Health & Fitness
Senior Advisor: How seniors should handle grocery shopping
As owner of The Summit of Uptown, Audrey has cared for seniors on a daily basis. She understands the concerns of seniors and gives practical advice on life as an older American.
Grocery shopping. What was once just another necessary household chore may loom like an insurmountable hurdle in our week as we get older. The intimidating ordeal—long aisles with multiple signs, constantly changing sections, and a distracting array of choices—must be navigated as you make your way to the checkout. And if you have trouble walking or problems seeing, it can become an even greater challenge. But with some planning and maybe a little help, grocery shopping can go from an overwhelming obstacle to just another check off on our to-do list.
I’ve found some ways to make this basic household task less burdensome. Maybe one of them will work for you.
Find out what's happening in Park Ridgewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Most major grocery chains have Web sites where you can shop online and have your groceries delivered straight to your front door.
You could also engage a shopping service. But many people like to check prices, quality and ingredients themselves on the items they buy.
Find out what's happening in Park Ridgewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
If you choose to make the trip to the store yourself, you can make it easier by making a list. You can do this the old-fashioned way with paper and pencil or on the computer where you can increase the size of the type for easier readability, or you might even try recording it on a hand-held recorder. If you’re really a techie, you can email it to yourself and read it off of your smart phone as you shop.
Shopping with a friend or family member can often make grocery shopping less difficult. Your weekly outing might even include taking your companion out to lunch as a way to say thank-you.
If you choose to live in a retirement community such as The Summit of Uptown with its full service dining package featuring three meals daily, you won’t ever have to worry about going to the grocery store again. But if you like that lunch with your family member or friend, you can still take those trips to the grocery store with them by choosing the one or two meal a day package and have the best of both worlds.
There are always choices when it comes to dealing with anything in life—and one of those things is necessary household chores. You’re in charge. It’s up to you to decide just how much grocery shopping—or anything else for that matter—that you want to keep in your schedule.
For questions and comments, you can call me at 847-825-1161, email me at audrey@summitofuptown.com , or write to me at The Summit of Uptown, 10 N. Summit Ave., Park Ridge, Ill 60068.
