Author: Melinda Richardson

4 Tips For Healthy Eating For Seniors

Making healthy dietary choices can make a positive impact on your life regardless of your age. However, as you get older, it’s more important than ever that you nourish your body with plenty of healthy meals. For one, your metabolism starts to get more sluggish as you age, and as such, you may hang on to calories more than you did in your younger years.

The foods you eat can also have an enormous impact on your brain health. So, the more you can feed your brain full of plenty of healthful choices, the more your body will thank you for it. Here are some of the best tips for senior citizens when it comes to making healthy food choices.

Plan Ahead

One of the most common reasons for making less than healthy choices in the kitchen is being in a rush. However, if you do just a little bit of planning, and think ahead when it comes to what you’re eating, then you can avoid eating unhealthy choices out of pure convenience. Before you go shopping, try to create a menu. If you have a menu in mind, then you have more foresight and intention with your food choices. If you’re really feeling motivated, you could batch prepare your meals. Many people find great success cooking everything they plan on eating for the week on a Sunday, and either storing it in the fridge or freezer to be consumed later.

Drink Plenty of Water

One of the most practical and straightforward ways to stay healthy is to drink plenty of water. When you drink water, you keep your body hydrated, which is particularly important during the warmer months of the year. Water also helps you to regulate your appetite. In many cases, we’re convinced that we’re hungry, when in fact our bodies are actually telling us we need hydration. Try to keep a glass of water near to you throughout the day, and sip as needed.

Eat a Variety of Vegetables and Meats

While it’s ok to eat some carbohydrates in your diet, the main focus of a healthy diet should be a wide variety of meats and vegetables. Rather than eating one type of vegetable every day, or one type of meat every day, a varied diet is the best way to go.

Go Easy on Salt

Believe it or not, even though you think your food needs to be salted, chances are it doesn’t. As we get older, our sensitivity to salt increases. Unfortunately, at the same time, our ability to taste salt also decreases. The problem with too much salt is that it can increase your blood pressure, which in turn can lead to serious issues like heart disease. Keep your sodium levels down as much as possible, and if you feel like your food lacks flavor, don’t automatically assume that it needs salt. There is a whole world of spices out there that don’t have sodium!

5 Tips For The Perfect Barbecue

As the warm weather is around the corner, it’s time to start thinking about outdoor dining — and let’s face it; barbecues are the only way to go when it’s time for dining al fresco. Before you start sending out invites, however, it’s important that you plan first. As much as you might think that throwing a barbecue is as easy as putting some chicken breasts on the grill and calling it a day, it’s not the case.

In order to make sure that it’s a truly successful event (and a delicious one), it’s important that you know the right tips. Take a look and some of the best pointers for planning the perfect barbecue.

Get High-Quality Meat

You can forget about mediocre cuts on sale at the grocery store. Whether you hunt it yourself or know a great online butcher, you should seek out fresh, high-quality meat. Quality meat makes a world of difference in the flavor that you get out of your meal. If you’re on a budget, then consider cutting your costs on your sides and beverages, but definitely not on your meat.

Plan The Right Amount of Food

One of the biggest mistakes that people make when planning a barbecue is miscalculating how much food they need. Having too much or too little food can be equally disastrous. It’s in your best interest to make sure that you calculate the amount of food you need per person before you start throwing meat on the grill. Making a precise list of exactly what you need can help avoid waste.

Don’t Forget Cold Drinks

Nobody has time for a warm beer on a hot day in a backyard! It’s critical that you have cold drinks ready to go. Although it’s not necessary, it’s certainly more convenient to have your cold drinks outside—where they’re easily accessible. Whether you have an outdoor mini-fridge or an ice cooler filled to the brim with beverages, the idea is to have cold ones on deck at all times.

Music is a Must

What kind of a barbecue would it be without music? It’s essential that you set up a bluetooth speaker so that you can play tunes outside for everyone to listen to while they mingle. If you’re really on the cutting edge of technology, you’ll have an Alexa or something of the sort so people can contribute to the DJ list. Please don’t be that guy— the host that won’t let anyone touch the music.

