Spring Festival Health Guide: To ensure that the elderly have a healthy New Year, these “five don’ts” must be kept in mind!

As the Spring Festival approaches, every household is immersed in the festive atmosphere, especially the elderly, who are most looking forward to the moment of reunion with their families. Chen Wei, director and chief physician of the Department of Geriatrics at Changsha Central Hospital (Changsha Central Hospital affiliated to University of South China), reminds that during such a festive and peaceful festival, the elderly should not neglect their own health.

Recently, the number of patients in the Department of Geriatrics of Changsha Central Hospital (Changsha Central Hospital Affiliated to University of South China) has not decreased due to the approaching festival, but has increased instead.

Grandpa Song, 72, attended three banquets in a row within a week. He failed to control his diet and was eventually hospitalized for acute gastroenteritis. Similarly, a couple who came to Changsha from Guangzhou for the New Year: Grandma Wu, 67, and Grandpa Zhang, 69, developed symptoms such as coughing, sputum, and shortness of breath because they did not add clothes to keep warm. At first, they chose to stay at home and were unwilling to seek medical treatment, which led to the deterioration of their condition. After being rushed to the hospital, they were diagnosed with lung infection.

Director Chen Wei pointed out that during the Spring Festival, the elderly are prone to various health problems due to mood swings, irregular diet, weather changes and other factors, especially the high incidence of digestive and respiratory diseases. In order to ensure that the elderly can spend a healthy and safe Spring Festival, Chen Wei said that the following "five don'ts" principles can help the elderly spend the New Year in good health.

1. Do not eat randomly and maintain a balanced diet

During the Spring Festival, there are frequent gatherings among relatives and friends, and the intake of high-calorie, high-salt foods increases. This eating habit may cause blood viscosity, increase the risk of coronary heart disease, and is also not conducive to the stability of blood pressure and blood sugar. Therefore, the elderly should pay attention to their diet during the festival, avoid excessive intake of greasy meat, maintain a balanced diet, and eat until they are 70% to 80% full.

2. Don’t act on impulse, keep your emotions stable

When children and grandchildren are reunited, joy wells up in their hearts. Such scenes are certainly warm and touching, but they can also easily make the elderly emotional. Director Chen Wei reminds that the elderly must be vigilant against the phenomenon of "overjoyment and sadness" at such moments.

Excessive excitement and agitation may have adverse effects on the cardiovascular system and may induce serious diseases such as angina pectoris, myocardial infarction, and stroke. For the sake of health, the elderly should maintain emotional stability, arrange various activities during the festival reasonably, ensure sufficient rest time, and combine work and rest.

3. Do not stop taking the medicine and stick to the regular treatment

For elderly people with chronic diseases, it is particularly important to adhere to routine treatment during the holidays. Director Chen Wei emphasized that patients must not interrupt drug treatment without authorization due to the festive atmosphere, especially for those drugs that need to be taken for a long time, such as antihypertensive drugs and hypoglycemic drugs. At the same time, the superstitious idea that "taking medicine during the Chinese New Year is unlucky" should be abandoned to ensure that personal health conditions are continuously and effectively managed.

4. Do not underestimate and pay attention to physical abnormalities

When middle-aged and elderly people face physical abnormalities, their reactions are often hidden and difficult to detect. Especially during the Spring Festival, they should pay more attention to regularly monitoring key health indicators such as blood pressure and blood sugar. Once these indicators are found to fluctuate abnormally, or if they experience symptoms such as fatigue, dizziness, chest tightness, shortness of breath, etc., they should seek medical help immediately and do not force themselves or delay seeking medical treatment.

5. Don’t relax and pay attention to keeping warm and healthy

Changsha weather forecast shows that there will be a cold wave during the Spring Festival. Cold weather in winter is likely to increase the risk of respiratory infections and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Therefore, the elderly should pay special attention to warming measures and add clothes in time to prevent health problems caused by cold weather. At the same time, when visiting the elderly, everyone should manage their own health to ensure that they will not inadvertently bring potential infection risks to them and maintain their health and safety.

In short, during the Spring Festival, the elderly face a variety of factors that may threaten their health. Director Chen Wei called on the elderly and their families to pay attention to these issues in advance and take scientific preventive and response measures to ensure that the elderly have a healthy, safe and happy Spring Festival.

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Dai Zhuoming and Qin Lu from Changsha Central Hospital (Changsha Central Hospital Affiliated to University of South China)

Follow @湖南医聊 to get more health science information!

(Edited by YT)