Two elderly people and a companion walk along the Paseo del Arga, in the Navarran town of Huarte. EFE / Jesús Diges
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The Age & Life Foundation, With this campaign, it offers guidelines aimed at the group of older people to help them improve their physical and emotional well-being, and contribute to their adaptation to the new normal.
Within the framework of this initiative, a decalogue of recommendations that has been sent to 31 residential centers throughout Spain.
The aim is to support older people in this phase of a new normal and provide guidelines to the professionals and caregivers who care for them, as well as to their families.
During the last months the group of elderly people has been the most vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic, not only because of having a higher risk of suffering serious symptoms, but also because of the emotional problems that confinement, de-escalation and uncertainty in the current situation of a new normal have entailed.
Healthy eating and adequate hydration
The Age & Life Foundation highlights that to maintain physical well-being it is necessary to follow healthy eating habits, pointing out the Mediterranean diet as an example for being varied, moderate and balanced.
In addition, protagonism should be given, not only to what is eaten, but also to how, when, where and in what way it is done.
On the other hand, taking into account that this campaign starts in the summer season, with a notable increase in temperatures, the need to maintain a adequate hydration, something especially important in the elderly, since in them the sensation of thirst decreases.
Remember that the male population should ingest 2.5 liters of water a day and women 2, approximately; 20% must come from food and 80% from water and other beverages.
In addition to water, other drinks such as infusions, broths, juices or any other that provide water can also contribute to daily hydration, being recommended that they are low in calories and without sugars.
On the other hand, the need to perform physical exercise, adapting the rhythm of the activity to the physical shape of each person and always staying hydrated.
Emotional well-being: routines, exercise and the great outdoors
Special emphasis is also placed on having good emotional health, using the humor to reduce times of stress lived in this time of uncertainty.
Also important keep busy and establish routines throughout the day, as well as taking advantage of technology to maintain greater contact with the environment.
These daily routines, in addition to the meetings with friends and loved ones, include the practice of physical exercise and outdoor activities.
In this way, it helps to maintain emotional stability and to recover, on the one hand, the functional level after having spent so much time indoors and with restricted movements and, on the other, it improves mood and the overall feeling of well-being.
On the other hand, sun exposure at the right times, taking the proper precautions, helps to improve the levels of vitamin D, necessary for the absorption of calcium and to maintain good bone health.
Likewise, this decalogue reminds that older people who have been exposed to the coronavirus, have a vulnerable state of health or previous pathologies, should be more careful and prudent in adopting protection measures and prevention.
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