• image.alt
  • With Mayo Clinic health education outreach coordinator

    Angela Lunde

    read biography
The Mayo Clinic Diet Book, learn more

Free

E-newsletter

Subscribe to Housecall

Our weekly general interest
e-newsletter keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics.

Sign up now

  • Alzheimer's blog

  • Feb. 3, 2009

    Taking care of the caregiver

    By Angela Lunde

23 comments posted

Alzheimer's Caregiving

Subscribe to our Alzheimer's Caregiving e-newsletter to stay up to date on Alzheimer's topics.

Sign up now

"I am what I ate ... and I am frightened." — Bill Cosby

For the past several weeks I have been taking better care of myself through daily yoga practice, meditating, eating more mindfully and taking in less caffeine.

I always stress the importance of self-care to the caregivers I encounter. I share with them that family members giving care to someone with a dementia such as Alzheimer's disease often experience their own health problems due to stress.

According to the Alzheimer's Association, family caregivers are more likely to report their health is in poor condition than non-caregivers. Caregivers are also more likely to have high levels of stress hormones, inhibited immune systems, slow wound healing, hypertension and coronary heart disease.

I have seen reports that spousal caregivers will often die before the person with Alzheimer's disease due to these factors. Yet, I am sure the thought many of you have is "how do I find time for self-care?" In past blogs we have written about support groups and respite care which are vitally important to a caregiver's well-being. But what about caregiver nutrition?

According to the "American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias," approximately one-third to one half of the health problems older people encounter are indirectly or directly related to dietary deficiencies. Combine that with the fact that caregivers' lives are stressful, and it is not surprising they are likely to neglect their own nutritional needs.

Just what would optimal caregiver nutrition look like? In my mind, it would need to meet the needs of the older adult, incorporate foods that are good for the brain, and most importantly be simple.

Nutritional experts at Tufts University developed a Senior Food Guide Pyramid that emphasizes eating patterns that are necessary for good health for older adults. An important feature in the pyramid is its base, which displays a row of eight glasses of water or other non-caffeinated liquids. As we grow older, the importance of keeping well hydrated cannot be overstated. That would be my first suggestion for caregiver nutrition.

When it comes to the food we eat, there is encouraging research demonstrating that eating more omega-3 fatty acids may help reduce stress and inflammation in the body, which are associated with numerous chronic diseases that become more common as we age. It has also been reported that omega-3 fatty acids may help reduce the risk of memory loss by stimulating the growth of neuron connections, which improves the brain's ability to process and retrieve information.

High omega-3's are found in some fish. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends eating fatty fish such as mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon. The AHA also recommends including tofu and other forms of soybeans, walnuts, flaxseeds and nut and canola oils as a way to increase amounts of alpha-linolenic acid, which produces omega-3 fatty acids in our bodies.

Another word we hear a lot of these days is antioxidants. Antioxidants are found in fruits, vegetables and grains and help in preventing "free radical" destruction of cells that leads to aging. Studies show that high antioxidant intake from foods results in reduced rates of cancer, cardiovascular disease and macular degeneration often associated with aging.

Here are some foods you might start placing in your grocery cart the next time you're out shopping:

  • Fish, preferably the fatty fish (omega-3) such as mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon.
  • Vegetables are high in disease-fighting nutrients. Fresh, frozen or canned vegetables are excellent sources, but particular winners are leafy greens (contain folate) such as spinach, kale, collard greens and mustard greens. Also brussels sprouts, broccoli, beets, avocados and red bell peppers.
  • Berries have the highest antioxidant concentration among fruit. Blueberries contain flavonoids, the natural compounds that protect neurons from the negative effects of oxidation and inflammation. Others include blackberries, cranberries, strawberries and raspberries.

As a caregiver you will feel limited some days in what you can do, but we all must eat. With a few minutes of thoughtful planning, your next trip to the grocery store can be a choice to improve your health. Ultimately, when you take time to care of yourself, good things happen — you avoid health problems, feel better about yourself, have more energy and are more likely to have a better outlook about your caregiving role.

23 comments posted

blog index

  • January 5, 2011 3:36 p.m.

    My wife, a cancer [patient is allergic to scaled fish. She can handle shellfish, however. The solution could be to give her Omega 3 in liquid pill form. I have been told she could tolerate that as the proteins from the fish which cause the allergy have been removed in the processing into liquid pill form. Can anyone confirm this?

    - Richard

  • April 22, 2010 10:43 p.m.

