Health

Understanding the Health Benefits of Structured Living Environments

Are you looking for ways to help your aging parents or loved ones live happier, healthier lives?

Structured living environments are one of the best solutions for senior health and wellbeing. Here’s why. Beyond offering a roof over their heads, structured environments with the proper senior daily living assistance can give your loved ones:

Better physical health,
Strong social ties,
Improved mental health.

The Issue:

Most families don’t consider structured living environments until a health crisis occurs. By that point, seniors have often suffered needlessly from isolation, poor nutrition and lack of routine.

There’s hope. By learning about the health benefits of structured living now, families can be prepared to make better decisions sooner.

In this article you’ll discover:

Why Structure is Beneficial to Senior Health
How Living Alone Harms Senior Health
Senior Daily Living Assistance Improves Overall Wellbeing
How to Choose the Right Living Environment

Why Structure Is Beneficial to Senior Health

Let’s start with the basics…

A structured living environment provides seniors with regular routines. Think things like daily meals, planned activities, and access to supportive staff 24/7 when they need it.

So why is that important?

As humans, people thrive off consistency and routine. Structured living environments that offer senior daily living assistance — like Lantana Senior Living Facility — are able to give your loved ones everything from help managing medications to nutritious meals and group activities.

All of this hands on support adds up to big improvements in seniors quality of life. Many seniors who utilize daily living assistance stay active, eat nutritious meals, and have a strong social circle.

By 2060, there will be an estimated 95 million Americans aged 65 and older. As the senior population continues to boom, structured living environments will become more and more important.

How Living Alone Harms Senior Health

Here’s a little known fact…

Loneliness and social isolation are serious health risks for seniors. In fact, just living alone can increase their risk for a variety of medical issues.

Researchers with the National Academies of Sciences found that lonely adults have a 29% increased risk of heart disease and 32% increased risk of stroke than those that have strong social relationships. Yikes.

The issue doesn’t stop there, unfortunately.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention also found senior citizens who experience chronic loneliness have a 50% increased risk of developing dementia. Health experts have compared the effects of chronic loneliness to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

Did you know that 1 in every 4 seniors over the age of 65 suffers from social isolation? That’s millions of older Americans slowly watching their health deteriorate just because they live alone.

Social structures are a key part of any living environment. That’s why placing your aging loved ones in a structured living environment where socialization is encouraged is so important.

Senior Daily Living Assistance Improves Overall Wellbeing

Okay, but what does “daily living assistance” actually help with?

Great question. Senior daily living assistance can include many different types of supportive services. However, they all fall under the categories of supporting your loved ones physical, nutritional, social and mental health.

Here are a few examples of how daily living assistance helps seniors:

Physical support: Regular aid with moving around, taking medication, and caretakers with access to nurses helps seniors with their overall physical health.
Meal support: Structured environments ensure that seniors are receiving nutritious meals 3+ times a day. No more skipping meals or unhealthy eating habits.
Social circles: Daily activities, events, and common areas allow seniors to engage with their peers on a regular basis. This helps seniors feel less isolated and combat loneliness.
Mental health: Just like physical exercise keeps your body in shape, mental activities keep your mind fit. Daily living assistance provides seniors with activities to keep their mind engaged and healthy.

But wait, there’s more.

The true power of senior daily living assistance is that it provides support in all of these areas. One healthy meal alone won’t transform your loved one’s health. But if they eat poor nutrition meals every day and lead a sedentary lifestyle, their health will decline.

When you provide seniors with support for their body AND their social life AND their meals AND their mind, everything starts to add up.

How to Choose the Right Living Environment

Just like how there’s not one silver bullet service that defines senior daily living assistance, there are many different types of living environments to choose from.

When trying to find the right environment for your aging parent or loved one, here are a few things to look for:

Customizable care plans – Every senior is different, which is why you want a living environment that can tailor a care plan specific to your loved ones needs. As your parents age, their needs will change. Make sure the facility you choose can accommodate that.
Trained caretakers – Ideally you want to work with a living environment that has trained caretakers available 24/7. That way if your loved one needs assistance, they know someone can help.
Encourages socialization – Look for communities that offer common spaces, group activities and communal dining. These are all good indicators that your loved one will have opportunities to socialize with their peers.
Good communication with families – Great living environments will make you feel like your parenting duties aren’t being sidelined. You should always be able to check in with caretakers and receive updates on your loved one’s well-being. If they don’t have good communication, it’s a red flag.

Visit multiple places. Ask lots of questions. See how your parents interact with the environment and staff. It’s worth taking extra time here to ensure you choose the right environment.

At the end of the day, you want your senior loved ones to thrive – not just survive. Finding the right structured living environment with ample daily living assistance will set you and your loved ones up for success.

Wrapping Up

When it comes to aging adults living healthy lives, structured living environments help with more than you might think.

Not only do they keep your loved ones engaged in daily activities and encourage social interaction, they also significantly improve your parent’s mental wellbeing.

Studies show that seniors who live alone are at a higher risk for several serious medical conditions. That’s where living in a structured community comes in. Daily living assistance helps seniors:

Stay active with routine support
Eat healthier with structured meal plans
Socialize with peers and activities
Keep their mind sharp with daily activities

By 2060, nearly 100 million Americans will be over the age of 65. If your parents are nearing that age or are already seniors, now is the time to start looking into different living environments.

Don’t wait until a health crisis happens to start looking for solutions. There are tons of structured living options out there that can improve your aging parents health and quality of life.