Five Steps to Helping Your Loved One Eat Better
August 13, 2025
Whether or not your loved one’s doctor has said she needs to eat healthier, just about everyone can benefit from reviewing their eating habits now and again to make sure they are consuming the best foods to help them stay healthy and enjoy all aspects of their lives. Bad eating habits can creep in slowly as a person ages, and habits that were not overly unhealthy when they were younger may lead to more health concerns as your loved one ages.
Common Health Issues That Are Affected by Diet
If your loved one already has a chronic health issue or is on the verge of developing one (such as being pre-diabetic or having blood pressure that is on the higher end), one of the most holistic ways to help her manage her health is by supporting her desire to eat healthier now and in the future. With a doctor’s directions, there may be different choices she can make that will improve her overall health. Some common health issues that can be improved by some dietary changes are obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and many others.
Even if your loved one doesn’t have a diagnosed health condition, a healthier diet can help her have more energy, sleep better, improve her gut health, and even keep her brain in better shape.
Five Steps to Healthier Eating
With any diet or eating changes, your loved one should always work directly with her doctor to make sure she fully understands what the doctor recommends and how to implement those changes. It can be helpful for you to attend those visits with her doctor if she allows it. Two sets of ears are always better at hearing and understanding directions.
In general, there are five easy steps to begin the process of eating healthier, and most of them occur long before a single bite of food is consumed.
- Understand food labels and read them. For any type of packaged food that your loved one is eating, she should always review the food labels to make sure ingredients she wants to avoid aren’t sneaking their way into her diet. Common “sneaky” ingredients include sodium, cholesterol, and fats.
- Keep it fresh. When possible, fresh is always better than frozen or processed. Look for ingredients that are in season to ensure the best taste and lowest prices.
- Make a plan. Meal planning is one of the most successful tools for staying on a healthy diet. Each week, your loved one can plan what she wants to eat each week and then, when it’s time to shop, make sure she purchases the items needed to make those healthier meals and snacks. If it seems a bit overwhelming, a companion care at home provider can help create the list and shop for it with her.
- Prepare ahead of time. Nothing promotes bad choices than being hungry without anything prepared. Enlist your loved one’s companion care at home provider to help her chop veggies for snacks, portion off single meal sizes from big batches, and have her favorite fruit-infused water to drink.
- Portion control. While buying single-serve bags is easiest, it’s often costly. Instead, buy items in bulk, but then have your companion care at home provider help your loved one break it into single servings so she can still enjoy a snack, but doesn’t have to worry about having too much.
If you or your loved one is looking for Companion Care at Home in San Jose, CA, please call Familiar Surroundings Home Care.
Santa Clara County: (408) 979-9990
San Mateo County: (650) 353-9777
Santa Cruz County: (831) 480-3990