Four Tips for Senior Nail Care
You and your senior might not have thought a lot about nail care for her, but it’s something that personal care at home can help her to manage. While caring for hands and nails is a relaxing task, your senior may also avoid some serious health consequences by taking the best possible care of her fingernails. Here are just a few of the things that you might want to include in your senior’s nail care plan.
Moisturize Hands and Nails
Personal Care at Home Bellaire, TX: Nail Care
There’s a lot that goes into taking proper care of your senior’s nails and hands, but task that is more important than you might think involves keeping her hands moisturized. When your aging family member’s hands are properly moisturized, hangnails are less likely to develop and her nails are able to stay more flexible, which can reduce breakage. Your senior also avoids the discomfort that can accompany dry hands. Cuticle oil might be important if your senior’s hands get really dry, but applying a good hand lotion once or twice a day can be really helpful for most people.
Trim and File Nails Carefully
Your elderly family member’s nails keep growing and need to be trimmed periodically so that they don’t make it difficult for her to use her fingers and hands. Many people’s nails thicken as they age, and if your elderly family member is also battling issues like arthritis she may need extra help trimming her nails. Personal care at home can make these tasks so much easier for your elderly family member, ensuring that her nails are trimmed and filed properly.
Clean Under Nails Regularly
Even if your elderly family member’s fingernails are kept fairly short, it’s easy for dirt and dead skin cells to collect under her nails. That’s a breeding ground for germs, so it’s important to clean under your senior’s nails to keep the area clean. Personal care at home can help your senior to do this during bathing and when helping her to wash her hands. That helps her hands to both look and feel clean, while also getting rid of possible germs that might contribute to making her sick.
Nutrition Is Important for Nail Health
It’s incredibly important for your elderly family member to have good nutrition for overall well-being, but it also helps her nails to stay healthy. When your elderly family member is eating a diet that lacks specific nutrients, like vitamin C, B vitamins, and even calcium, her nails may become brittle or start to tear or break. Home care providers can help your elderly family member to continue to eat healthy meals that are nutritionally balanced, which is part of helping her to stay as healthy as she can.
When your elderly family member’s hands and nails look and feel good, she’s going to feel better overall. Little injuries from a broken or sharp fingernail can cause big problems down the line, so properly maintaining your senior’s nails really is a lot more than just an aesthetic task.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Personal Care at Home in Bellaire, TX, contact the caring staff at Personal Caregiving Services at 832-564-0338. Providing Care in Houston, Bellaire, West University Place, Katy, and Sugar Land and the surrounding areas.
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