Getting old is a natural process for all human beings. It’s irresistible and inevitable. Some people naturally accept aging, while others may be afraid of it. Getting old is a long-term process and it takes time. We will notice the body is no longer strong as before, and some age-related diseases appear gradually. Yet it’s not always negative to become elderly. With time going by, our knowledge, minds, and horizons widen as well. Among several impacts getting old brings, we particularly discuss the influences on seniors with low vision, and try to offer suitable activities and tips for them in this article.
What Might the Visually Impaired Seniors Experience?
Most people worry about getting old because of the potential of getting sick. The elderly usually are easier to be attacked by viruses since the cells in their bodies are also getting old, which makes the defense system weaker than before. This can be considered a part of intrinsic aging, as in the biological aging of cells. Moreover, the impacts from the external result in extrinsic aging as well. The lifestyle, the living environment, and even the climate would all cause different influences on seniors.
Aging eyes are also a certain process as long as we get old, and it’s normal to lose vision no matter what owing to natural regulations or consequences of specific diseases. The situation of vision loss can vary to different extents, from moderate to severe. For instance, presbyopia, a common eye condition for people over 40 years old, would make the vision blurred at a normal reading distance. Moreover, diseases like diabetes, cataracts, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration all mean the loss of vision and even legal blindness.
The first issue that visually impaired seniors often meets is the quality of their lives would decline. The slight blurry vision may lead to small inconveniences in their lives, especially when they want to read books or check detailed texts like labels. Then the situation becomes more and more severe as the vision function goes worse and worse: the loss of the field of vision, central vision loss, the smudges in the vision, and other forms of vision loss, will all bring difficulties in lives. Especially for seniors with 20/200 vision, they directly need to face the problem of living independently.
Some visually impaired seniors have negative emotions. Loneliness, powerlessness, trouble with housework, reduced social activities and so on, are what they may confront, which would lead to isolated social relationships eventually. Some researchers expressed that long-term immersion in negative emotions is not conducive to both physical and mental health. Thus, keeping a positive mood is particularly important to be prepared for the difficulties.
What are the Tips for Visually Impaired Seniors?
Besides maintaining a good attitude to meet the inconveniences that vision loss brings for the old people, there are also some tips for low vision seniors to overcome the troubles of vision loss. Here we have 5 suggestions for the seniors with low vision, and hopefully they can be helpful to increase the quality of life.
Eat healthily
Developing a healthy diet is a common statement we talk about many times, and it fits everyone. The article - Do You Choose The Right Foods For Your Eyes? and Cook Your Thanksgiving Healthy Food To Feed Your Eyes - specifically discussed the foods that benefit our eyes. Paying attention to balanced diets helps to prevent the loss of eyesight in old age. People who are visually impaired shall also focus on supplying nutrition for the eyes, to relieve the pressure on the eyes.
The principle of consuming fresh fruits and vegetables, and keeping diversification of the food is important for our eye health. However, as we get old, our bodies change as well, which means the structure of the nutrition we need should be modified. MyPlate, the nutrition guide published by the American department of agriculture, has compiled suggestions for balanced and healthy diets for older adults. Seafood, dairy, and different kinds of beans are recommended for the elderly. In addition, protein and trace elements like potassium, calcium, vitamin D and B12 need to be particularly focused on intake on a daily basis. Seniors shall be reminded to stay hydrated since when they are in old age, the sense of thirst might not occur frequently.
Get enough sleep
A balanced diet, proper exercise, and good sleep are three high-frequently mentioned concepts when we talk about keeping healthy. Having good consuming habits and doing workouts regularly would lead to high-quality sleep. Meanwhile, for the elder who doesn’t always have a good appetite and have trouble falling asleep, proper exercise could be helpful. Check New Year, Let Us Keep Healthy - Exercises for the Low Vision to get suitable activities for low vision seniors.
External environments also matter in order to have a good quality of sleep. Caring for the humidity of the rooms is important to relieve the discomfort of the eyes due to dry eyes or certain eye diseases. Meanwhile, the lights in the rooms may influence the production of melatonin. The decline of melatonin usually happens with age and visual impairments, and bright lights might intensify the situation. Therefore, for visually impaired seniors who have insomnia that cannot be improved by eating healthily, physical movements and dim light environment, don’t forget to contact doctors for professional advice.
Audiobooks and podcasts
Entertainments are often the best way to ease the loneliness of old age and vision loss of seniors. It’s getting hard for some elderly people with eyesight loss to do their hobbies like reading books. In this case, audiobooks and podcasts can become good options. The era develops rapidly, and many seniors reflect it’s difficult to keep up with the times since their hearing and vision are gradually losing, and the brain seems to work slower than before. This is the reason why audiobooks and podcasts can help.
Audiobooks can be downloaded from local libraries or online, the seniors with eyesight loss can enjoy them easily. Moreover, podcasts can provide global news and other interesting topics for low vision people to enrich their lives. For vision loss people, they may look for a video magnifier with a radio setting. Zoomax Luna S is an ideal option.
Have a pet
If you don’t hate or fear animals, then try to get a pet as company. Believe it or not, furry animals always bring huge comfort. They can offer valuable emotional feedback when petting or playing with them. Walking the dogs, feeding the cats, or talking to the birds, they are all the warm and relaxing activities for seniors with low vision. Having a pet might be one of the most effective ways to release loneliness. Pets are like friends and family, they give more than you think.
Have visually impaired aids
Low vision aids, are definitely the object that can improve the quality of life in older age with vision loss. Thanks to the assistive technology, the life of visually impaired seniors becomes much more convenient. These types of equipment help people relieve the pressure of using their eyes, and bring hope and passion for some people to continue their interests.
Nowadays, it’s good to see there are many visually impaired aids for low vision seniors. Portable handheld video magnifiers, low vision E-glasses, and desktop CCTV video magnifiers can always meet the different needs of people with poor vision. If you are in old age but still making contributions to your career, the visual aid like Zoomax Snow 12 is the best option. It’s comfortable to use whether for reading files or signing the names. Of course, you can have more selections of digital magnifiers for poor eyesight seniors through Low Vision Aids.
In a word, getting old is not as horrible as you might imagine, although degraded body functions, maturity and experiences are also what we get during this process. Being active lets you face everything through optimistic eyes, and there are always more solutions than challenges. If you are still young, don’t forget to express more concern for the old family or friends around you. Your warm words and behaviors are meaningful to them.
References:
https://www.personalabs.com/blog/6-ways-to-live-a-happy-and-healthy-life-during-old-age/
https://www.healthline.com/health/why-do-we-age#forms-of-aging
