Posts by Freedom Home Care

Learning the basic movements of Sun tai chi with Dr. Mike Neskovic

Learning the basic movements of Sun tai chi with Dr. Mike Neskovic

November 2, 2012 | No Comments

Yesterday, we here at Freedom Home Care posted a blog about tai chi and the benefits that the ancient form of exercise can offer elderly individuals. Therefore, for today’s blog, we felt compelled to post a video that can get the aging loved ones in our life started on a new path toward exercise and healthy living. The video highlights Sun-style tai chi, which is recognized by the American Arthritis Foundation as the official tai chi for arthritis. When seniors choose to follow along with Dr. Mike Neskovic, they quickly discover that the movements are gracious, slow and rhythmic. The
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Finding balance through tai chi

Finding balance through tai chi

November 1, 2012 | No Comments

The Chinese have long been known for their unique way of living, which has produced some of the healthiest yet oldest individuals on the planet. It is a way of life that combines both body and mind. And at the heart of it lies tai chi, an ancient martial art that has been practiced for centuries for both its defense purposes as well as its health benefits. “Deeply rooted in Chinese meditation, medicine, and martial arts, tai chi (pronounced ”tie chee”) combines mental concentration with slow, controlled movements to focus the mind, challenge the body, and improve the flow of
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Early warning signs that your aging loved one needs help at home

Early warning signs that your aging loved one needs help at home

October 31, 2012 | No Comments

As the people important to us most begin to grow older, we witness many changes in their appearance, behavior and health. Some of these changes are the natural signs of aging while others should be considered signals that help might be needed in the home. But if our loved ones don’t ask for help directly, how will we know if living alone is no longer an option for them? Encouraging open conversations should always be the first step. Talking with family members, friends and doctors will begin to open doors of understanding for all involved. However, to ensure the safety
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Knowing when it’s time to take the keys away from aging parents

Knowing when it’s time to take the keys away from aging parents

October 30, 2012 | No Comments

As the elderly loved ones in our lives get older, it pains us nearly as much as it pains them to watch as they slowly lose their independence. And losing the privilege to drive is one of the most prominent and difficult-to-accept signs of aging. Although seniors may put up a fight when the time comes to take away the keys, their safety and the safety of others is at risk. Talking to an elderly individual about why they can no longer operate a vehicle won’t be easy. But if empathy and sensitivity are employed, it can be possible. Broaching
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Freedom Home Care to sponsor First Class Care training program

Freedom Home Care to sponsor First Class Care training program

October 29, 2012 | No Comments

Freedom Home Care is happy to announce that it will sponsor First Class Care’s in-house training program, the First Class Care Academy. First Class Care, a full-service domestic placement agency in Illinois, helps families throughout the state find top-notch nannies, newborn care specialists, babysitters, housekeepers, personal assistants, house managers and chefs. The First Class Care Academy covers a wide variety of professional development courses, enabling individuals to take their service careers to the next level. The year-long sponsorship perfectly aligns with Freedom Home Care’s core strengths, which lie in providing quality care to those in need. Freedom Home Care has
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Video spotlight: Meals On Wheels

Video spotlight: Meals On Wheels

October 25, 2012 | No Comments

This week, we here at Freedom Home Care have focused on helping the elderly loved ones in our lives maintain a healthy weight. Therefore, we thought it was only natural for us to stop for a moment to sing the praises of the Meals On Wheels Association of America. The organization has been working hard to keep the needy senior population healthy and happy since 1954. What began in Philadelphia more than 50 years ago has grown to be America’s largest national organization, which represents about 5,000 community-based senior nutrition programs across the States as well as the U.S. territories.
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Tips for how to maintain a healthy weight later in life

Tips for how to maintain a healthy weight later in life

October 23, 2012 | No Comments

Yesterday, we here at Freedom Home Care took a closer look at why older individuals are prone to lose weight. And we learned that a certain amount of weight loss can be considered normal. As it turns out, the actual decrease in pounds isn’t always attributed to a loss in body fat. Some of it can be due to a decrease in bone density, as well. Therefore, observing weight loss in your elderly loved one might not be something to lose sleep over. However, it’s also not something to ignore. In some cases, weight loss can cross the line from
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Understanding weight loss in older individuals

Understanding weight loss in older individuals

October 22, 2012 | Comments Off on Understanding weight loss in older individuals

Weight loss in the older population is a common issue. As functions in the body begin to slow down – alongside activity levels – appetite also decreases. This, of course, is a simplistic explanation of why some of the aging individuals in our lives may look skinnier and skinnier as years pass. To truly understand weight loss later in life, however Livestrong.com, a website dedicated to healthy living, laid out the changes that take place in the body from a medical standpoint. As most know, the human body is composed primarily of bone tissue, lean muscle and organ tissue, fat tissue,
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Helpful advice from the CDC on stroke prevention

Helpful advice from the CDC on stroke prevention

October 18, 2012 | Comments Off on Helpful advice from the CDC on stroke prevention

According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, strokes are a leading cause of death in the United States. Approximately 130,000 Americans die each year because of strokes, which accounts for 1 of every 18 deaths. The CDC goes on to explain that “every year, more than 795,000 people in the United States have a stroke. About 610,000 of these are first or new strokes. One in four are recurrent strokes.” Despite the numbers, however, there are many ways to prevent strokes from happening. Here are a few recommendations from the CDC to lower your risk for stroke: Eat a healthy diet. Choosing healthful meal
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Thinking outside of the (shoe) box for Alzheimer’s patients

Thinking outside of the (shoe) box for Alzheimer’s patients

October 17, 2012 | Comments Off on Thinking outside of the (shoe) box for Alzheimer’s patients

Whenever the folks here at Freedom Home Care go scouting for information that we feel will be helpful to our patients and their families, there’s always that moment when we stumble upon an article that could be considered news of the weird. And today was no exception. Especially so when we learned that shoe developers have designed a pair of sneakers that have been outfitted with a built-in tracking device to locate Alzheimer's patients. “It's very common for people who have dementia to wander off on their own,” say the editors at CBS News Online. “When that happens, frantic family
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