Oh, the gravy. The potatoes. The sauces and desserts. What’s a person to do when faced with so many temptations on Thanksgiving and the ensuing holidays?  How do you avoid overeating when all you want to do is celebrate?  We decided to visit with Melissa De Los Santos, Dietician at the Witherell, for some answers….

Question: What does it take to whip up close to 600 delicious, nutritious meals every day? Answer: A super chef who is part whirling dervish, part genius, as the skills needed to satisfy the varied palettes of older adults, many of whom have health challenges, require a deft hand. In a way, our new “cuisine…

Some of us like to have our chocolate and eat it, too. Whether in cookies, slathered on cakes, poured on top of ice cream, or eaten straight from a bar, chocolate is delicious. While we tend to think of chocolate as a Valentine’s Day gift or think more about it during American Heart Month, for…

  …But visions of sugar plums still danced in my head, and cookies, and cakes, and sweet buttered bread. Oh, what shall I do when I see a big platter, and think that more turkey really won’t matter? Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all! I needed advice, so the Witherell I called. And…

Yum! Hot dogs, salsa, potato chips, dips! With Labor Day and autumn BBQs on the horizon, those tasty morsels are on everyone’s menu. Yet their high sodium content should also be on everyone’s radar. According to a recent study as reported by Prevention and Science Daily – adding salt to prepared foods can actually lead…

By now, it’s a well-known fact that as we age, we lose muscle mass, particularly skeletal muscle mass (e.g. shoulder muscles, hamstring muscles and abdominal muscles) which we rely on to move, maintain posture and metabolism, and for strength. For the most part, losing muscle mass (sarcopenia) begins somewhere around the age of 40. By…

Aging in place has been receiving a lot of attention lately, and it’s often a discussion older adults have with their family members. On the plus side, being in familiar surroundings and following the same old routine is comforting. But it’s also important to know that as we get older, our bodies change. Aging brings…

While we know that diet plays a key role in overall wellness by enhancing the body’s immune response and reducing the risk of disease, for seniors, proper nutrition is essential to healthy aging. Beyond nutrition, food can also evoke memories of family celebrations and cultural connections. For the Witherell’s registered dietitians, creating meal plans for…

When you have a parent who is an older adult, gatherings during the holidays present a great opportunity to get a sense of how they’re doing, both physically and emotionally. You might notice that things aren’t quite what they should be; there may be signs of decline. Questions come to mind, like: Has dad lost…