13 minute read
Lifestyle
Healthy Summer Tips
Submitted by AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia
It’s May, and summer is just around the corner. Warmer weather brings with it more opportunities to get outdoors with friends and family. Here are some other ways we can help boost our health for the summer.
BE SUMMER SAVVY
Make the most of this time to get and stay healthy. Stay active in safe ways that make you feel good:1 • Beat the heat! If you exercise outside, be active in the early morning. Watch the sun come up while moving in place with exercises like stretches, jumping jacks, or skipping rope. • Sidewalks sizzling? Get moving indoors! Move your body in the privacy of your home with virtual fitness classes. • Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water before, during, and after exercise. Drink more water as the temperatures rise. • Fuel up. Help yourself stay active by getting lots of nutrients. Mix up your meals, using these healthy foods:
o Whole grains, beans, nuts, and seeds o Fat-free or low-fat milk and cheese o Seafood, poultry, and eggs • Grow your own food! Start a small garden in your yard or use a plot in a community garden. It is rewarding to eat fruits and vegetables you planted yourself. Gardening can also be a great way to exercise and move your body.
STAYING SAFE ON THE PLAYGROUND
A warm, sunny day is the perfect opportunity to get your children out of the house and onto a playground. Play areas are a great place for kids to learn social skills, like playing with others, as well as use up some of that never-ending energy. Here are some tips on how to keep your child safe on the playground:2 • Check for hazards, such as rusted or broken equipment and dangerous surfaces. Report any hazards to the school or appropriate local office. • Dress appropriately for the playground. Remove necklaces, purses, scarves, or clothing with drawstrings that can get caught on equipment and pose a safety hazard. Even helmets can be dangerous on a playground, so save those for bikes. • Avoid playgrounds with non‒impact-absorbing surfaces, such as asphalt, concrete, grass, dirt, or gravel. Good alternatives are sand, pea gravel, wood chips, mulch, and shredded rubber. • Most importantly, keep an eye on your child at all times. Supervising your child is the easiest way to recognize potential safety issues and quickly respond if something happens.
These articles are for educational purposes only. They are not intended to take the place of your primary care provider (PCP). If you have questions or are on a special diet prescribed by a provider, talk with your PCP before making any changes. Check with your PCP before starting any exercise program. If you think you need to see your PCP because of something you have read in this information, please contact your PCP. Never stop or wait to get medical attention because of something you have read in this information.
Type 1, Type 2, gestational, and prediabetes are all forms of diabetes that affect how the body processes blood sugar. These conditions can be dangerous if not managed properly. Check the list below to see if you are experiencing any warning signs of diabetes:3 • Feeling hungry and/or thirsty all the time • Going to the bathroom a lot • Blurred vision • Feeling very tired • Unexplained weight loss/gain • Cuts that heal slowly • Hands/feet feel numb or tingly • Having very dry skin
Remember, you can still live a full and active life with diabetes.
AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia (DC) offers virtual classes to help enrollees learn how to prevent hypertension, diabetes, and other chronic diseases, as well as ways to manage these conditions over time. Through weekly online classes, enrollees will learn from experts in the field during interactive sessions. Visit the AmeriHealth Caritas DC Diabetes Care Center webpage to learn more about these classes. For more information on diabetes, please visit www.diabetes.org.
Sources: 1. “Keep Active and Eat Healthy to Improve Well-being and Feel Great”” National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, https://www.niddk.nih. gov/health-information/weight-management/healthy-habits-summer. 2. “Playground Safety Tips,” Safe Kids Worldwide, https://www.safekids. org/tip/playground-safety-tips. 3. “Diabetes Symptoms,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/ symptoms.html.
All images are used under license for illustrative purposes only. Any individual depicted is a model
Find us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/amerihealthdc. / Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AmeriHealthCaritasDC.
8 Great Activities to Strengthen Senior Minds
By Lee Ross WI Staff Writer
The days of elders sitting in the park feeding ducks has all but disappeared. Seniors have increasingly taken to more vigorous activities that enhance their physical agility and strengthen mental and intellectual acuity. And while the coronavirus forced many seniors to forego activities that required them to engage with large crowds, most adapted to indoor and hybrid activities that continued to keep them sharp and healthy.Here are some of the best ways to strengthen the minds of seniors.
