Older adults with diabetes and their family caregivers often spend a lot of time focused on food. They plan healthy meals, balance carbs, and nutrients, and track how foods affect blood sugar levels.
While meal planning takes time, it is very important in keeping diabetes symptoms under control. Unfortunately, with so much time spent on what foods a diabetic senior can eat, what they can drink sometimes gets neglected. Of course, water is the best option. But, what happens when your aging relative gets bored with drinking only water. What else can they have that won’t interfere with their meal plan? It turns out there are many options.
What to Avoid in Beverages
When choosing drinks for your aging relative, the American Diabetes Association recommends that you avoid sugary drinks. Examples of sugary drinks are:
- Regular soda.
- Fruit drinks.
- Sports drinks.
- Sweet tea.
- Fruit punch.
Not only do these kinds of drinks contain excess sugar and lead to elevated blood sugar, but they also have a lot of calories and can cause weight gain.
Diabetes-Friendly Drinks
Although sugary drinks are off the table, there are lots of other delicious drinks seniors with diabetes can enjoy. Here are a few ideas:
Unsweetened Tea: There are many varieties of unsweetened tea that can be drunk hot or cold. Choose from green tea, black tea, and several flavors of herbal teas.
Infused Water: Slice up some cucumbers or fresh fruit and place them in a pitcher with water and ice. Let it sit for a while before drinking so the flavor can mix with the water.
Coffee: Plain coffee is low in calories and carbohydrates. The problem comes in when it is mixed with sweeteners and other flavorings. For seniors who don’t like black coffee, try using artificial sweeteners.
Homemade Chocolate Milk: Store-bought chocolate milk contains excess sugar and fat. But, you can make a healthier version at home. Fill a glass with 1% or skim milk. Mix in 3 teaspoons of cocoa powder and two tablespoons of artificial sweetener.
Freshly Squeezed Lemonade: Mix water with freshly squeezed lemon juice, artificial sweetener, and ice to make a healthier version of lemonade.
Homemade Hot Chocolate: Hot chocolate from a mix or purchased at a coffeehouse is likely to contain a lot of sugar and fat. To make a more diabetes-friendly version, heat one cup of 1% milk, 2 squares of dark chocolate, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla in a pan. Add a dash of cinnamon for extra flavor.
Drinking enough fluids is important to keep older adults from becoming dehydrated, so an elderly care providers assistance can be beneficial when your loved one just doesn’t want to drink another glass of water. Elderly care providers can not only help with planning and preparing healthy meals, but they can also assist with making beverages. Elderly care providers can squeeze lemons, chop cucumbers for infused water, and mix up a delicious glass of chocolate milk.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring Elderly Care in San Francisco, CA, contact the friendly staff at Home Care Professionals today.
Call (866)-940-4855
Sources
Healthline.com
Webmd.com
Diabetes.org
