Seniors do well to explore a variety of options when it comes to boosting their mental and physical wellness. One of the options to consider is spending more time in nature. Activities as simple as spending time in a carefully curated garden space can be just as effective as long, rambling nature walks in a preserve.
Regardless of what seniors want to try, senior care can help them safely spend regular time in nature so they can reap the benefits.
Physical Benefits of Time in Nature
Spending time outdoors is a powerful balm for physical health. Gentle activities can help improve heart and lung health, keep them mobile, and boost overall wellness. But there’s more.
Sun exposure of just a few minutes every day helps the body create vitamin D, which helps with both bone health and immune function. Seniors who spend more time outside may be more open to moving more, which helps them maintain strength.
Boosting Mental Wellness with Nature
Nature has a calming effect on most people. Spending time outdoors can help seniors experience less stress and anxiety, especially if they’re also feeling more isolated and lonely. Senior care providers can help seniors with these issues as well, keeping them company on nature walks or enjoying meaningful conversations in nature spaces.
Cognitive Health Benefits of Time Outside
Spending time in nature helps physical and emotional health, but it does a lot for the brain, as well. Activities that challenge seniors and give them something to learn improve focus and stimulate cognitive health. Seniors might enjoy activities like identifying plants or birdwatching.
These are also activities aging adults can do with groups, and senior care providers can help with transportation.
Incorporating Nature into Daily Routines
Building time in nature into daily routines might be easier than seniors expect. There are lots of ways to enjoy nature, whether seniors live in the city or in a more rural location. Setting up a comfortable seating area in the yard is one of the easiest options. Arranging picnics outdoors in good weather or eating on a patio are also great ideas.
If seniors really have issues getting out and about, just opening the windows to let fresh air and outdoor sounds inside can work well for incorporating nature into everyday life.
Overcoming Barriers to Access
Sometimes, seniors experience barriers to all sorts of activities that are beneficial for them. Challenges with mobility, poor health, and other limitations can cause seniors to feel as if they can’t engage in the activities they want to do outdoors.
Senior care providers can offer solutions like bringing elements of nature inside or helping reduce mobility challenges for seniors when they explore the outdoors.
Spending time in nature offers incredible benefits for aging adults. There are lots of ways seniors can explore ideas for increasing their exposure to nature and the outdoors, especially with the help of senior care providers. Even trying a few of these ideas occasionally can enhance the quality of life for seniors.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Senior Care in Bryn Mawr, PA, please contact the caring staff at Better Care Home Health Services today at (267) 766-5218
Better Care Home Health Services is a Trusted Home Care Agency serving Philadelphia, Germantown, Glenside, Elkins Park, Bryn Mawr, Roxborough, Wyncote, Broomall, Upper Darby, Yeadon, Lansdowne, Narberth, Wynnewood, Penn Wynne, Fairmount, Ardmore, Chestnut Hill, and the surrounding areas.
Better Care Home Health Services is a family-owned agency dedicated to providing excellent and comprehensive home health care to individuals and families of Philadelphia, Delaware, Montgomery and Bucks counties. We are honored that God has blessed us with the opportunity to positively impact and change people’s lives. It is our mission to ensure that we provide the very best of care to our clients.
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