Home Care Services: When you go out to eat with your elderly loved one, do you notice they want the sweetest treat on the menu?
What about when they are over at your house or you at their home, are they eating sweets a lot of the time? If so, your elderly loved one probably has some sugar cravings that can be difficult to beat. If they continue eating a lot of sugar, it can cause cavities and other health issues. It is best if you and your home care services provider find ways to handle sugar cravings such as with these tips that you can learn about here today.
Find the Trigger
What is triggering your elderly loved one to have sugar cravings? This is one of the first things that they need to figure out. However, it wouldn’t hurt if you helped them to find their triggers. Some of the things that could be triggering them include:
- Boredom
- Stress or anxiety
- Feeling lonely
- Being thirsty
- Being hungry
These are some of the common reasons why people crave sweets. If your elderly loved one is experiencing any of these, you or home care assistance providers should encourage them to eat vegetables or fruits. They could also drink a bottle of water. Oftentimes, when someone does these things, it can curb their sugar cravings.
Replacement for the Cravings
Does your elderly loved one feel that they must have a sweet treat? If so, maybe you or a home care provider could help them research healthier treat alternatives. Some of the best examples of these types of treats would be:
- Granola bars
- Raisins
- Craisins
- Dried cranberries
- Other dried fruits
The next time that you or a home care assistance provider gets groceries for your elderly loved one, be sure to add these sugar replacements to the list. If your elderly loved one can start getting in the habit of replacing the sugary treats with these ones, they likely won’t crave the sugar-filled foods quite as much in the future.
Conscious Eating
Another way for your elderly loved ones to handle the sugar cravings they have is to be more conscious of what they are putting in their body. For example, you or a home care assistance provider can read the ingredient lists to your elderly loved one. Oftentimes, it isn’t just the sugar that is bad for them. There are usually other unhealthy ingredients on the list and sometimes, even chemicals. Once your elderly loved one realizes this, they may be less “hungry” for those sugary foods or drinks.
You now have a good idea of how to help your elderly loved one fight off sugar cravings in their elderly years. This doesn’t mean they can’t ever have sugar. These tips are just a good way to encourage them to eat healthier and fewer sugar-filled foods in general. If your elderly loved one can stick to eating less sugar, it can help to improve their overall health, as well.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Elderly Care in Menlo Park, CA, call the caring staff at Aviva In-Home Care.
Call today: (415) 795-2203
Sources
https://bastyr.edu/news/health-tips/2021/01/4-tips-naturally-reduce-sugar-cravings
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