As people get older, their bodies or bodily functions tend to decrease in terms of functionality. Some of the body parts become impaired, old or worn out and they do not function at optimum performance. Some of the body functions affected by old age are sight, hearing, speech, mobility and flexibility. The effects to this vital body functions in most cases is irreversible but by use of various aids for the elderly, they can be assisted to function as they would normally.
Of the many aids available, the most popular are hearing and visual aids, sleeping aids and walking aids. Advancement in technology has seen the development of robots specifically made to assist in basic functions such as kitchen and house work, security and emergency cases like calling an ambulance.
Some of the robots being developed to assist are like DOMO, a humanoid robot that will assist the elderly in doing basic tasks such as putting away groceries. Others such as WAKAMARU have a built in cell phone to call in case of an emergency, and a camera so that family members can check in. It can also be programmed to remind the elderly to take their medication or even call a doctor.
The other commonly recognized aid is a hearing aid which serves the purpose of increasing and regulating sound for the wearer. It is worn in or behind the ear and is of great use to the hearing impaired.
When it comes to mobility, walking aids available are basically the walking stick, rails, elevators and ramps for the elderly who use wheelchairs, as well as wheelchairs themselves. Walking sticks serve the purpose of providing balance while walking as well as rails which serve the same purpose. Lifts help move from one floor to the other in multi storied buildings and houses.
Aging makes some tasks more difficult to do than normal like dressing, doing housework or even operating some equipment. Such problems are addressed by special aids for the elderly that range from simple things like slip on shoes instead of laces, simple clothing like use snap closures that are easier to close to kitchen aids like electric jar openers, easy grip mugs, finger guards and light weight tools.
Aids for the elderly need not be necessarily an item that does something but can also be more of a design or layout that is set to assist them in their daily lives like having ramps fitted to help those in wheelchairs, use of floor level shelves, well positioned switches in a building that are easy to press. Special care should be taken for areas in the house like bathrooms where devices such as raised toilet seats, bathtub transfer benches, scrub sponges, shower chairs, and large grip nail clippers can be used.
Learn more about special aids for the elderly now in our complete overview of aged care and all you should know about assisted living homes .
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