Creative activities are fun for seniors to partake in and can also enhance their overall quality of life. Here are a few ways creative stimulation can positively impact your aging loved one’s health.
Writing Boosts Brain Function & Prevents Neurological Disorders
Creative writing stimulates brain cells. By writing down thoughts and using creativity to develop stories, your loved one can have fun while preserving his or her memory.
Creative writing can also reduce Parkinson’s disease risk because the act of writing delivers electrical impulses to the areas of the brain that control movement. These impulses also block abnormal signals that cause tremors, difficulty with speech, slowness, and stiffness.
Not every senior has the same care needs, which means they don’t all need the same type of at-home care. You can rely on Assisting Hands Home Care to provide an individualized care plan to meet your elderly loved one’s unique care needs. Our caregivers help seniors focus on healthy lifestyle habits, such as eating nutritious foods, exercising regularly, and maintaining strong social ties, and we offer mentally stimulating activities that can boost cognitive health and delay the onset of dementia.
Playing Music & Dancing Increases Balance
Approximately one-third of Americans over age 65 fall each year, which can lead to more serious issues, including chronic illnesses. However, playing musical instruments or creating dance routines can help seniors achieve better balance and reduce their risk of falling. These types of creative activities can increase mobility, coordination, and awareness, reduce pain, and facilitate recovery after an injury.
Drawing & Painting Relieve Stress
If your loved one has nothing to look forward to, he or she may fall into a deep depression. However, creative stimulation can reduce your loved one’s stress levels and provide the encouragement and inspiration he or she needs.
Aging can be stressful if seniors feel they’re losing their independence, but participating in creative activities like drawing and painting can give them a sense of purpose. Being creative can give your loved one a better outlook on life and pull him or her out of a depressive state. Alleviating stress, anxiety, and depression also reduces the risk of stroke, obesity, heart disease, and other serious health conditions.
Living independently is important for seniors who want to maintain a high quality of life. For some, this simply means receiving help with tasks that have become more challenging to manage over time. Even when families have the best intentions, they may not have the time to provide the care their elderly loved ones need and deserve. If your loved one needs help for a few hours a day or a few days a week, reach out to Assisting Hands Home Care, a trusted provider of respite care Columbia seniors can depend on.
Gardening Regulates the Immune System
Building a garden allows your loved one to be as creative as he or she would like. Your loved one can choose the type of flowers, trees, fruits, and vegetables he or she wants to grow and decide where to plant these items.
When being creative outdoors, your loved one is also receiving vitamin D from the sun, which can help his or her immune system fight off a cold or the flu. Even the dirt that gets stuck under the fingernails can provide health benefits. Mycobacterium vaccae is a common bacterium found in garden soil that alleviates allergies, asthma, and psoriasis.
Working in the soil can also alleviate stress. Gardening is a creative and physical activity that helps blood flow properly to the brain and reduces inflammation. If you have a senior loved one who needs help maintaining a high quality of life while aging in place, reach out to Assisting Hands Home Care, a leading provider of home care Columbia families can trust. Our caregivers help seniors focus on healthy lifestyle habits such as eating nutritious foods, exercising regularly, and maintaining strong social ties, and we offer mentally stimulating activities that can boost cognitive health and delay the onset of dementia. To hire a professionally trained caregiver for your loved one, call us today.
