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How a Home Care Provider Can Encourage a More Plant-Based Diet for Your Seniors

Home Care in Rockville Center NY

If asked to describe the dietary approach of most elderly adults, the majority of family caregivers would likely say “meat and potatoes”. This is because this type of dietary approach was the most popular and most expected type of diet during the years when most of today’s seniors were young. While this type of food is comforting and delicious, the majority of people today realize that eating it as the main diet is not the healthiest way to keep your body going strong. There is nothing wrong with indulging in a meaty dish, nice steak, or helping of your favorite mashed potatoes occasionally, but if you want your elderly adults to be as healthy as possible, introducing a more plant-based diet is an important step, and teaming up with their home care provider to help do it can make the process easier and more enjoyable for everyone involved.

There are many health benefits to eating a more plant-based diet. Research has shown that people who eat a diet primarily comprised of plant foods including vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and plant-based foods featuring those ingredients experience a variety of health benefits, including:

• Lower blood pressure

• Lower cholesterol levels

• Lower risk of heart disease

• Lower cancer risk, particularly for ovarian, prostate, and colon

• Lower risk of kidney stones

• Lower risk of gallstones

• Lower risk of obesity

• Lower instance of digestive problems, including constipation and diarrhea

 

Suddenly transitioning your parents from eating primarily meat and potatoes to eating a varied plant-based diet can be stressful, but there are many ways that an in home health care services provider can help you ease them into enjoy more plant-based foods, including:

• Adopt a vegan breakfast policy. Get the morning started on a plant-based note by eating vegan for the first meal of the day. Try oatmeal with fruit, granola with soy milk, cereal with almond milk, or scrambled tofu and vegan bacon. This one change can add up to a major difference in how much fat and cholesterol, and how many calories your parents eat during the day

• Try non-dairy milk. Do something wonderful for your parents’ bodies, and for animals, by trading in your dairy milk for a non-dairy alternative. Options such as soy, almond, cashew, and rice milk have far less fat, cholesterol, and calories, and do not have the same link to respiratory illnesses and digestive problems

• Explore the farmer’s market. Getting your parents excited about new fruits and vegetables is an easy way to encourage them to fill their plates with plants rather than meat. Make a plan to visit a farmer’s market each week and pick out a new piece of produce and find new recipes to try

• Try new meatless products. The next time you go to the grocery store, head over to the natural and meatless foods section and see what they have to offer. Try meatless versions of burgers, hot dogs, sausage, ground beef, and even deli slices to replace the foods your parents eat on a daily basis.

If you or an aging loved one are in need of home care services in Rockville Center, NY or the surrounding areas, contact the caring professionals at Star Multi Care Services today at (631)956-8835. We are the Right Choice for Home Health Care Services!

Stephen Sternbach

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