Try a brain Training App
As long as your elderly loved one has a mobile phone or tablet they will be able to download apps to help with brain training. Apps can improve concentration levels, visual-spatial skills and problem solving. A quick search in the app store will provide you with hundreds of brain training apps to choose from, like Lumosity, Peak, and BrainHQ. Jigsaw Puzzles If you want to start with a simple activity to stimulate the mind, try completing a puzzle. While this might seem basic, there are a multitude of benefits for your elderly loved one, such as a slower breathing rate which aids in reducing anxiety and lowering blood pressure levels.
Trivia Quizzes
Trivia is a great way to stimulate elderly adults’ minds, and it can also provide a good laugh. With the infinite amount of trivia topics available online, it is up to you to decide on which topic and whether or not it will be played in groups or individually.
Keep the hands and mind busy with arts & crafts
Arts and crafts are one of the best activities for the elderly to participate in as not only does it encourage the use of the mind, but it keeps the hands busy too. Using their hands helps to maintain dexterity and being able to explore their creative side helps with the use of the imagination. Making greeting cards, painting, drawing, knitting, word puzzles and scrapbooking.
Word Puzzles
Get your elderly loved one’s brain buzzing with enjoyable yet challenging word puzzles. Word puzzles are a fantastic way to keep elderly adults entertained and exercise their brain. Here are some word puzzles that are popular with seniors: word search, crosswords, hangman, and unscramble words.
Bingo
Bingo is an old favorite amongst the elderly community as it encourages social interaction, typically played in care homes, but it can still be enjoyed in your own home. While this is a fun and enjoyable game for the elderly, it also provides some essential health benefits.
Learn a New Language
Learning a new language might sound a little daunting, but challenging our brain is the best way to enhance brain health and reduce the impact of aging. Depending on your loved one’s physical and mental health condition, there are a variety of ways to learn a new language. Phone and tablet apps: DuoLingo, Babbel, and Rosetta Stone.
Video Games
A lot of people believe that video games are played mostly by children and teenagers; however, they are a great activity for the elderly too. Playing video games is considered to be beneficial for older adults as it requires planning, quick responses, and a memory as to which buttons to use.
Brain Boosting Foods
By Elaine Magee, MPH, RD (Safeway Corporate Dietitian)
What you choose to eat and drink every day can boost your brainpower in the short term and long-term! Think you don’t need to worry about protecting your brain? Guess again! Cognitive decline is already taking effect in middle age — around age 45 — according to research from France. The brain is highly susceptible to oxidative damage and inflammation; for optimal brain health, start by emphasizing foods rich in anti-inflammatory and antioxidant compounds.
ANTIOXIDANTS
Antioxidants help prevent oxidative stress in the body and may help delay effects of aging such as a decline in cognitive function. The antioxidant power peaks around two hours after the meal; keep a steady stream of powerful antioxidants in your blood stream by indulging in a variety of colorful plant foods! Colorful vegetables and fruits are antioxidant go-to foods, which include the following fruits and vegetables: • Dark Green (kale, spinach, greens, green peppers, broccoli, asparagus) • Red/Purple (berries, red grapes, cherries, tomatoes, plums, beets, red cabbage, red pepper, eggplant) • Orange/Yellow (carrots, butternut squash,sweet potato, papaya, mango, cantaloupe, citrus fruits)
Other high antioxidant foods include nuts, olives, beans, legumes, whole grains, garlic, onions, herbs, spices, and tea (especially green and white teas).
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY COMPOUNDS
While research in this area continues to develop and advance, dietary patterns with antiinflammatory activity seem to include eating plenty of: • Colorful vegetables and fruits • Nuts and legumes • Fish and plant sources of omega-3s (walnuts, ground flaxseed and canola oil) • Whole grains instead of refined grains
• Lean protein • Phytochemical-rich herbs and spices such as ginger and turmeric (used in curry powder) • Unsweetened Tea (particularly green/white), rich in bioactive phytochemicals
Be sure to enjoy
Berries
There is growing evidence that eating berries at least several times a week may prevent age-related memory loss and other changes in brain function. Berries provide high levels of antioxidants, which help protect brain cells from damage. Foods bursting with polyphenol compounds, like berries and walnuts, may also help protect the brain by removing biochemical byproducts that accumulate in the brain.
