Age related muscle loss is a condition that impacts seniors, especially those that struggle with some sort of disability that makes exercise or mobility more difficult. It can lead to a variety of other health concerns, more serious than muscle loss. For example, a loss of muscle can lead to a loss of balance, and less protection in the event of a fall. People with muscle loss are more likely to suffer a fracture or more severe injury if this does happen.
Luckily, there are things that can be done to help prevent age related muscle loss from happening. First, be sure to have your loved one consult with a doctor. There can often be medical issues behind muscle loss, and these things need to be treated first and foremost to prevent medical problems from getting worse and impacting other areas of health.
Changing your diet might help, too. Some research indicates that increasing protein can help to fend off age related muscle loss. Likewise, other research indicates that adding resistance exercises to your daily routine can also help. This makes sense; protein supplements and resistance exercises are used by bodybuilders to help increase muscle mass.
Weights are not the only exercise that can help prevent muscle loss. Walks and other activities, like what you would do in a physical therapy setting, can help. As long as you’re doing something that helps increase your physical activity levels, there’s a good chance that it is going to help, even in a small way. For many seniors, even a tiny increase in activity can have a positive impact on health levels.
Even crafts and creative activities can be helpful. For example, drawing a picture involves things that we often don’t think of as exercise, like gripping a pencil or paintbrush and moving your arm and wrist in order to create the shapes that you want. These are very small things, but doing them with more regularity gets the body moving and can be helpful. It might be a small gain, but every bit helps.
Again, it is important that you consult with a doctor if this is a concern of yours or a family member’s. Although these activities have been shown to generally help fight muscle loss, they are not specific to your unique situation. Working with a doctor and figuring out the cause of muscle loss will give you a much more pointed and accurate method of staying healthy in this respect. You are a unique individual and what works for you may not necessarily be what has been shown to work for the average individual in the past.
A customized approach to care is always the best thing. Like I just said, you’re a unique person. You have different needs and goals than your neighbor. Taking these things into account when looking at senior care is important.
And if we can help you, we will. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about senior care. We’d love to talk with you and help you figure out what the best course of action is for your family.
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