    I hear you, Richard. When I think about the lack of concern and support I get, it makes me angry and sick. I fanticize how, after my father's gone, I'll mention his death in passing, people will say Oh, you should have called and I'd've come to the funeral, and I'll say I didn't want to bother you. It stinks that people get sick and disabled, and the caregiving burden falls disproportionately. But that's how it goes. That's what people are like. No surprise in a world where "empathy" is a dirty word. That being said, those feelings are usually not at the forefront of my mind. There are a few things that help me. 1st, I have paid caregivers with my father during the day and from after dinner until bedtime. He's not wealthy, but his assets will probably outlast him. And while my siblings give me little help, at least they don't complain about using my father's money to take care of my father. 2nd, I have an intellectually challenging job, with people I like and an understanding boss. While my father's needs are never far from my mind, work is a great distraction. 3rd, I've done enough superficial reading in Zen philosophy to understand that I have to accept certain things as they are. I have learned not to waste energy fighting things I can't change. Finally, I have a deep interest in the arts -- music, literature, film -- things of beauty and endurance. I don't get much help from people, but I feel connected to the best of humanity. Hope this helps!

    - Lou

  • April 22, 2010 7:34 p.m.

    To Richard, I can relate to your anger, a year and a half ago my husband and I lost our 29 year old son after a long struggle with an ugly cancer. I thought I was going to lose my mind! Now, I see my mother struggle, having similar feelings as she handles my dad, who suffers from Alzheimer's. I see the exhaustion, anger and frustration she feels in caring for Dad day in and day out. It is not unlike what we went through with our son...slowly losing someone you love to a terrible disease....the difference being, this is a much longer journey and my parents are old and frail. Our plan of action for Mom and Dad is to find a place for Dad to go once or twice a week for a few hours, just to give Mom a break. I plan to spend one day a week with them, to give Mom the freedom to leave the house without Dad or I will take Dad out so Mom can have a little space at home. My dad is anxious and busy all the time. The next thing will be to see Mom's doctor to see if an anti-depressant would be helpful for Mom. In the journey of losing our son, I needed that kind of help, I was physically and mentally exhausted...it helped make life bearable! There is no one answer for everyone, but right now I feel it is urgent to get help for my mother or she will be gone before my dad, just as it is important for you, Richard, to seek help in caring for your wife. I hope you can find the support you need to survive this journey. Don't be afraid to ask for help!!

    - Linda

  • April 22, 2010 4:38 p.m.

    Rosie, By chance was your father a veteren? If so your mother may be eligible for care in a veteren's home in your state. Contact your Veteren's Affairs office in your county (they are in the phone book).

    - Karen

  • April 22, 2010 3:47 p.m.

    It's easy to say everything is going to be ok or that things are happening as they should, but that is not reality. The reality is that I am not ok and I don't believe that things happen for a reason... I am at the edge, I am angry and cannot seem to get past it... so there is just so much I can take. I am angy at so called friends who do not visit my wife, people who have been "friends" for 40 years. People my wife taught school with for 20 or more years who just don't call anymore. And there is my wifes family who were so "close" when every thing was ok, where are they today. I am burnt out, I am pissed off, and I am super angry. . . I am sick of the pleasing platitudes that every one seems to be full of. . .when they are full of bull. The reality is not nice and my reality is that I am truly afraid that I will not take good care of my wife because of my anger. Please don't any one answer my post with "It will be ok" because it won't.

    - Richard

  • March 1, 2010 5:21 p.m.

    Cooking for others and for myself is affirming. When I was my mother's caregiver we both got a lot out of meal times. She's been in a memory care unit for 4 years and I feel the pull to care for her at home again so I can cook for her again. I suffered caregiver stress back I think in part because my family in the least timely fashion (I had just returned from a year of work in the Middle East), guilt tripped me into caring for my mother. None of my 6 siblings would do it. Now Mom is in the late stages and I understand so much more. Is it crazy to want to care for her again?

    - Kate

  • October 1, 2009 9:11 a.m.

    Lucy, here is further information on sundowning: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sundowning/HQ01463 Thanks for your interest.

    - MayoClinic.com staff

  • September 30, 2009 4:32 p.m.

    Saw "sundowning" in one of the earlier blog messages. Will try to research it on my own, but if someone reads this in the meantime, and can give me some quick info -- would appreciate it. --Many Thx + GB

    - Lucy

  • September 29, 2009 4:12 p.m.

    I really enjoy the articles on this blog. After caring for my great grandfather for over a year I built the site AlzMall.com. I am really looking for those who are passionate about Alzheimer's care to contribute articles, stories, or just general information to my site.

    - Jerry

  • August 21, 2009 8:23 a.m.

    I agree Deborah, humour is such an important and natural way of keeping the mind and body healthy. I have also found some useful information at http://www.alzheimerssupport.net/ for coping with such a terrible disease. It helped me.

    - Aki

  • August 5, 2009 3:24 p.m.

