Kitchen ideas for aging-in-place

Dear Savvy Senior,

My 77-year-old mother, who loves to navigator has had respective kitchen-related accidents complete nan past year. What tips tin you urge for making a room safer and much applicable for seniors, without doing a large costly remodel.

Inquiring Daughter

Dear Inquiring,

There are a number of mini improvements and elemental modifications you tin do that tin make a large quality successful making your mom’s room safer and easier to maneuver. Depending connected her needs, present are immoderate tips for different aspects of her kitchen.

Lights: If nan lighting successful your mom’s room needs improvement, switch nan aged overhead fixture pinch a agleam caller ceiling light, and adhd LED lighting nether precocious room cabinets to brighten up her room countertops.

Floors: If she has room propulsion rugs, to trim tripping aliases slipping, switch them pinch non-skid level mats aliases see gel mats, which are cushiony and much comfortable to guidelines connected for agelong periods. GelPro.com and WellnessMats.com connection a bully selection.

Cabinets and drawers: To trim bending aliases reaching, shape your mom’s room cabinets and drawers truthful that nan items she astir often uses are wrong comfortable reach. You tin besides make her little cabinets and pantry easier to entree by installing pullout shelves aliases lazy susans. And, by installing pull-down shelves successful her precocious cabinets (see Rev-a-shelf.com) truthful she doesn’t person to get connected a stool to scope things connected precocious shelves. I besides urge replacing her furniture and drawer knobs pinch “D” aliases “C” shaped pull-handles because they’re much comfortable for arthritic hands to grasp than knobs.

Faucet: If your mom has a twist-handle room faucet, switch it pinch an ADA compliant azygous grip faucet, aliases pinch a touch, mobility aliases integer smart faucet. They’re easier to operate, particularly if she has manus arthritis aliases gripping problems. And, for information purposes, group her basking h2o vessel astatine 120 degrees to forestall imaginable h2o burns.

Microwave and cooktop safety: If your mom’s microwave is mounted supra her stove, see moving it, aliases get her a mini microwave for nan countertop truthful she doesn’t person to scope complete a cooktop to insert aliases region food. And if you’re worried astir your mom forgetting to move disconnected nan stove location are automatic shut-off devices you tin acquisition and instal to forestall a fire. iGuardStove (iGuardFire.com) makes 1 of nan champion smart shutoff devices for state and electrical stoves. And to defender against microwave fires, there’s nan SmartMicro microwave shutoff made by Pioneering Technology (PioneeringTech.com).

Shopping for Appliances

If you’re looking to upgrade immoderate of your mom’s appliances, present are immoderate different features to support successful mind.

Refrigerator: French-door refrigerators that unfastened successful nan mediate are awesome for seniors because it makes it easier to spot and scope what’s inside. Pullout adjustable tallness shelves and a water/ice dispenser connected nan extracurricular of nan doorway are besides very convenient.

Stove aliases cooktop: Look for 1 pinch controls successful nan beforehand truthful your mom won’t person to scope complete basking burners to move it off, and make judge nan controls are easy to see. Flat aboveground electrical aliases induction burners, aliases continuous grates connected state stoves are besides awesome for sliding dense pots and pans from 1 burner to nan next. And inquire astir automatic unopen disconnected burners.

Oven: Self-cleaning ovens are a positive and see a side-swing doorway model. They’re easier to get into because you don’t person to thin complete a basking swing-down door. Also see a wall-mounted oven, installed astatine your mom’s preferred tallness to destruct bending.

Dishwasher: Consider a drawer-style dishwasher that slides successful and retired for easier entree and, if possible, person it installed connected a raised level 12 to 24 inches supra level level truthful it tin beryllium loaded and unloaded without bending over.

Washer and dryer: Front-load washers and dryers pinch pedestals that raise nan tallness astir 24 inches are besides back-savers and easier to access.

Send your elder questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, aliases sojourn SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is simply a contributor to nan NBC Today show and writer of “The Savvy Senior” book.