2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21
Having a good appetite is the most important sign of human he alth. This means that his body is functioning normally, all metabolic processes occur without failure, as needed. Appetite itself is a universal physiological reaction of the body, which can be characterized by the most common desire to eat something.
If a person's need for food decreases, then in this case there may be violations of biorhythms and even vital functions. Often, older people are faced with the fact that their need for food is greatly reduced. This condition should not be considered normal and close your eyes to the problem. The consequences of not wanting to eat right can lead to quite serious complications. Therefore, it is worth understanding in more detail how to increase the appetite of an elderly person. Sometimes it is enough to have activities that will be carried out at home. However, often forto correct the situation, you need to contact an experienced specialist and undergo a course of treatment with medications.
Why appetite decreases
An apathetic attitude towards food can occur if a person suffers from diseases of the internal organs, such as the intestines, stomach or liver. This often occurs against the background of malfunctions in the endocrine system, diabetes mellitus and a general decrease in the efficiency of the thyroid gland. The development of oncological diseases, senile dementia, and helminthic invasion can provoke an ailment.
Also, a decrease in appetite is observed in those people who suffer from mental disorders and are in an unstable emotional state. Some medications or a course of chemotherapy that a person has undergone can also provoke apathy for food. Often, those who have been abusing alcohol and smoking for a long time begin to refuse food.
In addition, the appearance of poor appetite can be the first signal of future problems in the cardiovascular system. Often food refusal occurs during seasonal colds or autoimmune pathologies.
What causes a decrease in appetite
If we talk about how to increase the appetite of an elderly person 89 years old (younger or a little older), then it is worth noting that it is quite logical to refuse food will lead to the fact that the pensioner will lose a lot of weight. The body will not receive the necessary energy, and this will provoke a breakdown and general weakness. The work of all systems will gradually slow downhuman body or individual organs. Most of all, the lack of food affects the performance of the brain. He must receive the required amount of microelements daily, as well as nutrients.
If the refusal of food is delayed for a long time, muscle atrophy and problems with the musculoskeletal system may occur. It is possible that the first signs of an anorexic state will appear. Many may be surprised, but a huge number of elderly people suffer from such a problem. At the same time, the patient can absolutely not complain about anything, but at the same time continue to lose weight, since he simply does not want to eat.
How dangerous is this condition
If you do not take any action and urgently decide how to increase the appetite of an elderly person, the problem will worsen, and this can lead to death. In order to resolve a serious issue, it is recommended first of all to contact an endocrinologist, a psychotherapist and a gastroenterologist. Based on diagnostic data and a complete examination of the body, specialists will be able to choose the best complex type of treatment.
How to improve appetite
For starters, it is important to understand that all the centers that are responsible for hunger and saturation of the body are located in the human brain. This means that very often the problems are connected precisely with the psycho-emotional state of the pensioner. Therefore, experts recommend drawing images of food in the subconscious as often as possible.
For example, you can imagine how this or that dish is prepared. At the same time, you need to think about every detail of the cooking process. For example, how a pleasant aroma disperses in the kitchen. It is necessary to draw in detail in the head the meat that is in the oven and is covered with a delicious crispy crust. It is worth mentally cutting off a piece from it and putting it in your mouth. It is important to evaluate your emotions and feel how tasty and juicy the meat turned out.
Such stimulations are one of the effective methods of how to increase the appetite of an elderly person. This method allows you to provoke a desire to eat something.
Features of food
Also, doctors recommend switching to the so-called fractional nutrition. This means that you need to eat small meals, but often. In this case, the digestive system will not be too overloaded, this is especially true in situations where you need to increase the appetite of an elderly person after surgery. Often, it is after surgery that some apathy for food appears. If it lasts a couple of days, that's fine. However, in the case when a person refuses food after a week period, it is important to take action. After all, a timely reaction will help prevent trouble.
What foods increase appetite in older people
First of all, the necessary centers of the brain are stimulated by eating sweets. And if a person refuses to eat cakes, sweets or chocolate, then it is worth offering him a sweet soda as a temporary alternative. Of coursethere is no benefit in such drinks and treats, but when a person does not eat anything at all, then extreme measures have to be taken. But it is important to consider, when it comes to how to increase the appetite of an elderly person with diabetes, that this method will not work at all. If there are no problems of this type, you can continue to experiment with food.
Also, stimulation of taste centers occurs if a person eats s alty foods. Therefore, it is worth including nuts, crackers, pickles and much more in the diet. However, all these foods can adversely affect the state of the body of an elderly person. Therefore, it is worth putting more emphasis on he althy food.