Plan For Trash

Since there’s going to be multiple people eating at your event, there’s inevitably going to be waste. Make sure that you have a place to put it all by setting up several trash bags spread throughout the yard. In addition to trash bags, you should also assign a place for recycling. This is the best way to ensure that you have the least amount of cleaning to do when it’s time to send everyone home.

5 Ways Food Can Affect Your Health

Believe it or not, the food that you eat does more than just fill your belly. The type of food that you put into your body can not only affect you now but well into your retirement age. It’s important that you get the right nutrients in order for your body to perform its best.

Simply put, food is essential for being healthy. Here are some of the ways that food can affect our well being.

Immune System

Most research suggests that your nutrition choices make all the difference in how well your immune system performs. When you lack essential vitamins and nutrients, you may be more sensitive to infections and illnesses. Although some foods can help boost your immune system, like foods rich in vitamin C, there’s no one specific food that you should eat.

Try to eat a balanced diet that has plenty of raw fruits and vegetables in order to maximize the most amount of benefits.

Digestion

When you fail to eat enough fiber-rich foods, things can start to get backed up in your gut. Every day your insides need to clean themselves out. Otherwise, you could find yourself extremely sick. Your immune system works with your digestive system in order to get the bad stuff out to keep the good stuff in.

Weight

It goes without saying that the kind of foods you eat can have a significant impact on how much you weigh. The more processed and fatty foods that you consume, the more likely you are to develop obesity. If you’re trying to lose weight, you should focus on your nutrition in addition to getting more exercise.

Research suggests that nutrition can play a greater role in your weight loss efforts than exercise. However, a healthy balance is key.

Mental Health

It may sound crazy initially; however, what you eat can significantly impact the way that you feel emotionally. Try to think of a time when you skipped a meal. You probably felt a little off. Skipping meals or eating meals lacking in certain nutrients can leave you feeling groggy and even more prone to depression. Not only that, but poor nutrition can even result in increased aggression and impulsive behavior. Try to eat a diet that is rich in natural foods rather than processed. Remember that your brain is highly susceptible to chemicals that are often found in unnatural foods.

Sleep

That’s right, the food that you eat can significantly affect the way that you sleep. As you probably know, sleep is an essential part of being healthy. Eating the right kind of foods before you go to bed will play a huge difference in how restful your sleep is.

4 Ways What You Eat Affects Your Health

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “You are what you eat.” Although some people may not want to believe that it’s true, it is. What you put into your body determines what kind of results you’re going to get out of it. Just like you wouldn’t expect a car to run as well on cheap gas as it would on premium, you can’t expect a human body to perform its best on unhealthy foods.

What you eat has the power to make you feel better, do better, and look better; here’s how.

Lifespan

Many people get to a certain age and require home care services or go to a nursing home. However, if you manage to keep yourself healthy enough, you can stay young for even longer.

Studies show that eating the right foods can keep your brain fueled and more likely to ward off age-related diseases. Even though it may be fun to eat unhealthy choices over healthy ones, it’s important to ask yourself how long you want to live. Is eating high saturated fat and processed food every day really worth shaving years off of your life?

Your Mood

When you load up on healthful foods full of vitamins and nutrients, you’ll not only feel better physically but also mentally. Certain foods like legumes, vegetables, and even whole-grain bread are known for putting you in a great mood. Next time you’re looking to cheer up, consider reaching for a healthy plate of food. You never know, it could be the answer!

Productivity

When you eat heavy and loaded foods before getting to work, you feel less motivated to get the job done. Chances are you drag your feet to finish or aren’t very enthusiastic.

When your body is weighed down by fats and sugars, you’re much less productive. Studies show act people who eat a light lunch full of fruits and vegetables are less likely to have an energy dip in the middle of the day compared to those who eat fast food.

If you have a busy job that requires a lot of energy, you should greatly consider packing a lunch that will serve as food for your Bain as well as your body.

Improved Memory

When you eat heavy foods, your body has to use a lot of energy trying to find somewhere to put it all. When your body has a lot of digesting to do, then all of your blood rushes to your stomach. However, you’re not doing yourself any favors if you’re letting your body focus on your stomach rather than the tasks you have to accomplish. As with all things in life, balance is key!