Senior Health - Time to Check Up on Your Parents

1/5/2016

By Anna Hazard

With all of this season's visiting, traveling, and holiday gatherings, this makes a good time of year to check up on your parents and other elderly loved ones' health for any indications that a greater level of care may now be required. Your loved ones may be trying to hide any health concerns out of a sense of embarrassment or a wish to not trouble their friends and family. In such cases, keep in mind the following tell tale small signs & symptoms...

Increased Forgetfulness

General confusion,
Forgetting the steps in a common task they've performed many times before
Getting lost in familiar places
Losing track of their normal prescription medicine & other routines

Changes in Mobility

Growing trouble with getting up from a prone or seated position
Difficulty walking
Decreasing ability to stand for an extended period of time on level ground
Strained movement when climbing up or down stairs
Trouble with maintaining balance
Propensity for falling

Changes in Appearance

Degradation in their normal appearance & grooming habits
Unexplained weight loss
Abnormally disheveled or messy clothes
Unkempt hair
Uncut fingernails
Bad oral hygiene
Increased body odor which may indicate trouble when it comes to bathing
Unexplained bruising which can be a symptom of falling & other physical problems

Changes in Home & Surroundings

Noticeable increase in the messiness/disorder of your loved ones home
Finding their belongings in strange places (ie TV remotes left in the fridge etc)
Presence of spoiled food or an empty fridge,
Mail, trash, or dirty laundry piling up
Unknown dents in their vehicles
Yard care issues such the lawn going unmowed, snow remaining unshoveled, exterior paint peeling etc.