Are you wondering why your elderly loved one has put on extra weight recently? The truth is there are numerous reasons why this may be happening. The good news is that if you or their personal care at home provider can find out the cause of your elderly loved one’s weight gain, it may be a bit easier to help them to lose weight.
Loss of Muscle Mass
As people get older, they start to lose muscle mass. When this happens, you may think it will also cause them to start losing some weight as muscle weighs more than fat. However, if someone doesn’t have good muscle mass it is more difficult for them to move around, so they aren’t getting as much exercise in or quality exercise sessions. If you do find that your elderly loved one is experiencing muscle mass loss after you or a personal care at home provider takes them to see their doctor, there are some ways to combat weight gain. One of the first steps would be to get your elderly loved one into weight training routines. Once they can build up some muscle mass, it will be easier for them to do other exercises that help them to lose weight.
Metabolism Changes
Another reason why your elderly loved one may be gaining a lot of weight is due to their metabolism changes. As people get into their elderly years, their metabolism often slows down a lot. When this happens, it is more difficult for their body to burn off calories and process fats that are being put into their body. However, there are certain exercises and foods that can help to speed up metabolism a bit. If you and personal care at home providers can work with your elderly loved one to ensure they are doing those exercises and eating the right foods, it could help them to lose some weight. You may want to have your elderly loved one see a dietician or fitness instructor to put a plan in place.
Menopausal
There are many elderly women who struggle with menopausal symptoms and one of those is weight gain. Unfortunately, it can be tough to combat weight gain when someone is in the state of menopause. However, it isn’t impossible. You or a personal care at home provider may just need to work with your elderly loved one to ensure they are committing to regular exercises. You may even want to help them stick to a certain diet to ensure they aren’t taking in too many calories or carbohydrates.
Working Together with Personal Care at Home Providers
These are some of the many causes of weight gain in senior citizens. However, now that you know a bit more about these causes, you and personal care at home providers can work with your elderly loved one to help them lose weight and stay in a healthier weight range.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5387759/