Los Angeles, California (PRWEB) November 12, 2013
Holiday festivities inevitably mean food, drinks and more food. But for seniors, the joy of sharing holiday meals can be dampened by dietary and health concerns.
“Foods we prepare for the holidays tend to be much heavier than those we eat the rest of the year, rich with creamy sauces, meats and butter. Seniors are physiologically very different than younger people and may find these difficult and uncomfortable to digest,” explains Cheryl Kuba, executive director of LivHOME’s Chicago office.
“Many seniors also struggle with conditions such as diabetes that require dietary modifications, and have medication schedules that must be timed with meals. They may have difficulty consuming alcohol, even when cooked into a dish, since alcohol can easily trigger a number of health issues for seniors.”
Kuba discusses these unique considerations and ways to accommodate them when planning holiday events in the latest episode of The Senior Care Podcast by LivHOME.
To help alleviate the stress seniors may experience as mealtime guests, Kuba advises hosts to:
● Offer small, manageable portions.
● Establish a clear meal schedule so seniors can time their medications and set expectations accordingly.
● Find out in advance if senior guests have diabetes and make sure, if so, that there are a few appropriate menu items to choose from.
● Make pitchers of water and healthy appetizers such as radishes, celery, nuts and green peppers available before the meal to tide people over as needed.
● Leave alcohol out of recipes.
● Serve some lean proteins and plenty of vegetables with the meal along with any heavier, traditional dishes.
● Include healthy dessert alternatives like fruit.
Seniors may also become easily overwhelmed at large gatherings, particularly if they are hosting the event. Kuba advises families to assign tasks like setting the table, and to organize group activities such as taking a walk to lend structure to the gathering.
“A family walk is a great way to stimulate conversation while reducing mayhem indoors, and has the added benefit of providing healthy exercise before or after a copious meal,” Kuba explains.
The podcast episode, titled “Holiday Eating,” can be found on The Senior Care Podcast by LivHOME homepage (http://www.livhome.com/podcast). Listeners can subscribe via RSS feed, email or through the iTunes store. The episode has a run time of 14 minutes and 24 seconds.
About LivHOME
LivHOME is one of the nation’s largest providers of professionally led at-home care for seniors. The company is dedicated to finding solutions that enable older adults to remain in their homes as long as possible. Based in Los Angeles, LivHOME delivers high quality at-home care throughout California as well as Arlington, VA., Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Silver Spring, Md. and The Woodlands, TX.