Elderly Patients with Thyroid Disorders and Their Caring

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Thyroid disorder is a serious concern that affects people with gradual ageing when the thyroid glands slowly cease to function precisely as in young age. One of the major issues with the inappropriate functioning of the thyroid glands is the reduced rate of metabolism in the body largely attributed by hypothyroidism. The thyroid disorders may often remain unnoticed except for some severe health complications.

Common Symptoms of Thyroid Gland Disorders

The symptoms of hypothyroidism share similarities with other health ailments such as anemia, stress, depression etc. However, the relatives of people over the age of 65 years should consider taking the Thyroid Stimulating Hormone Test (TSH Test) in case they observe the following complications evident over a continued period: 

• Constipation and irregular bowels
• Reduction or Increase in body weight
• Tiredness and lack of energy or enthusiasm in daily activities
• Skin dryness and itching
• Inability to bear cold weather
• Disturbed cognitive functioning
• Weak muscles and tremors

Not all thyroid dysfunction cases are similar nor are the symptoms alike. Based on the medical conditions and complications, following are some vital thyroid gland disorders that require proper diagnosis and treatment for complete curing:

Multi Nodular Goiters

The development of thyroid nodule is quite likely in people aged over 70 years and even more. The enlargement of the multiple thyroid nodules or goiter causes pressure in the neck area that may result in mild discomfort or even severe pain in the area, jaws, ears etc. The extreme pressure may also pose difficulty in swallowing food or dry coughing. The over production of the thyroid hormone from these nodules in some cases result in major changes in the muscles and the heart, trigger stress and depression etc.

Hyperthyroidism

Hyperthyroidism or the excessive hormone production in the thyroid glands raises serious health concerns including muscle weaknesses, cardiac palpitations and irregular rhythms, shaking and tremors, pain in the chest area and associated problems. Left undiagnosed and untreated for a long time may increase the problems with severe conditions like osteoporosis, weakness, and cardiac diseases.  

Hypothyroidism

The greatest problem with elderly patients with hypothyroidism over the age of 60 years is that the disorder produces several non-specific symptoms that may often go undiagnosed initially. The common symptoms include weight gain, improper cognitive functioning, memory loss, constipation, skin dryness, weakness etc. The conditions may emerge in older adults due to family history with similar problems, treatment taken for hyperthyroidism, neck surgery or any radiotherapy treatment around the thyroid glands.

Caring and Treatment for Thyroid Disorder in Older Adults

Medical treatment of elderly patients will depend on the type of thyroid dysfunction and level of complications. Certain restrictions pertaining to diet pattern and care regulations may be imposed depending upon the severity of the problem. The family members of the elderly people with hyperthyroidism symptoms like tremors, muscle pain may consider the assisted care services as a major support and help required by the patient who may not be in a condition to manage his daily activities independently. The choice of medicines and treatment limitations will depend upon the intensity and toleration of the old age people in responding to the different medical procedures. 

Hearing Impairment in Old Age and Special Care Measures

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Vision and hearing loss are quite common in the old age. People over the age of 60 years gradually lose the efficiency of hearing over sounds and respond at the exact moment. The hearing impairment poses difficulty for the elderly people barring them from leading a normal life. One of the major causes of gradual loss of hearing in people over the age of 55 years is the Presbyacusis. Over 40% of the hearing loss in old age emerges from Presbyacusis that gradually reduces the ability of hearing the sounds of variant frequencies with equal perfection. In some rare cases, the loss of hearing ability may result from ear infections that are curable through medication.

Communicating with Seniors with Hearing Impairment

Your elderly relative with hearing loss may be under severe stress due to difficulty in communicating, hearing signals, doorbell, alarms and other sounds. It is very important that the family members of these people maintain enough patience and assort the following measures to ensure easing out the new condition until the problem is resolved. Here are some basic practices to ease the life and communication of the elderly patients with hearing impairment: 

• Do not talk with the person from a greater distance to ensure proper hearing
• Sit face to face for a conversation at least once or twice to keep him in comfort
• Speak very slowly with proper accent, possibly at a louder pitch and proper lip movement for better understanding. Avoid shouting and anger to keep the person easy going
• Address the person with the name so that he can understand that you are talking to him to eliminate the chances of any missing gap during the conversation
• Maintain silence except the conversation to keep the external sounds from disturbing the hearing. Keep your TV, music system or radio in mute condition during the important conversations
• Do not stop speaking to the person, as it can be hurting emotionally. Maintain a soft gesture to keep the person comfortable during the session 

Hearing Aid for Elderly People

Though family co-operation and elderly care plays a crucial role in protecting the older adults with hearing difficulties from severities but nothing can compensate the loss as the hearing aid that helps the person to face various circumstances.

