Garden Plans That Cover an Older Adult’s Nutritional Needs
Once you hit the age of 51, there are certain nutrients you should be focusing on. Thirteen essential vitamins and minerals help the body function properly and provide the keys the body needs to help fight or resist infection. These vitamins include A, C, D, E, and K. They also include several B vitamins.
Have you considered the benefits of gardening for dietary needs? You can focus your garden on vegetables that are high in these essential vitamins and minerals. Here are some of the vegetables to focus your attention on when buying seeds and seedlings that provide the nutrients your parents need.
B Vitamins
Home Care Horizon West, FL: Seniors and Vitamins
There are more than a half dozen B vitamins. They include B6 and B12, biotin (B7), folic acid, niacin (B3), pantothenic acid (B5), riboflavin (B2), and thiamin (B1). The role of these B vitamins is to help the body make energy from the foods eaten during a meal, use that energy throughout the body, and produce red blood cells.
Asparagus is a perennial that will return each year. It’s rich in antioxidants like vitamin C. It’s also high in folate. The spears that come up from the ground are good steamed, roasted, or grilled.
One medium potato provides about a third of the daily requirement of B6 and 70% of your daily requirement of vitamin C. They’re very easy to grow. Save potatoes you buy that have started sprouting, cut them up into cubes, and plant them in the ground.
Calcium
Calcium is essential to bone and tooth strength. It helps the muscles expand and contract. It’s also used by the nervous system when sending messages from one area of the body to another.
Leafy green vegetables are a great source of calcium. Try growing a variety of greens to find your parents’ favorites. Collard greens, kale, spinach, and Swiss chard are all options.
- Vitamin A
- Carrots
- Vitamin C
Several vitamins are part of the antioxidant group. Vitamin C is one that most people are familiar with. It helps with collagen production, wound healing, and how the body metabolizes proteins.
If you want an easy-to-grow crop that is rich in vitamin C, grow tomatoes. There are a lot of varieties, which gives you the choice of growing tomatoes that make great pasta sauces or those that are best for salads. A medium tomato contains 28 percent of your daily requirement of vitamin C.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E is an antioxidant that protects the body from damage to cells from free radicals. Red peppers are one of the best vegetables to grow. A serving of raw red peppers contains about 13 percent of a person’s daily requirement.
Vitamin K
Vitamin K is found in leafy greens like kale and spinach. It’s an important vitamin because it helps with blood clotting. If your parent is on a blood thinner, talk to their doctor to see if leafy greens are safe for your parents to eat.
If your parents do need help with their daily diet, look into home care services like meal preparation. Caregivers will come to their home and cook meals and snacks for them. You should also ask about home care companionship services so that your parents don’t eat alone.
If you or an aging loved-one is considering Home Care in Horizon West, FL please contact the caring staff at Winter Garden Senior Home Care today. (407) 347-2050.
Founder / Owner
Jennifer Talbot is the Co-Owner of Winter Garden Senior Home Care in Winter Garden Florida.The business opened on Plant Street in October of 2007 (formally known as Age Advantage).
Jennifer remains active in the business and enjoys personally meeting with families looking for professional, classy caregivers. She prides herself in taking the time to listen and appreciate the personalities and life experiences of people who wish to “age in place”.Her unique ability to match people with their ideal caregiver, combined with a strong sense of service is what makes her business so successful.
Mrs. Talbot is a current member and past president of the Winter Garden Rotary Club, past president of the VFW Ladies Auxiliary, active West Orange Chamber member, Recipient of the “Spirit of West Orange” Award 2017, Past Business Networking International Growth Coordinator, Past Committee member and founder of South Lake’s HINT, sustainer member of the West Orange Junior Service League, past board member for AGED, advisory board member for Elder Advocates, a United States Air Force brat, and proud mother of two college graduates.
Rebecca Lanterman
Owner
Rebecca has worked in the Central Florida medical community for over 10 years.She is a native of Winter Garden, Florida andhas a driving passion to serve our seniors.It has been said that Rebecca never meets a stranger.Her experience has been in Hospice, Hospitals, Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Communities where she faithfully served as a community liaison helping residents and families understand the myriad of long term care and healthcare options.
Rebecca is the mom of a little guy who is the twinkle of her eye.She can often be heard telling stories of traveling all around the country pulling her camper.To Rebecca, to live life is to touch it and experience it.Growing up in Central Florida afforded her some unique experiences like being a part of the “Magic” at Walt Disney World where she was a Walt Disney World Spirit Ambassador.She feels that this early indoctrination by The Walt Disney Company helped her understand the true value of serving others.To this day, she still has some of that Pixie Dust.Rebecca has also accomplished countless marathons and triathlons. After the sudden loss of her dad, her training partner, in 2012 she stepped away from the sport.But, as time has passed and healing has taken place, she is back to pursuing their dreams again.This time, her dad, her trusty training partner is keeping pace in her heart.It is from that willingness and drive that Rebecca has a keen understanding of the arduous and often treacherous course that our families are on.And, she is here to come along beside you and be with you each step, each stride, and each hurdle.It’s the old adage “life is a marathon and not a sprint”.She is here along with the team at Winter Garden Senior Home Care to be a part of your journey.
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