In this case, there are several foods that increase appetite in older people. For example, bananas, white bread, ginger, grapes, potatoes and oranges have an excellent effect. It would not be superfluous to offer the patient some rose hips, sea buckthorn or black currant. These foods not only provoke the desire to eat, but also have a large amount of vitamins. For example, berries contain a large amount of ascorbic acid, which is necessary for a weakened body. Doctors often recommend drinking it in tablets. But why, if there is a natural product?
What vitamins can increase appetite
Such supplements are very effective. If appetite-boosting foods don't work for the elderly, you can try taking a course of vitamin B12 and C. However, you should first consult a specialist.
If we talk about the action of the vitamin, then, for example, B12 is able to normalize the metabolism of carbohydrate and fat types. In addition, this supplement helps to prevent stress or depression. B12 has a positive effect and maintains the tone of the whole organism. Ascorbic acid helps stimulate appetite. Also, this vitamin has a positive effect on the work of other systems and organs of an elderly person.
What herbs can
If you study how to increase the appetite of an elderly person with folk remedies, then you can allocate a large number of funds that can alleviate the condition. For example, many use seasonings. Bay leaf, horseradish, basil and dill have the best effect. Such spices are recommended to be added to food. In some cases, you can give them directly before meals.
Such herbs can break down fats and improve the digestion process. You can also make anise star tea for an elderly person. Additionally, it is recommended to prepare infusions on the root of dandelion, wormwood, centaury.
Is it possible to improve appetite with color therapy
Everyone knows that depending on what shade the walls in the house are painted, one can talk about the psychological and emotional state of a person. Each color has its own effect, so it would be logical to assume that such therapeutic measures will help in solving the problem under study. Many may be skeptical about this method. However, considering ways to increase the appetite in an elderly person, there will beuseful to read this information.
For example, red can increase heart rate and blood pressure. All this leads to a significant improvement in appetite. Orange has a positive effect on the brain, activating it. Thanks to this, those centers that are responsible for the appearance of hunger are turned on.
Yellow color is considered a symbol of joy, so it will help in a situation where a person is under stress and simply cannot eat against this background. It is also recommended to give preference to the green color - it is a symbol of all living and fresh. Hue perfectly stimulates digestion and increases appetite. However, all these measures are recommended if the problem has appeared relatively recently. When a person has been in a bad condition for a long time and already has signs of anorexia, a more serious approach is required. It is best to make an appointment with a specialist.
Going to the doctor
If, against the background of a loss of desire to eat, an elderly person began to lose a lot of weight, then in this case, you definitely need to visit a doctor. It is possible that the presence of poor appetite indicates a serious pathology. In order to exclude it, it is necessary to conduct a complete medical examination, which will help to understand why the patient refuses to eat. This is especially true when it comes to how to increase appetite in an elderly person after a stroke. Indeed, after such stressful conditions for the body, the activity of the brain can be disrupted. itmay even lead to the need to introduce food artificially.
Diagnostic measures
First of all, you need to take a blood and urine test. It is possible that the problem lies in diseases or unstable liver function. Only a decrease in appetite appears against the background of the development of diabetes or hormonal imbalance. In the process of analyzing urine, a specialist will be able to identify a possible infection associated with the functioning of the kidneys. Additionally, an X-ray is performed, thanks to which it will be clear whether the patient has pneumonia or lung cancer. Also, in the process of diagnostic measures, a procedure called ultrasound (ultrasound examination) is often used, various tests that show how the liver, kidneys, thyroid gland and many other organs function.
If you take too long to go to the doctor, you can allow a serious depletion of the body. The functioning of the systems will be disrupted. The rest of the consequences are easy to guess. Therefore, in this situation, the doctor may even resort to medication.
How to increase appetite in an elderly person: pills
In such situations, first of all, drugs are used that increase the secretion of gastric juice. They provoke increased salivation, which is the first call to eat. The prescribed tablets should be taken only in the dosage and for the time indicated by the doctor.
Important to notethat in order to increase the appetite of an elderly person, a variety of drugs can be prescribed. However, most often doctors prefer Elixir Pernexin, Periactin, Apilak. Iron supplements are also often prescribed. For example, Ferrum or Fenyuls. Additionally, dietary supplements may be prescribed.
The process of restoring appetite in an elderly person
If we talk about how long it will take for a pensioner to want to eat again, it is worth noting that it all depends on the reason that provoked such a state. For example, if an elderly person has been diagnosed with dementia, then artificial nutrition cannot be dispensed with. In this case, the so-called gastronomic tube is introduced into the body, and all the necessary nutrients are supplied in the form of a high-calorie mixture. Often the appetite disappears on the background of surgical intervention. In this case, antibiotics are considered the most effective and fastest.
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