    How about a dose of humor, it goes a long way in making for a better caregiver. I find everyday brings me something that is so out of the 'norm' as we haven always known that I have to laugh out loud and share with others. Allowing the laughs keeps me sane, healthy, aware, and relieves a lot of stress. Being able to see the humor in this very sad disease and share my stories most importantly keeps me a very good caregiver - I suggest you try it.

    - Deborah

  • June 11, 2009 4:43 p.m.

    My husband recently passed away, and Mom moved in with me. She is declining. Everybody that knows her sees the decline. My problem is that she refuses to acknowledge the problem. She will not consent to a doctor's visit on the subject, and becomes angry when ever I broach the subject. She seems to be getting worse quickly; how can I help her see that help would help? I feel it is fear, perhaps pride. She has always been intelligent and strong. I know this is hard for her. Thanks

    - Marianne

  • March 18, 2009 10:28 a.m.

    cure for many illness including cancer. Study Molybdenum Hair contains this and hair grows around moles. Our natural defence is hair with high Molybdenem in it. This substance is getting less and less in our burnt out soil. It makes omega 3 acids. It must have something to do with vitamin k. It is a radon ion converter at room temperature. It is essential for toxin removal. Too much can poison you like a snake or spider bite, but it can balance your body. If you pick up something and it seems heavy and you hold and cuddle your cat, does it seem lighter when you pick it up with the cat? It works better in the moving air of the furnace. Our ability to harness this static electricity and use it to fight for us may be possible. Check the composition of a spider web. put all this together and look at chrones, celiac, lupus, thyrid problems, and tooth disorders, prostrate cancer and then look at Molybdenum in organic veggies. These people are healthier. Trace element, but life cannot exist anywhere on earth without it. This may be worth researching. natural food, the farmers used to say, don't burn your soil out. We didn't listen to our forefathers, but we can still learn from them

    - rickymouse

  • March 14, 2009 10:28 p.m.

    Finally I am reaching out to ask for help. I have been taking care of Mom for 5 years.She is 85, has moderate to severe Alz, 3 broken bones in her back from osteoprosis, diverticulitis and severe sundowning. Now, my house is in foreclosure, I have no more resources! I cannot pay the electic bill, was denied food stamps because I couldn't make it to the appt because I was sitting with Mom while in the hospitals. I am self employed but have to watch Mom 24/7. She is on waiting lists for placement in a nursing home because there are no beds in any Alz units. There is a freeze for funding for ElderCare. She was in a nursing home for a year and was admitted to the hospital in Jan. with lower GI bleeding. She lost her bed at the nursing home because of the amount of time spent in the hospital. After released, she went to another nursing home to be skilled. She fell and was injured. I brought her home and took her to our primary care Dr. He referred her to Hospice where she stayed for 2 weeks, came home again and stayed for 2 weeks and then went back into a Hospice center and stayed another week and now has been home for almost 2 weeks. If anyone can help, please call me. My number is nine zero four-eight seven four-five two nine zero. I really need to talk. I feel so lost and isolated and am worried I'll be homeless. Rosie

    - Rosie

  • March 12, 2009 8:46 p.m.

    All comments and suggestions are good, but I'm surprised that I read nothing about FIBER, a highly needed food for most elderly.I have been a 24/7 caregiver for a totally dependent wife with dementia for over 5 years. I give her a high fiber cereal breakfast every day with fruit and milk. You need 5 fruits and 5 veggies everyday so I keep a crockpot going all the time and I cook many veggies but I always have 5-6 different kinds of beans in the pot. I buy bags of dried beans, six small amouts of 5-6 kinds, soak overnight, and use it for the base of almost any type of chili, soup, or stew adding a great variety of meat and veggies. I can make it taste like any ethnic food I desire by varying the seasonings. Obviously, I change what I make every week. My wife loves it never complains, never has constipation and I owe it all to to the high protein, high fiber diet she is on. Try it, beans and fiber are wonderful answers to many problems of the inactive elderly patient.

    - Chuck

  • March 10, 2009 8:31 p.m.

    SIBO except we are introducing chemicals that the small intestines fight as they would the toxins of bad bacteria. This SIBO is a general set of genetics that is not a disease but a strong overworked imune system that refuses to quit until it's gone. It can't be detected untill it starts to fail, possibly forming organ failure or cancer. Study pruning a tree to understand other diseases. Is the underlying cause of anorexia because of a failure in the digestive system causing people to throw up to stimulate growth or healing. Does accupuncture and bloodletting seem to work because it stimulates the directed healing like pruning a tree? Unknowingly these people could be trying to heal themselves. to stimulate healing of something possibly unseen they maycut themselves, or maybe just like the rush of the healing hormone. Could healing breast cancer just be so simple as making a few small cuts on the breast? Could we simply get rid of the chemicles in our food and drugs that we don't need and use natural fillers? does propylene glycol and similar chemicals used to time release drugs actually hurt us by slowing flow in the intestines, increasing SIBO to extremes?

