Editor’s Note: The following column was originally published March 4, 2023.

Thanks to breakthroughs in medicine and nutrition in recent years, we are living longer than ever before. But this increase in life expectancy also brings an increase in the number of diseases, injuries and impairments that affect older adults. With this in mind, we at the Salem Visiting Angels office have created this series of articles to keep our older population and their families informed and to offer some practical advice for meeting the challenges faced by seniors and those who care for them.

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Every couple dreams of growing old together. People want to spend their golden years with that special person who has been by their side through all of Life’s highs and lows. Many times, aging together means that one spouse is called upon to serve as caregiver for their partner when the physical or cognitive decline that accompanies aging makes it difficult for that person to care for themselves any longer.

However, all too often the signs of aging also creep up on the spouse who is doing the caring, and the quality of the care they were providing begins to suffer. While this decline in care may be obvious to those around the couple, it may not be as noticeable to the person providing the care. In fact, many older caregivers may even refuse to face the fact that they are no longer able to take care of their spouse themselves, the way they once did.

Unfortunately, inadequate care can compromise the health and safety of both the person receiving the care and the person providing it in a number of ways, and it could lead to serious injury or even death.

Nutrition and diet often suffer when an older spouse is unable to care for their loved one. This could be because the spouse isn’t able to get to the grocery store to buy nutritious foods as often as they need to, or it could be because they don’t have the ability to prepare a full meal, either because they don’t have the energy or because the process of meal preparation is painful. In extreme cases, the caregiving spouse may be suffering from memory problems which cause them to forget about meals altogether.

As a result, if the couple is eating at all, they are eating simple, quick meals which do not meet their nutritional needs. This can lead to health problems such as weight loss or weight gain or the worsening of medical conditions which require special diets, such as heart disease or diabetes. Dehydration is also a serious health concern for older adults which can occur when the caregiving spouse forgets or is unable to provide their care recipient with enough to drink.

Medication misuse can also result when older spouses care for one another. This often happens when the caregiving spouse is unable to remember to give their loved one their medications on time, or perhaps poor eyesight prevents them from reading the medicine bottles clearly. This leads to the care recipient either receiving the wrong medications, not receiving their medications at the right time or even not receiving their medications at all.

An older spouse overwhelmed by the responsibility of caring for their loved one may not be keeping up personal hygiene or housekeeping tasks as regularly as they should. This may result in poor hygiene and unclean living conditions. In addition to personal problems like body odor, unkempt hair and dirty clothing, couples could be living in squalid conditions. Unclean counters could lead to food contamination, and trash or other items strewn across the floor present fall hazards.

A bedbound person whose personal hygiene and other care needs are not met could also experience skin disorders or bedsores.

A caring spouse whose strength and endurance have declined with age may overexert themselves when trying to transfer a loved one. This can happen trying to move their care recipient to or from bed or the toilet or even trying to get them into and out of the car for appointments. Not only could this lead to muscle and joint injury for the person providing the care, but it could also lead to injuries for both people if an improper transfer leads to a fall.

Families who have older loved ones caring for spouses should watch for signs that they are struggling, such as a decline in hygiene, missing meals or medications, the inability to keep up with household chores, and other unusual behaviors. It is important to provide support to these caregivers, even if they are having a hard time asking for help. There are many local resources available to help family members caring for their loved ones, including respite care programs at facilities, adult daycare centers and professional in-home care agencies which assist older adults with safely aging in place.

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Information provided by Visiting Angels, America’s choice in homecare. Visiting Angels’ non-medical homecare services allow people to continue enjoying the independence of their daily routines and familiar surroundings. To set up an appointment for a no-obligation in-home consultation, call 330-332-1203.