As the body ages, it goes through some dramatic changes that often decrease an individual’s quality of life. From severe chronic pains to lowered blood circulation, it is important that the elderly do everything they can do to ease such discomforting symptoms and improve their health and overall wellbeing.
One recently popular way of doing so is to opt for an adjustable bed. Although such beds are usually found in hospitals, many manufacturers have actually made lift beds for elderly people for in-house usage as well. Their main purpose is to enrich the sleep experience while working to improve numerous health issues and provide additional lifestyle enhancement.
So, if you have an older adult who is having a hard time dealing with aging symptoms, adding an adjustable bed in their room is an excellent idea.
Here is a list of the five top health benefits such beds offer the elderly and how they can improve their quality of life.
Provides pain relief
Musculoskeletal disorders such as degenerative spine and arthritic conditions are the most common health issues in the elderly. Such conditions often cause chronic pains in the back and joints making it difficult for older adults to freely move around after sleeping.
An effective way of managing this is to incorporate an adjustable bed in your senior’s room. This will allow them to alter the position of the lift bed to the angle that suits them best so they can take pressure away from the painful areas when lying down. It will further improve their posture and give them a comfortable and restful night’s sleep.
Lessen acid reflux
As the body sleeps, it is also working to digest and process the food you’ve been eating. However, as a result of the many physiological changes the body undergoes when it ages, elderly people are more likely to suffer from acid reflux. When this happens, the food cannot move through the esophagus easily when lying flat on the bed.
So, sleeping in an adjustable bed instead can help lessen this health issue and improve digestion. The bed frame offers the feature of lifting the head at a specific height that achieves the healthiest digestion experience.
Alleviate sleep apnea and snoring
Lying flat on a bed can also lead to breathing problems such as snoring and sleep apnea. This is because, in this position, the neck puts extra pressure on the windpipe causing it to close and making breathing more difficult.
So, instead of stacking a couple of pillows to elevate their head, getting an adjustable bed is a much better alternative. The ability to raise the top half of the bed to a position where they can still sleep comfortably will open the airway and reduce breathing difficulties. This way they will also feel well-rested in the morning.
Improve blood circulation
Another health issue many older adults suffer from when they age is poor circulation. The main reasons for that include decreased levels of exercise, severe medical conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, and edema. So, getting an adjustable bed for your senior relative can certainly help improve blood circulation and reduce any swelling they may have in their legs.
All you need to do is raise the lower half of the bed above the heart level and allow the blood to flow easily from the lower limbs to the top. This will enhance circulation, reduce swelling and help the senior sleep peacefully.
Offers lifestyle benefits
In addition to the medical health benefits adjustable beds offer to the elderly, such beds also come with several lifestyle enhancements. Some of the most notable ones include versatile comfort, better reading or watching TV, and independence.
For older adults, having a sense of independence is vital. That’s why adjustable beds are strongly recommended for them as they include features that help increase their mobility. They can get off the bed easily and adjust it by pushing a few buttons to find a position that best suits them while lying down.
Final thoughts
If an elderly person in your life is having difficulties sleeping or lying down, incorporating a lift bed in their room is an excellent option. Such beds have features that allow different parts of the bed to be raised and lowered independently of each other giving people the opportunity to adjust them however they want according to their needs.
In addition to this, they also offer numerous health benefits that can improve the quality of life of the elderly and help them deal with various symptoms of aging with more ease.