A Guide to Living with a Senior Who Needs Help with Meal and Cooking Preparation

Aging not only changes our appearance but also our inner self. It is essential to maintain a healthy diet for the elderly to ensure a good quality of life. It is a recognized notion that there is a loss of appetite in older people. It is due to many reasons; diseases, aging, and loneliness. Once we cross the age limit of 60 years, the absorption capacity at the intestinal level decreases, medication consumption increases, chewing is painful; physical activity is reduced, smell and taste are lost, among many other things. These factors contribute to the nutritional imbalance that could trigger some diseases.

For this reason, it is essential to know how to feed. At a certain age, you must take care and be more attentive of senior meal preparation. So as a caregiver, we propose a series of caregiving meal services and menus for the elderly.

What is a good lunch for seniors?

For the elderly to carry out a healthy diet, you have to keep in mind that we need vitamins and nutrients to gain strength. Therefore, here is a small list for you to consider.

Calcium and Vitamin D are essential for the elderly to strengthen the bones. To include calcium in the diet, it is advisable to consume, for example, skimmed yogurts, dark green leafy vegetables, and also soft spine fish, such as sardines.
Potassium is recommended for older people. At the same time, the consumption of sodium, which is salt, must be significantly reduced. You should cook menus for the elderly with the least amount of salt possible. To increase potassium, it should be included in plant foods such as chard and fruits, i.e. custard apple or banana.
B12 vitamin is one of the vitamins that we least acquire from a certain age. Beef is a good option, especially the liver that contains a high amount of vitamin b12. In seafood, we advise salmon, which includes not only this vitamin, also omega 3, ideal for cholesterol.
Fiber is essential to regulate digestion. It is also ideal for weight control and helps us prevent cardiovascular diseases. Fiber can be found in fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains and nuts.

How do the elderly prepare meals?

Does your older father or grandfather or brother willingly accept help? It is more common than we imagine that our elders do not let themselves be cared for. People do not usually address this issue by keeping the privacy and discretion of their family nucleus, but it is a situation that is repeated frequently.

The conversation could be something like: “Mommy I am thinking of hiring someone to help you with the house and accompany you to the park – to which the 90-year-old mother responds – Well, I don’t need it, I’m great, and I’m not in need of neither help nor company”.

Nevertheless, it is a situation that can be resolved if timely information is available. With caregiving cooking services, we offer several meal preparations and recommendations that can help mitigate the problem of having a family member who is not able to cook or prepare his/her own meal.

What is a healthy breakfast for seniors?

We all know that breakfast should be the most important meal of the day. However, we are sure that many of you skip this meal either due to laziness, lack of time or to avoid being late for work. Above all, our seniors skip breakfast meals because either they do not have the energy to cook for themselves, nor have any help. However, seeking caregiver cooking services can do wonders.

Rest assured, the traditional breakfast model based on cereal, dairy and fruit will do quite well for the elderly. Today we present six breakfast ideas for the elderly:

Toasted smoked salmon with avocado.
Fresh cheese toast with fruits (strawberries, apples, grapes or nuts).
Porridge with blueberries with nuts, honey, sunflower seeds, etc.
Toasts with vegetable pate` would be a great idea to include in any diet. There are an infinite number of flavors to experiment with: eggplant patches, hummus, mushrooms, and cauliflower.
Yogurt with chia seeds contains many beneficial properties for our bodies. You can also add pineapple or kiwi.
Fruit smoothies, a different way to drink it is in a smoothie.

We encourage you to incorporate these dishes into your elderly’s breakfasts to follow a healthy, balanced and varied diet and that in case of doubt always resort to a specialist.

What is the best food for the elderly?

Vegetables and seafood is highly recommended for everyone and especially for people over 50. One can encounter the risk of cardiovascular diseases due to the presence of cholesterol in the arteries, as well as osteoporosis due to lack of calcium in the bones and osteoarthritis in most cases due to overweight. For a healthy heart and arteries, a good source of vitamins and minerals is necessary to maintain optimal conditions.

Peppers provide us with substances that protect us from cancer.
Zucchini, garlic, and onion have an excellent cleansing effect, helping us to avoid fluid retention, eliminate toxins and not have constipation.
Tomato gives us vitamins and antioxidants such as the pigment that gives it the red color, protecting us from cancer.
Olives and olive oil will also be used for daily consumption. It promotes the absorption of minerals such as calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and zinc so that it helps us maintain healthy bones, skin and digestive systems.
Sardine contains fats rich in omega 3 fatty acids that cleanse the blood of cholesterol and triglycerides and prevent the formation of thrombi.

A must-have a healthy diet for seniors:

Drink eight glasses of fluids daily combined with juices, soups, milk, and others.
Consume six or more portions of the cereal group: bread, rice, cereals, pasta, as well as potatoes.
Dairy products should include milk, yogurt, and cheese.
Protein such as chicken, meat, fish, legumes or eggs.

Healthy eating is essential for good health at any stage of life. However, when it comes to older people, eating a healthy diet rather than a recommendation is an obligation. Therefore, once you reach old age, it is vital to increase the consumption of certain foods. Discover our caregiving meal preparation menu and the benefits of caregiver cooking services for older people.