Hearing Aid: The hearing aid is a small device placed on the ears that help the ears to receive amplified sounds for better understanding. The devices available in the market today are very advanced but the patients may take some time to adjust with the hearing aid as there are differences in natural hearing and device based assistance.

Middle Ear Implant: As the name suggests, a small hearing device is implanted in the middle ear area to catch the vibrations that produced due to any sort of sound. The option is convenient considering the fact that the patients get complete freedom from wearing any device on their ears.

Cochlear Implants: With gradual ageing, the hearing loss condition worsens to the extent that the ordinary devices may not be able to fulfill the purpose. The cochlear implant is the ultimate solution for immense hearing impairment due to the damaged cochlear cells. The process requires a small device implant into the cochlear area of the ears. The patients will have to put a small microphone on their ears that transmit the signals from the external speech processor into the implant to provide precise hearing.

Electric Acoustic Stimulation: This is combined process where the patient has to wear an external hearing aid device as well as have a cochlear implant to catch note of the high frequency sounds and the low frequencies respectively with both end solution.

For patients with complete hearing loss, the family members need to forbid the practice of leaving the person alone at home. Assisted caregiver help can be assorted from a reliable organization to ensure complete safety and support in all requirements. 

How to Take Care of Seniors in Winters and Prevent Falls

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When the parents cross the age of 60 years, it becomes a priority for the near ones to assort extra safety measures and elderly care provisions to keep them protected. The winters are more challenging for the older adults. The extreme cold temperatures, heavy snowing, slippery walkways, falls, and health concerns are common issues in every household having senior members. Statistics show that 1 in every 3 elderly people are affected with serious injuries due to falls. To avoid these consequences and utmost protection, here are some essential tips for elderly care in winter.

Clothing and Shoes for Utmost Protection in Cold Weather

The relatives of seniors need to take special care of the clothing pattern during winters. Clothes should be warm enough to maintain the body temperature at or above 95 degrees. In winters, the older adults are intensely under the danger of frostbite and hypothermia. Hypothermia or the extremely low body temperature is a major cause of deaths in winters. People over the age of 65 years are at a greater risk of deaths due to these consequences.

Measures to Avoid Suffocation and Carbon Concentration

Using fireplaces, lanterns and gas heaters are common practices during snowfall to keep the rooms warm. Take extreme care to ensure that the rooms have proper ventilation system to prevent carbon monoxide concentration. You can install a CO detector for the purpose. Call the doctor if you feel that the senior members have been suffocated by high smoke accumulation in the room.

Arrange Provisions to Deal with Frequent and Long Duration Power Cuts

Heavy snowfall, thunders and storms can frequently disturb the continued power supply. The elderly people need to go to the toilets or even move about for getting help or necessary articles. If possible, some family members need to stay with them for help during these hours. Else, you can also opt for in home care for seniors to ensure they do not encounter major accidents or injuries due to slips or falls. Keep some battery-operated lights, warm clothes and other provisions that are necessary during this interval. Long duration power cuts can cause food staling in the refrigerator. Stock some non-perishable and package food for feeding the elderly members.

Avoid Slips and Falls in the Home Premises

• Majority of the slips and fall incidents occur while the elderly members are inside the home premises. 
• Maintain proper illumination in the premises for adequate visibility in the corridors, stairs and other places.
• Provide a phone to the elderly members so that they can call someone when they need help.
• Do not leave loose wiring, incomplete electrical work, messy and slippery floors.
• Clean the bathroom floors regularly to avoid slippery surfaces.  If possible, keep a shower mat so that the people do not slip in the area.

The seniors may be under depression in winters due to lack of frequent outing for walks and exercising. The non-medical and in home care for elderly not only ensures proper health monitoring but their friendly gesture offers a good company to the elderly particularly helpful to deprive them of the loneliness.

What measures do you adopt to care for the elderly in winter? Please share your suggestions herein that can be of great help to all the readers. 

