TECH TOOLS

APPS HELP MONITOR HEALTHY HABITS

By Hunter Harrell

Is eating nutritious food always easy or exciting? It could be much more appealing if a person has the right tools to educate and encourage them along the way. These days, apps let users keep a digital food journal, count calories or save recipes with a single swipe. Whatever your goal, there is a tool that can help keep you organized.

HYDRATION REMINDERS MEAL PLANNING

Water is essential to well-being. It keeps the systems of the body functioning smoothly, and it carries nutrients and oxygen to the body’s cells. Drinking water also has more benefits, including aiding digestion, lubricating joints and regulating body temperature.

Most adults should drink at least six cups or 48 ounces of water each day. Due to the Four Corners climate, many health care providers recommend at least eight cups or 64 ounces of water a day. To stay hydrated all day, consider using a smartphone app that reminds you to drink more water.

There are several kinds of hydration apps available at no cost. One of the top-rated apps available on both Android and iOS devices is Aqualert: Water Tracker Daily. Based on a user’s sex, weight and activity level, the app will customize a graphic of their daily consumption goal. This app notifies users throughout the day to remind them to drink water and includes a daily intake calculator. During setup, users can choose a bed time so that you don’t receive reminders while asleep. Even the best cooks need a little inspiration to make healthy dishes day after day. Whether cooking for one or a whole family, meal planning can help reduce grocery spending and food waste.

Searching for recipes online ultimately leads to clicking on several blogs where you scroll through lengthy anecdotes to get to the ingredients and instructions. Luckily, there are apps available that make meal planning a little easier for everyone.

Whisk is a free app that not only helps users create weekly meal plans, it also allows users to save and share recipes from anywhere on the internet in one place. You can also add recipes from scratch Once recipes are saved, you can organize them into completely customized collections on the app.

To make grocery shopping more simple, Whisk also includes a feature that creates a shopping list from the items in a user’s meal plan. If users have some items in the pantry, the app helps them keep track with a simple checklist system.

NUTRITION TRACKER

Diving into the world of nutrition can be challenging for beginners. But choosing more nutritious meals starts with auditing current decisions. So, monitoring the consumption of calories, protein, carbohydrates and sugar through an app can be extremely helpful.

Fooducate is an app that encourages healthy eating and provides tips and information about nutrition. Users can browse articles to learn how to integrate healthy habits into daily routines. The app also tracks the number and quality of the calories consumed each day.

Using information from nutrition labels, Fooducate analyzes ingredients to give each product a nutrition grade from A to D by allowing users to scan product barcodes. Community support and forums are also available to help users answer questions.

Though logging calories can be beneficial for some, it’s important to note that it can lead to unhealthy behaviors. Individuals that struggle with their relationship to food should consider Rise Up and Recover as an alternative. It’s designed to track both mood and meals to help users uncover unhealthy patterns and encourage healthier habits.

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6 WAYS TO PREVENT DEHYDRATION

By Trina Crow

Staying hydrated is important for maintaining health and keeping critical bodily functions working properly. This can be a challenge for some older adults because of changes that happen with age. Seniors may have a diminished ability to sense thirst or notice changes in body temperature, and may be taking medications that have a dehydrating effect.

Being dehydrated can cause confusion, headaches, elevated heart rate, muscle weakness and fatigue. Because the effects of dehydration are so great, older adults need to be especially vigilant about getting enough water through the day. Seniors that think they may be dehydrated should discuss their symptoms with their doctor before making any changes to their fluid intake. Stay hydrated all day with these six tips:

1. Talk to a doctor. Healthcare professionals may provide a recommendation about how much water someone needs and tips on managing water intake.

2. Create a schedule. It can be difficult to drink a lot of water in one sitting.

Creating a schedule that accounts for physician-recommended intake and activity levels can help keep hydration on track.

3. Eat water rich foods. Eating cucumbers, watermelon, apples and other water rich produce can help seniors get more fluids at meal times. Broth is also a good option. 4. Make water more interesting. Don’t enjoy drinking water? Try adding small amounts of juice or flavor to water. Popsicles are also a great option, especially on warmer days.

5. Reduce water loss. Excessive sweating can contribute to dehydration. Keeping inside temperatures at a reasonable level, and being mindful of fluid loss during activities can help you stay hydrated.

6. Don’t wait for thirst. By the time you feel thirsty, you may already be dehydrated.

Trina Crow at Comfort Keepers has over a decade of experience as a caregiver. To seek assistance, reach out to her at (970) 515-7055.

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