If your senior isn’t eating, then she’s not getting all of the nutrients that she needs to keep her body fueled and as healthy as possible. There might be some solvable reasons behind her lack of appetite, so it’s important to dig a little deeper and figure out what’s causing the problem.
Cooking Is a Drag
As simple as it sounds, your senior may not be excited about cooking, especially if it’s just her. When cooking isn’t interesting or something that gives your senior joy, she may also be less likely to eat regularly. Solving this problem could be as simple as cooking for your elderly family member or finding other alternatives, like hiring elder care providers to cook for her.
Eating Is Painful
If chewing is painful or swallowing is difficult, your elderly family member may find very little about eating that makes her happy. She may even be willing to be hungry rather than experience other types of pain. Your senior’s doctor or dentist might be able to help you to find solutions for these issues, so make sure that you mention the problem to your senior’s medical providers.
Eating Isn’t Interesting
For some people, especially if smell or taste don’t work the same as they did, eating just isn’t interesting at all. This can especially be a problem if your elderly family member always enjoyed trying new foods and flavor was a big deal. Boring, dull food is a problem, even if your senior does need the nutrition from her food. Finding ways to spice up your senior’s meals, both literally and figuratively, can be the help she needs.
She Doesn’t Have Any Appetite
Lack of appetite could happen for a variety of reasons. It’s possible that health issues are restricting her appetite, but this could also be a result of side effects from medications. It’s vital that you talk to your elderly family member’s doctor to determine what could be causing the problem. From there you can work on finding a way to help her to get the nutrients that she needs and hopefully stimulate her appetite.
The variables that could be leading your senior to avoid eating could be different from one day to another, even. It’s important to do what you can to find the right answer for your aging family member. This might be easier with the help of elderly care providers, too. They have experience with assisting seniors through these difficult times and finding the options that best meet their needs.
If you are considering hiring elderly care in Layton, UT for an aging loved one, please contact the caring staff at Seniors Helping Seniors of Ogden, UT. Call today 801-821-4535.