Speech therapy is a helpful service when your dad is having problems communicating his needs and wishes or swallowing. The need may arise after a stroke, as dementia progresses, or following throat cancer. Explore the five benefits of speech therapy for older adults below.
Heightened Quality of Life
After a stroke or as Alzheimer’s progresses, the ability to communicate is greatly affected. Speech therapy improves your quality of life by working on exercises to strengthen the throat to improve speech and safe swallowing.
The easier it is to swallow and communicate with others, the better it is for longevity and safety. Safety is an especially important aspect of speech therapy.
Improved Swallowing
Speech therapists help your dad strengthen his throat muscles for safe swallowing. If he cannot swallow a number of problems can arise. One of the biggest is a type of pneumonia that can cause significant health issues and be hard to recover from.
Swallowing skills are also important for nutritional intake, weight gain, and hydration. If your dad cannot swallow well, it’s something that has to be addressed.
Lowered Risk of Aspiration Pneumonia
Aspiration pneumonia occurs when you’re chewing and swallowing food but accidentally draw the food into the airway instead of it going down the esophagus. Or, it can be saliva that should be swallowed but instead ends up in the lungs. Both food and saliva can cause an infection known as aspiration pneumonia.
Around 17,620 deaths per year are directly attributed to aspiration pneumonia. Often, it occurs in older adults who have Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, or had a stroke. Speech therapists help lower the risk.
Better Nutritional Intake
When you can swallow, you can eat more of the foods you need. Instead of relying on nutritional shakes all of the time following his stroke, your dad could chew leafy greens and other foods that aid the body’s healing process.
Because he’s eating properly, your dad is less likely to lose too much weight and create problems with malnutrition and muscle loss. If he suffers from loss of muscle due to malnutrition, it can impact his balance and make him more likely to fall. Nutrition is important so much more you might imagine.
Easier Communication
One of the other benefits of speech therapy is that it improves communication skills. It’s easier to tell someone what you need or how you’re feeling when you can communicate well, even if your vocal ability is changing.
When your dad’s medical team recommends he works with a speech therapist, make the appropriate arrangements. His condition may make it difficult for him to leave the home, but he can have speech therapy services at home. A specialist is ready to help you learn more and get answers to your questions.
If you or an aging loved-one is considering Speech Therapy in Miami Beach, FL please contact the caring staff at Specialized Nursing Services today. (305) 652-2799