A bath refreshes even the soul.

Do you know how to bathe older adults?

Did you know that a 10 minute bath heals the mind, body and emotions of our grandparents?

Did you also know that most falls in an older adult are experienced in the bathroom?

7 out of 10 family members who have to bathe their older adults do so empirically and without any preparation. Most do not have the professional knowledge to reduce risks and make the grandparents’ bathroom a time of great experiences.

We must remember that the bathroom area is where the greatest number of accidents occur in older adults, risks of falls, causing fractures and in the worst case, death.

Therefore, we should not take bathing lightly, both because of the risk of falls and to maintain good hygiene, preventing various ailments such as infections and body fungi.

An older adult requires total supervision at bath time and having ready before starting the bath routine: their soap, shampoo, razor, comb, cream, oils and their complete clothing, which includes underwear or diaper, thermal clothing, pants, shirt, sweater, socks and shoes.

It is very important that the bathroom has all the safety requirements, such as the bars to support themselves in the bathroom and a chair that allows them to bathe seated, that way if they get dizzy they do not run as much risk of falling.

Generally, older adults do not have the same mobility as when they were young, therefore, the range they have in their own body is very limited, which means that they cannot bathe well and that fungus can develop on their body. Hence the importance of continuous supervision.

The caregiver of the elderly person, or himself, should start with the head giving a gentle massage to his scalp, then he will have to soap all the folds of his body, since they are full of folds and this is where fungi are formed from bad grooming. Then they will have to wash the genitals and it is suggested to have two sponges for the anus area and another sponge for the penis or vagina area. Finally, the feet will be washed finger by finger and in the corners.

At the end they should be rinsed well and once the bath is finished they should be perfectly dried from the head and again each fold of their skin until they reach the feet, which should be dried finger by finger and the corners.

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It is very important that when you finish drying the skin, it is very well hydrated throughout the body. After this, you will proceed to get dressed starting from the top.

It seems exhaustive and if it is for them, the entire previous process tires them a lot and they end up fatigued after bathing, so we recommend helping them always.

Recent studies at the Complutense University of Madrid, found that the warm, hot or cold water bath according to the taste of our grandparents regenerates cells, eliminates bacteria, relaxes, recovers energy and sweetens the lives of older adults raising their levels of happiness entering a state of mind of peace, tranquility, awareness, reflection and enjoyment.