, or in extreme cases, even premature death.
Give us a call at (248) 651-9880 to learn more!
Calcium! Calcium! Calcium!
Now that you have a better idea what osteoporosis is, how can you help protect your loved one? An excellent place to start is by encouraging them to include more calcium rich foods in their diet or to begin taking a calcium supplement.
Calcium, like exercise, can help strengthen bones at any age!
Dairy products like milk and cheese are some of the most commonly cited high calcium food but, they’re just a starting place! Other calcium rich products include:
- Calcium Fortified Foods: breakfast cereal, oatmeal, and some orange juices
- Fish: sardines, salmon, trout, and perch
- Veggies: spinach, okra, collards, white beans, and kale
- Almond Milk: it has 2x more calcium than cow’s milk!
What About Vitamin D?
Vitamin D is essential to bone health due to the way calcium is absorbed into the body. When the body doesn’t get enough vitamin D it can’t produce enough of the hormone calcitriol, (or Active Vitamin D) causing insufficient calcium absorption. When this happens calcium is taken from existing stores within the bones, preventing the growth of new, strong bone.
There are three ways you can get vitamin D: through skin from sun exposure, from supplements, and through diet.
Recommended vitamin D rich foods include:
- Beef liver
- Orange juice
- Egg yolks
- Fatty fish, such as tuna, mackerel, and salmon
Is This Enough?
While diet can play a major role in helping to prevent your loved one from developing osteoporosis, it is important to remember that other things may contribute to it as well. Diet may not be able to mitigate bone thickness lost due to lifestyle choices, medications, or menopause.
A doctor can determine whether your senior should take an osteoporosis medication along with dietary changes.
How Comfort Keepers® Can Help
You have a busy schedule and sometimes it can be a lot to juggle the needs of your senior, including diet, exercise, doctor appointments, and more along with your own needs. This is where one of our caregivers can be of service!
Our caregivers will ensure that your loved one is getting the nutrients they need, including plenty of calcium and vitamin D, as part of our practice called Interactive Caregiving™.
Interactive Caregiving™ is our unique approach to personal care. At Comfort Keepers®, we believe that seniors are happiest and healthiest when they are supported mentally, physically, and socially with activities, meals, social calls, and more that they can help plan and look forward to. We want to empower seniors to do more than simply view and help make moments into cherished memories.
If you’d like to learn more about how our phenomenal caregivers can help your loved one live a healthier lifestyle through Interactive Caregiving™, please contact us online or call us at (248) 651-9880. Our agents are available 24/7 to answer any questions you have and schedule your free in home consultation.
