If Thanksgiving week was any harbinger, this vacation season can be among the many most-traveled in the latest reminiscence.
For probably the most half, COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted and folk wants to reconnect with households, mates, and family members throughout the nation.
And that definitely consists of seniors and the aged.
Nonetheless, cautions Steven Snell, proprietor of Always Best Care Senior Services-Treasure Coast, the vacations do carry some further considerations for the well being and well-being of your senior family members.
“Whereas the vacations are a good time for seniors to journey and reconnect with household, healthful routines could be — and infrequently are — disrupted,” he explains. “As an example, exercises would possibly get skipped. Wealthy, holiday-season meals and treats would possibly substitute necessary dietary wants. Throw in different issues related to touring — say, contracting COVID, the flu, or any sickness — and it’s straightforward to grasp how some seniors wind up struggling although the vacation season.”
One other potential danger issue for seniors through the holidays is how some of us — unaccustomed to imbibing alcohol — could change into intoxicated after just one drink, and even only a few sips. There’s additionally the opportunity for alcohol to interact with prescription medicines.
Beware interactions between meds and vacation cheer
“Drug interactions are a big drawback with older adults,” mentioned Dr. Barbara Krantz, director of Dependancy Medication and medical director of the Older Grownup Program at Caron Florida medical therapy heart in Boca Raton. “With growing old comes extra prescriptions and extra dangers when there are drug-to-drug interactions. As well as, as folks age, they take longer to metabolize alcohol so the impact of alcohol lasts longer than a youthful particular person. The identical quantity of alcohol we drank after we had been youthful begins to have an extra impact as we age, particularly when blended with prescription medicines. Generally, these issues keep hidden and solely are delivered to the floor when gathering for vacations or different celebrations.”
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