    - rickymouse

  • March 9, 2009 10:32 a.m.

    I have been studying my family diet history do to my failing health. I wish I would have paid more attention when I was younger. as a teenager you think you can do everything better and you are smarter. In essence, our parents may have listened to their parents a little more than we did. All members of the animal kingdom try to challenge their parents, trying to take charge of the "pack". For this reason, our new ideas may cause our extinction. Look at what your parents ate, taking into consideration what changes may have occured in their diet before they got sick. I think I have celiac disease, which I think is related to alzheimers, and many other diseases. my fathers diet somewhat tended towards celiac diets, meats and potato with veggie, pasties, roasts, etc. He was healthy and so were we when we listened. He said milk was for babies, but still liked ice cream. He was very seldom sick. My sister died from sugar after loosing a leg and was plagued with rhumatoid arthritis for years. She ate lots of bread products, and milk. We can't change our diet from what we evolved from, as different familys we evolved differently. My sister tried and she died. My ex's healthy plump grandmother seemingly got alzheimers after she started meals on wheels. She was rarely sick and she ate lots of starchs before this, but her diet was consistant. I think we should pay attention to our parents diet before making SLOW changes. Our kids WILL be trying change us too. GO

    - Rickymouse

  • March 6, 2009 8:28 a.m.

    It is very helpful to read comments and know that I am not alone. Although only 34, I am helping my sister care for our mother who has FTD possibly. Our father passed away last year and so now we are her source of support, although she is not always willing to allow us to help. I find it so stressful and see my own health neglected. I also have young children, so between my mother and my own family, time for me is absent. I do think that staying well hydrated is the best way to keep healthier, even if you can't get a fully nutritious breakfast & lunch every day. I know I feel better when I have had more water. I think my mother does better as well when she is hydrated. She can actually get visually dehydrated very easily & sometimes refuses to drink any water. I have completely cut out her caffeine and let her drink decaf coffee 1-2 times a day. Also I have noticed that when I make her luch, if I have a good source of protein incorporated into it like chicken, she stays more focused, less likely to get into a frantic panic, and makes it a little easier for me to help her.

    - Chris

  • March 5, 2009 11:54 a.m.

    Thanks for emphasizing the importance of taking care of the caregiver. After more than three years of caring for not one but two family members (in-laws) with dementia and alzheimers, I am realizing the stresses of caregiving. I have multiple health issues I had before my role as caregiver, and now see the affects of stress on my system. I have a question regarding food I can consume that will not counteract my levels I must maintain while on coumadin and bp medications as well as insulin levels due to diabetes. I am at my wits end trying to come up with healthy foods my mother in law will eat that are heart healthy and appealing to her finicky tastes. She is almost 90 and is hispanic and will only eat certain foods. She loves sweets, so i buy sugar free for her and having teenagers in the home here I need to watch what they consume. I am also wondering at what point to put her in a home where they can monitor her closer as she is becoming a fall risk. She is unstable on her feet but refuses to use a walker or wheelchair. She is very stubborn and at this point very forgetfull as well as has auditory and visual hallucinations now. What ideas can you give me. Thanks!

    - connie

  • March 5, 2009 11:13 a.m.

    My mother is 90!! She has alzheimers.Still lives in her own home! We take care of all her needs!Food, shopping,meals, bills etc. When and how to we make th decision to put her in a special alzheimers unit.I feel the move would make her even more disoriented.She is not your ordinary old lady! Still very mobile and ornery! Please advise!

    - Bess

  • February 21, 2009 12:52 p.m.

    Angela, thanks for the article. It is very interesting to a lay person that being healthy in general terms focus's on diet and excercise. To that point, I am interested in getting more information on the diet that Tufts University created for seniors. Do you know of any literature that has been published on the subject such as diet and cook books? I am always looking for products that provide quality of life to those affected by alzheimer's for my store front, seniordo.com. Thanks for your help, B

    - bworsdall@seniordo.com

  • February 4, 2009 9:45 p.m.

    Ongoing scientific research on aging has already produced some breakthroughs and there are exciting clinical studies in progress. Last week on CBS's 60 Minutes, the power of resveratrol was discussed. The clip can be found here: http://www.antiagingbydesign.com/?p=207

    - Vicki Zerbee

  • February 4, 2009 11:17 a.m.

    My memoir: "Everything Will Be Alright: an Alzheimer's memoir", which chronicles the 11 years my husband and I shared his Alzheimer's, has insight and inspiration for improving the quality of life of the caregiver as well as the person with the disease and has been called by a reviewer "the classic for support groups". Proceeds for my book are donated to Alzheimer's research, and is available on line.

    - glory read

Post a comment
  • Print

  • Share on:

  • Email

Advertisement


Text Size: smaller largerlarger