As your loved one approaches their golden years, they’ll need to gradually change their diet to ensure a healthier body despite the changes that come with aging. An unexpected tweak to your loved one’s eating habits you can make to improve their health as their body matures further is to introduce more olive oil into their diet. It may sound dubious, but the benefits of olive oil are well worth it.
Introduces Your Loved One to a Mediterranean Diet
A Mediterranean diet, rather than utilizing saturated animal fats such as butter and palm oil, heavily relies on olive oil instead. Olive oil is an essential component of the Mediterranean diet, a notoriously healthy diet that is associated with various keys to good eating habits: Eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, eating in sensible portion sizes, and having unhealthy foods in moderation. Despite this, it’s a rather easy diet to follow due to its flexible rules. Hence, olive oil can be a stepping stone to converting your loved one to a tried and trusted healthier diet.
Comparative Advantage Over Other Fats
The fat content in olive oil is primarily monounsaturated fats, which are typically considered to be a healthier type of fat, especially compared to other types of oils on the market. Said types of oil are usually filled with saturated fats, which raises your loved one’s levels of unhealthy cholesterol, known as low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.
High LDL levels typically lead to an accumulation of cholesterol in one’s arterial walls, risking artery blockage. This can lead to serious health conditions such as stroke, heart attacks, and even select types of dementia. Hence, olive oil is a welcome alternative to unhealthy oils. The next time you’re on a grocery trip with your loved one, put down the palm oil and grab olive oil instead.
Rich in Antioxidants
Olive oil is rich in antioxidants such as polyphenols and squalene. Not only do these antioxidant characteristics help to prolong a bottle of olive oil’s shelf life, but it also means that your loved one can reap health benefits from consuming olive oil. Antioxidants can slow age-related changes in your loved one’s body, keeping their body young and in top shape. In the long run, your loved one will be aging more successfully thanks to olive oil, because olive oil lessens frailty in the elderly.
Wards Off Disease
Olive oil, due to its various beneficial components, can ward off various diseases that older adults tend to fall victim to easily. Due to olive oil being made up of unsaturated fats, they don’t present the risk of heart failure the same way saturated fats do. Since heart health is the key to many other facets of health, this means that olive oil can also lessen the risk of severe health conditions such as:
- Diabetes
- Stroke
- Vascular dementia
- Peripheral artery disease
Healthy Eating Habits at TerraBella Hillsborough
TerraBella Hillsborough’s dedication to our residents extends to the meals we serve as well, through our Sensations Dining senior living program that provides daily meals. To learn more about how we support and enable your loved one’s lifestyle, read about the different senior living options that we provide for our residents.