Nuts and Seeds
Nuts and seeds come up as a brain boosting food due to several components. Walnuts are rich in plant omega-3s and polyphenol compounds (similar to berries) and nuts and seeds in general contribute polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat, thought to be helpful. But nuts and seeds are also the top food sources of vitamin E, a very potent antioxidant associated with brain health. In one study, people in the top 20th percentile of intake of vitamin E from food (around 11 IU a day) had a 70 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than those in the bottom 20th percentile. If you include a cup of dark leafy greens or broccoli and a handful of nuts every day, you’ll likely hit this amount.
THE BRAIN IS BETTER WITH THE B’S
All of the B-vitamins are suspected to help neurons cope with aging and some experts suggest they may help protect the brain. More research is needed, but there is some evidence suggesting folic acid, B6 and B12 may play a role in healthy brain-aging, and that low levels of these vitamins can lead to quicker brain deterioration. B-vitamins are found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and fish (B12 is in animal products and some fortified foods). A British study suggest daily B-vitamin supplements may slow the decline in
SWITCH TO MONOUNSATURATED FATS
New research suggests substituting bad fats with good fats could help prevent a decline in memory. Researchers found that the total amount of fat didn’t really matter but type of fat did. Over four years of testing, women over the age of 65 who consumed the highest amount of saturated fat had worse overall cognitive and verbal memory scores compared to women with the lowest amounts, whereas women who ate the most monounsaturated fat (found in nuts, extra virgin olive oil, olives, canola oil, avocados, etc.) had better cognitive scores over time. Making simple, deliberate choices when it comes to nutrition is important for each and every system in the body. Overall health depends on the things we put on our plates and in our stomachs. Choose healthy foods; it’s a no-brainer!
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Elaine Magee, MPH, RD is the author of 25 books on nutrition and healthy cooking and is currently the Wellness Services Corporate Dietitian for Safeway.
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Recent & Recommended Books about Aging Vibrantly
By Lee Ross / WI Staff Writer
Senior Tourism: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Aging and Traveling
By Simone Francescato, Roberta Maierhofer, Valeria Minghetti, Eva-Maria Trinkaus
This volume aims to bridge the disciplinary gap between tourism studies and aging studies. It investigates the intersections of tourism and aging from a variety of perspectives that focus on the many ways in which senior tourism is socially constructed and/or individually experienced. The essays tackle key topics ranging from the socio-economic aspects of post-retirement travel to the representations of the traveling elderly in literature, film and media, and the influence of travel on late-life creativity.
Senior Citizens Writing: A Workshop and Anthology, with an Introduction and Guide for Workshop Leaders
By W. Ross Winterowd
In Senior Citizens Writing, renowned teacher and writer W. Ross Winterowd describes in his introduction how writing workshops for seniors not only provide an audience but also give them opportunities for the intellectual growth and engagement that everyone wants and needs. Included in this anthology are new poems, stories, and essays by workshop participants.
Advanced Style By Ari Seth Cohen
Advanced Style is Ari Seth Cohen’s blogbased ode to the confidence, beauty, and fashion that can only be achieved through the experience of a life lived glamorously. It is a collection of street fashion unlike any seen before - focused on the over-60 set in the world’s most stylish locales. The (mostly) ladies of Advanced Style are enjoying their later years with grace and panache, marching to the beat of their own drummer. These timeless images and words of wisdom provide fashion inspiration for all ages and prove that age is nothing but a state of mind. Ari Seth Cohen started his blog inspired by his own grandmother’s unique personal style and his lifelong interest in the put-together fashion of vibrant seniors.
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For my health, for your health and for the health of all our DC families.
Naked at Our Age: Talking Out Loud about Senior Sex
By Joan Price
In Naked at Our Age, women and men, coupled and single, straight and gay talk candidly about how their sex lives and relationships have changed with age, and about how they see themselves, their partners, or their single life. Many of them are having unsatisfying sex, or no sex at all, and are seeking advice. Price presents their personal stories, and follows up with tips from sex therapists, health professionals, counselors, sex educators, and other knowledgeable experts. Naked at Our Age is an entertaining and indispensable guide to handling and understanding the issues of senior sex and relationships.
Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning
By Tom Vanderbilt
Why do so many of us stop learning new skills as adults? Are we afraid to be bad at something? Have we forgotten the sheer pleasure of beginning from the ground up? Inspired by his young daughter’s insatiable curiosity, Tom Vanderbilt embarks on a yearlong quest of learning--purely for the sake of learning. He interviews dozens of experts about the fascinating psychology and science behind the benefits of becoming an adult beginner and shows how anyone can get better at beginning again--and, more importantly, why they should take those first awkward steps.
