On a hot summer day, heck on any day, who doesn’t enjoy ice cream? This tasty treat comes in a wide variety of flavors and styles – appealing to individuals specific tastes. And, who hasn’t waxed nostalgic at the tale-tell sound of the ice cream truck, and the mad dash you made as a kid to meet it on the curb?
As a leading provider of care and services to seniors throughout the Western United States, we have decidedly three other reasons we “scream for ice cream” – in moderate portions of course!
Nutritional Value to Seniors
Ice cream is often high in calcium (to strengthen bones) and other essential vitamins and minerals, including vitamin D, vitamin A, calcium, phosphorus and riboflavin. When paired with berries and dark chocolate seniors can also reap additional health benefits. For example, raspberries or blueberries include antioxidants and are known to strengthen and reinforce the walls of arteries, which aids healthy circulation. Add dark chocolate to a scoop, and its flavonoids are known to low blood pressure, improve blood flow and may also help maintain cognitive function in older adults with mild cognitive impairment.
Boost Energy & Maintain Healthy Weight
While it may sound counter-intuitive to eat ice cream to maintain your weight, the fact is older adults may need the sugar and fat found in ice cream – especially if they struggle to eat enough calories. Plus, the texture of ice cream can stimulate saliva production, which is helpful to seniors with dementia who may also have a difficult time swallowing. As an added benefit, the sugar in ice cream can give you an instant energy boost to add some pep to your step.
It Brings You Joy
It’s not uncommon to hear from seniors, who live at home, that they’re lonely or feel depressed. It’s one of the reasons we encourage seniors to move to an MBK community. Here, they will be surrounded by peers, find compassionate support and have new opportunities daily for socialization, friendships and connection. What they’ll also find is ice cream – which when eaten, your body produces serotonin which is also known as the feel-good hormone.
While ice cream is regularly on the menu in MBK communities’ restaurant-style dining rooms, a few of our communities (like Savanna House and Kirkwood Orange) also have ice cream parlors integrated into the building. How sweet is that?
Stop by an MBK Senior Living community today to enjoy lunch and a scoop of ice cream on us!