Risks Factors and Caring for Heart Diseases in Elderly Patients

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Cardiovascular diseases are very common and a major cause of death in all ages especially in people over the age of 65 years. According to the research reports of World Health Organization (WHO), every year 17 million deaths are caused due to some form of heart diseases worldwide. There are various kinds of heart diseases including high blood pressure, strokes, coronary artery disease, arrhythmias etc. The coronary artery disease is the major cause of death in heart patients in America. If there is an elderly patient with heart disease at your home, assisted care services can be of intense help to control the situation and better observation of the patient in every aspect.

Risk Factors for Patients Suffering from Heart Ailments

Hypertension (High Blood Pressure): High blood pressure often seen in obese patients can cause strokes, increases the risk of contacting other cardiovascular diseases and even heart attacks.

Cholesterol: Bad cholesterol or plaque formation in the blood vessels restricts the smooth passage of the blood and other fluids conveniently to the heart. Extreme cholesterol levels in the blood vessels can cause heart attacks. 

Type 2 Diabetes: As per the estimation of the American Heart Association, about 65% of diabetic patients are at the risk of developing some form of heart diseases later in their life. The elderly people are more prone to diabetes due to decreasing insulin release.

Obesity: Obesity or extreme fat concentration in the body can eventually lead to rise in cholesterol levels in the arteries. During old age, people gain weight due to lack of physical activities as they retire from work or reduced involvement in family affairs.

Lack of Physical Activities: Inactivity throughout the day actually raises the chances of encountering strokes and heart attacks. The professionals offering palliative care for coronary heart disease also consider that these patients need some physical activity. You can surely trust them for taking your elderly parents to walk or mild exercising.  

Caring for Elderly People with Cardiovascular Diseases

Life with cardiac ailments is quite hard especially for elderly people who are in need of regular caring due to changes in lifestyle, physical activities, diet patterns, and other factors. They may not be in a position to handle their regular independent activities on their own as they could in their young age. If the family members are not in a position to look after them due to workload and other commitments, they can readily take the help of professionals offering elderly care for heart patients. Besides this, here are some factors to be considered seriously.

Diet: The diet routine will not be same if the patient is diagnosed with heart complications. The diet course is imposed by the doctor in charge of the treatment depending upon the level of complication. In general, the patients are recommended to take low fat and salt intake in their regular food. The diet is inclusive of lean proteins, low fat dairy products, lots of vegetables and fruits, and whole grains. 
     

Exercises: Some kind of physical activity is very important for the patients with heart diseases especially those with cholesterol and overweight complications. While rigorous exercising is not always possible due to ageing issues, regular walking and mild exercising as per doctor’s advice is essential. This helps to improve blood circulation, keep the weight in check and gain advantage of keeping heart attacks at a bay.

The family members and the caregivers also need to take care that if the elderly patient has smoking or alcohol consumption habits; this has to be restricted largely. Smoking and drinking increases the chances of heart failure that can be even worse and at times life threatening. 

Guidelines and Care Measures for Elderly Patients with Dysphagia

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Dysphagia is a condition where people have extreme difficulty in swallowing food. This is particularly evident in elderly patients with severe acid reflux problems, patients suffering from oral, throat or esophageal cancers, etc. In some cases, narrowing of the esophageal tract or the food pipe can be a cause of concern. Sometimes, painful swallowing or odynophagia due to fungal infections can worsen the health condition for the elderly patients. Such people are generally kept under medication inclusive of mouth rinsing solutions to be used multiple times a day for reducing the problem. The family members can seek the help of palliative care provisions under such situations.

Common Occurrence and the Causes of Dysphagia in Elderly Patients

The causes of Dysphagia can be articulated under two separate categories:

1.      Improper Functioning of the Muscles and Nerves of the Esophagus and Throat

• Brain injury, strokes or hurting of the spinal cord
• Nervous system disorders or diseases including Parkinson’s disease, post-polio syndrome, destruction of the  protective cover on the nerve cells in the spinal cord or brain called multiple sclerosis, and dystrophy in the muscular system
• Immune system disorder or inflammatory conditions such as dermatomyositis and polymyositis
• Sudden squeezing of the esophageal tract, causing blockage for the food to pass to the stomach; the condition is called esophagus spasm
• Narrowed and hardening of the esophageal tissues or scleroderma 

