Cooking workshops are an enriching activity for seniors. If there is one community among us that enjoys true prestige and reputation in culinary matters, it is, without a doubt, that of our elders. So, it’s a great idea to encourage your family member to attend these workshops: they will enhance their memory, make friends and learn new recipes. A cooking workshop is where true gastronomic treasures are discovered: mothers and fathers keep a valuable legacy of traditional recipes in their memory. For this reason, we recommend the elderly to attend a cooking workshop. Their classes are fun; they facilitate interaction between participants. In addition, the benefits of this activity go far beyond your family. We explain it below.
#1. PARTICIPATING IN A COOKING WORKSHOP HELPS COMBAT DISCOURAGEMENT
In fact, many activities can combat anxiety, sadness, or depression in the elderly; it is a stage in life in which the elderly can feel lonely and vulnerable. These classes, in particular, touch on a well-known topic, as you will have cooked or helped cook for years. Imagine what your mother, father, or family member can contribute as a valuable cultural and gastronomic legacy. In addition, it will undoubtedly create this feeling of being the protagonists, of feeling worthwhile and wise. Showing what they know, making a traditional dish, or explaining a family recipe will bring them pleasant and joyful moments. On the other hand, knowing other recipes from other attendees will also bring them a lot of fun and collaboration. These emotions help not to get depressed, laugh, and keep loneliness at bay.
#2. COOKING CLASSES ARE A GREAT WAY TO EXERCISE YOUR MEMORY
In old age, it is imperative to carry out activities that encourage and reinforce memory. That is why it is so interesting that they are encouraged to participate in these workshops. It is highly recommended that your family member takes some effort into taking note of the recipes they will be preparing; you manage to collect in a notebook and remember the ingredients. These are ideal exercises to exercise memory, practice writing, reading, and strengthen their coordination ability.
#3. AN ACTIVITY THAT CAN PROMOTE FAMILY INTERACTION
As we explained initially, we can only strongly recommend that you propose to your family to attend a cooking workshop. Their classes are fun, they facilitate the relationship between the participants, and they try delicious recipes. Many times, the end of the course is like a celebration. For this reason, accompanying him well can be an opportunity to encourage interaction in a cheerful and entertaining environment. It should be noted that older people appreciate the company and the affection of their loved ones in an extraordinary way. They will be endearing moments that you will no doubt remember forever.
#4. IMPROVES COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS
The preparation of a recipe requires prior planning. Of course, its participants are involved, from writing the shopping list with the ingredients to calculating the preparation time or separating the utensils. Those attending these workshops participate in everything related to cooking and therefore develop their cognitive functions. Thus, participating in this daily activity will help the elderly to obtain greater concentration, find a way to organize and plan, remember relevant information for their recipes. As mentioned above, teamwork will be vital in developing these skills.
#5. INCREASE SELF-ESTEEM
Succeeding with a recipe can be vital to raising the self-esteem of the elderly; for this reason, it is crucial to reward the participants of these workshops once the recipe is finished. In fact, in the end, they will be able to share their dishes with all the residents and collect compliments of the excellent work from the rest of the colleagues in the center. Even so, if a dish does not turn out as expected, the user is always encouraged to repeat the formula to learn from the mistakes. When the desired results are finally obtained, the motivation and mood improvement is more remarkable.
#6. IMPROVES SKILL IN HANDS
Cooking is, after all, a manual activity, where you use your hands at all times. Through this cooking course for the elderly, nursing homes aim to increase the agility of the joints, this being one of the most common problems at this age. Tasks such as preparing the ingredients, writing the shopping list, cleaning the utensils, holding the cutlery, handling the dishes, or shaping dough, among others, can extraordinarily favor manual articulation.
In short, doing activities is very important for the elderly, but cooking can be a very beneficial alternative due to all the advantages it offers.
