Planning for your care in the event of a long-term or serious illness can involve more than giving a loved one a health care directive, a living will or health care proxy, and a power of attorney. If you have questions about what choices you have, you can ask your doctor as well. One way… Continue reading Discussing Financial and Life Changes with Your Doctor
Category: Aging
Health Costs of Ageism Calculated at $63 Billion Annually
Ageism — a widespread form of prejudice that is directed at older persons — led to excess costs of $63 billion for a broad range of health conditions during one year in the United States, a 2018 study by the Yale School of Public Health has found. Directed by Professor Becca R. Levy, the study… Continue reading Health Costs of Ageism Calculated at $63 Billion Annually
What You Need to Know about Geriatric Care Managers
If you’re suddenly faced with the need to care for an aging loved one, the decisions you’re required to make will seem overwhelming. In cases like these, a good geriatric care manager, usually a licensed nurse or social worker who specializes in geriatrics, may help. Although they are not covered by Medicare, a geriatric care… Continue reading What You Need to Know about Geriatric Care Managers
Getting A Grip on Avoiding Disability
Older adults with good grip strength – the ability to grasp and hold on to or pull an object – are less likely to become disabled, researchers say. The information came from an analysis conducted by Chinese investigators of a study called SHARE. In that study, 30,434 people, age 50 or older, were surveyed every… Continue reading Getting A Grip on Avoiding Disability
Social Media Buffers Depression Among Older Adults with Pain
With a few finger strokes or swipes on a computer or cell phone, seniors with pain reduce the risk of depression when visiting social media sites. That is the finding of a 2018 University of Michigan study published in the Journals of Gerontology, Series B. A release from the univerisyt notes that the researchers reported… Continue reading Social Media Buffers Depression Among Older Adults with Pain
A Surprising Benefit of Hearing Aids – and Cataract Surgery
Hearing aids and cataract surgery are strongly linked to a slower rate of age-related cognitive decline, according to a new study by British researchers. According to Dr Piers Dawes and Dr Asri Maharani, of the University of Manchester, cognitive decline- which affects memory and thinking skills- is slowed after patient’s hearing and sight are improved.… Continue reading A Surprising Benefit of Hearing Aids – and Cataract Surgery
5 Lies We Tell Ourselves That Age Us
You and I know there’s nothing wrong with getting older. You’ve lived through important experiences and every year is worth celebrating. But if you’re like many women, it’s not just the idea of getting older that bothers you. What bothers you is the worry that you might lose yourself or be forgotten or overlooked because… Continue reading 5 Lies We Tell Ourselves That Age Us
Living a Healthier (Not Longer) Life
Clinicians, scientists and public health professionals have extended the human lifespan to its limits, and now need to focus on a “healthspan” instead that emphasizes health over longevity, according to University of Illinois at Chicago epidemiologist S. Jay Olshansky. In an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Olshansky, professor of epidemiology… Continue reading Living a Healthier (Not Longer) Life
Test Post – Scheduling
This is a test post to be scheduled for Later
Five Reasons Home Health Care Is on The Rise
If you have tried to get care at home for a loved one, it may have been a difficult and time-consuming process. You are not alone. I also had the experience of trying to find care for an older adult family member, and though I have worked in home care for many years, it is… Continue reading Five Reasons Home Health Care Is on The Rise
Medicare Patients Are Less Likely to Die in a Hospital
Where are Medicare patients most likely to die? A 2018 study done by Joan M. Teno, M.D., M.S., Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, and coauthors found that from 2000 to 2015 there was a decline in deaths in an acute-care hospital and an increase in deaths in a home or other community setting such… Continue reading Medicare Patients Are Less Likely to Die in a Hospital
New Movement Monitoring System Helping Prevent Falls in the Elderly
Technology that allows BMW’s assembly lines to run more efficiently is now being used to indicate accurately when residents in Assisted Living Facilities (ALF) are at increased risk of falling. William Kearns, president of the International Society for Gerontechnology and associate professor at the University of South Florida College of Behavioral and Community Sciences, collected… Continue reading New Movement Monitoring System Helping Prevent Falls in the Elderly
Why People Become More Prone to Distraction with Age
Older adults appear more easily distracted by irrelevant information than younger people do when they experience stress or powerful emotions– and a specific network in the brain recently identified as the epicenter for Alzheimer’s and dementia may be to blame. A 2018 study led by the University of Southern California found that seniors’ attention… Continue reading Why People Become More Prone to Distraction with Age
Can We Turn Back Time? Muscles’ Own Protective Systems Could Help Reduce Frailty
New research published in the Journal of Physiology o March 11th 2018 helps explain why people experience muscle loss in old age, increasing the prospects of reversing the condition in the future. A release from the Physiological Society explains that as people grow older, their leg muscles become progressively smaller and weaker, leading to frailty… Continue reading Can We Turn Back Time? Muscles’ Own Protective Systems Could Help Reduce Frailty
How Memory Changes as We Get Older
It’s known that when it comes to memory proficiency, there are differences between younger and older adults. Now, though, researchers report that data from brain imaging can zero in to show the underlying causes for such memory deficits. The findings appeared in the journal Neuron. “At the fundamental level, we still understand very little about… Continue reading How Memory Changes as We Get Older
Brain Stimulation Works for Younger Adults, not Older Ones
Brain stimulation, touted as a way to improve memory, works in younger adults but not older ones, new research shows. In a study published online for a forthcoming special issue on the cognitive neuroscience of aging from the Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences, researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago tested these outcomes by… Continue reading Brain Stimulation Works for Younger Adults, not Older Ones
Perceptions of Old Age Change as We Age
Does life really begin at 40? Is 50 the new 30? For people in these age groups, the answer appears to be yes. But for young adults in their teens and early 20s, turning 50 equates to hitting old age, according a February 2018 study of more than a half-million Americans led by a Michigan… Continue reading Perceptions of Old Age Change as We Age
Guarding Against the Misuse of Language When Guiding Patients and Families on Death and Dying
A University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing) perspective article published in February 2018 in the journal Perspectives in Biology and Medicine cautions that care must be taken by clinicians to guard against the misuse of language when guiding patients and families on death and dying. According to a release from Penn, in general,… Continue reading Guarding Against the Misuse of Language When Guiding Patients and Families on Death and Dying