2.      Blockage in the Throat or Esophagus

• Gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD) is the commonest of complications where the acid from the stomach is thrust into the esophagus tract often producing ulcer after a certain period
• Inflammation in the esophagus or esophagitis can often result from an allergic reaction to polluted air or food contamination
• Formation of small sacs in the esophagus or throat called Diverticula
• Cancerous and non-cancerous esophageal tumors

Food for Elderly with Swallowing Difficulties

Here are some helpful tips and list of food items that can be the part of different servings for seniors with swallowing complications:

• Try to include soft food items such as homemade fresh yogurt, ice creams, custard and pudding at different points of time
• Mix and blend the dry food with broth, curries, milk, soups, sauces to moisten them to a consistent level to ease the food passage
• Always provide a straw while serving fruit juices, tea coffee etc. Do not serve beverages with soda and caffeine contents as these substances may further aggravate the inflammation
• Give them milkshakes, protein shakes blended with recommended nutrition supplements to suffice the regular calorie requirements
• Rice and other cereals should be boiled to soften the contents enough to ease the swallowing. Mash the food so that it is helpful in skipping the chewing process that can be painful for patients with oral infections

Sometimes patients with dysphagia have dry mouth problems as well. The disorder often arises from certain continued medication, dehydration or health problem. The senior care providers should take special note of the issue. Dry mouth occurs due to the lack of sufficient saliva production in the oral tract. If such situations persist, the family members should consult the doctor to seek instant help. 

Eminence of Nutritious Diet for Seniors and Special Care Measures

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One of the major factors responsible for the deteriorating health conditions of elderly people is the lack of proper nutritional diet intake. Lack of proper nutrition in the body causes faster ageing, acute weakness, inadequate hormone functioning, cell damage, lack of energy and ability to lead an independent life. The older adults may encounter nutrition related problems such as: 

• Reduced senses at the taste buds leaves a bland food taste experience
• Lack of regular thirst causing dehydration and improper hormone secretion
• Loss of muscles at the jaws causing chewing and swallowing problems
• Reluctance to take nutritional homemade food due to lack of taste
• Poor and irregular cravings and eating habits 

Some Nutrition Facts for People Over the Age of 50 Years

Calcium and Vitamin D

People tend to lose calcium and bone density with ageing. After crossing the age of 50 years, special care should be taken to provide vitamin D rich foods including supplements to meet the requirement of 10 µg (400 IU) daily intake to retain the bone strength. The family members can also follow the Canada Food Guide that contains an elaborate account of food items and nutrition requirements for elderly adults. Some elderly patients with extreme low bone mineral count may require additional calcium supplements as per physician’s advice.

Fiber Rich Diet and Water Intake

The most common problem with seniors over the age of 50 years is the irregularity in bowel movements, reduced metabolism, constipation and associated disorders. With ageing, the efficiency of the organs in the digestive system is gradually reduced. Taking this on a serious note, the caregivers should include enough of fiber rich food; keep a track on the daily water and fluid consumption etc. Every elderly adult requires at least 3 liters of water consumption in 24 hours for keeping the body hydrated. The fiber rich foods include brown bread, brown rice, fruits, oats, cereals etc.

Vitamin B₁₂ and Folic Acid

The folate and vitamin B₁₂ are essential for the body to regulate the proper functioning of the nerves. The elderly people suffering from neurotic disorders should be given food rich in vitamin B to suffice the daily requirement of 1.5 µg (B₁₂) and 200 µg (Folate).

Proteins

The protein requirement differs to a slight extent for men and women. Women require more protein after attaining an age of 50 years. Lean meat, pulses, dairy products and eggs are good sources.

Some Essential Considerations

It is a known fact that you care for your elderly parents and grandparents. However, being too strict with their diet can be resistive and pressure on them. Do not adopt restrictive measures, as they can be annoyed or sometime stubborn. You can take a note of their food preferences to an extent if there is no risk factor. Though iron is essential for production of blood cells, but patients with constipation problems should not be given iron supplements or similar food items.

Nutrition is very important for the elderly people to stay healthy and fit. The seniors are often reluctant to take food at regular servings due to reduced appetite and lack of proper functioning of the taste buds. Often elderly members in the family show resistance to taking food at regular intervals due to loneliness. The family members can assort to assisted care services under such circumstances that can offer a good company for the seniors apart from deep caring provisions. Regular balanced diet is important at this age to eliminate the chances of weight loss, improper functioning of the organs, lack of energy etc.

Do you have any suggestions related to food and nutrition for elderly adults? If so, please share your valuable tips herein.