Recipe Contest Hopes To Revive Family Mealtimes For Local Seniors

According to research conducted for the Home Instead Senior Care network, lack of companionship is the biggest mealtime challenge for seniors. And Sharon Massafra, president of the Home Instead Senior Care offices in Sandy Hook, wants to do something about that.

She recently announced a Craving Companionship Recipe Contest being conducted through September 15.

“As part of our alliance with the Craving Companionship program we are collaborating to conduct this recipe contest to help seniors stay connected socially and eat more nutritiously,” said Ms Massafra, who also operates an office in Trumbull. “We’re encouraging family caregivers to find a favorite family recipe, prepare and share that meal with their senior loved one. Then enter that recipe into the contest with the story about why that dish is so special to their family.”

Caregivers who are staff members of the franchise owned by Sharon and her husband, Robert, serve seniors and their families in 33 towns throughout northern Fairfield, southern Litchfield and northwest New Haven Counties.

“Many seniors need help planning and preparing nutritious meals, but that’s only part of the story,” explained Ms Massafra. “They also want to relive a time around the dinner table when they are sharing their lives with the people they love most. Home Instead Senior Care network research reveals that seniors who live alone want good-tasting, nutritious food and stimulating conversation when they share home-cooked meals with family and friends. We recognize this and are quite delighted to collaborate on this recipe contest.”

The overall Craving Companionship program is geared to helping families support a nutritiously vulnerable population, older adults who live alone. According to the US Census Bureau, approximately 40 percent of the nation’s population aged 75 and older — 6.7 million people — live alone.

The Craving Companionship program and recipe contest are incentives for families to find time to help their loved ones prepare the foods they’ve always loved and enjoy those dishes with them.

“Who likes to eat alone? Nobody,” stated Sandy Markwood, National Association of Area Agencies on Aging chief executive officer.

“We know from such popular home-delivered meals programs as Meals On Wheels that companionship is among the most important needs of local seniors,” explained Ms Markwood. “Older adults often look forward to the delivery driver as much as the meal. We share the Home Instead Senior Care mission to help older adults live with confidence at home for as long as possible by providing the support they need. Because when a senior is isolated, it’s indicative of bigger challenges that person could be facing.”

Two of five seniors who live alone (44 percent) have at least four warning signs of poor nutritional health. According to Home Instead Senior Care network research, the most common of these warning signs and their incidence rates are:

*Eating alone most of the time (76 percent)

*Taking three or more different medications a day (71 percent)

*Eating few fruits, vegetables, or milk products (46 percent)

*Having an illness/condition that prompted a change in diet (31 percent)

*Not always being physically able to shop, cook, or feed themselves (25 percent)

The research also confirms the value of mealtimes. An overwhelming majority of seniors (85 percent) say that having someone to share their meals makes those times more satisfying for them. Nearly one-half (48 percent) say their mealtimes are more satisfying if they have someone prepare their meals for them. These same seniors say that several factors hinder their mealtime companionship.

The most common obstacles are that family/friends do not have enough time (28 percent), or they live too far away (20 percent).

“That’s no surprise since we know from experience families often lack time to help their aging parents,” said Ms Massafra. “But 59 percent of seniors who live alone say they eat more nutritiously when family and friends are around. They really enjoy having that connection with someone, whether it’s a family caregiver or a professional Home Instead caregiver.”

The Craving Companionship program (mealsandcompanionship.com) offers family caregiver’s tips and practical advice to encourage companionship and easy healthy meals. Selected recipes and stories from the Craving Companionship Recipe Contest will be posted online as well as in the Homemade Memories Cookbook, which will be available for purchase in time for the 2011 holiday season. Proceeds will go to the nonprofit Home Instead Senior Care Foundation to benefit North American seniors.

For information on the contest, including guidelines and prizes, visit www.mealsandcompanionship.com.

For information on Home Instead Senior Care, visit www.homeinstead.com/307 or contact their Sandy Hook office at 203-426-6666.