Aging – Page 3 – thirdAGE

3 Ways to Help a Loved One Receive Proper Nursing Home Care

It’s an almost weekly occurrence across the country. Nursing homes face lawsuits over patients who develop severe bedsores that in some cases lead to death. One week it’s a now-closed nursing home in California dealing with its third such lawsuit. Another week it’s a New Jersey nursing home sued by the family of a woman… Continue reading 3 Ways to Help a Loved One Receive Proper Nursing Home Care

7 Reasons Why More Grandparents than Ever are Using Marijuana

The legalization of medical and recreational marijuana across the country is changing the nation’s perception of what used to be a highly criminalized substance. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not just millennials that are taking advantage of increased access to the drug – grandparents are, too. A recent study by Marist and Yahoo found that… Continue reading 7 Reasons Why More Grandparents than Ever are Using Marijuana

How to Beat the Bad-Guy Rap in Discussions with Aging Parents

As two gray-haired gentlemen set their trays on the table next to me at Panera Bread, one of them asked the other, “Have you seen Ted lately?” “Nah,” the other replied. “His kids made him sell the house and move to one of those places.” The instant lump in my throat made it hard to… Continue reading How to Beat the Bad-Guy Rap in Discussions with Aging Parents

What’s Behind the Aging Process?

Researchers at the Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB) in Mainz, Germany, have made a breakthrough in understanding the origin of the aging process. They have identified that genes belonging to a process called autophagy – one of the cells most critical survival processes – promote health and fitness in young worms but drive the process… Continue reading What’s Behind the Aging Process?

How Do You Know if an Assisted Living Community is Great, Good, or Bad?

You’ve probably heard the wise advice to make two visits each assisted living facility you’re considering – one scheduled visit and one unannounced drop-in. But what should you do on these visits to decide which assisted living communities are good and which are not so good? A smart idea from Colorado’s Health Facilities and Emergency… Continue reading How Do You Know if an Assisted Living Community is Great, Good, or Bad?

Turning Back the Clock on Aging

University of California — Los Angeles (UCLA) biologists have developed an intervention that serves as a cellular time machine, turning back the clock on a key component of aging. The study was published September 6th 2017 in the journal Nature Communications, A release from the university notes that In a study on middle-aged fruit flies,… Continue reading Turning Back the Clock on Aging

Frailty and Older Men

Frailty can have devastating health consequences in older adults: It raises the risk of falling, breaking a bone, becoming hospitalized, developing delirium and dying. And though a growing frailty has always been associated with aging, two studies have found that a small number of frail older men became stronger and less frail as they grew… Continue reading Frailty and Older Men

Understanding the Effects of DNA Damage in Order to Make Healthy Aging Possible

The heredity substance DNA is the blueprint of our life. Like an instruction manual, it contains all the information needed for cells and the body to function properly. In the process, the DNA is always exposed to threats like UV light, pollutants and damage by metabolic byproducts. Many of those damages can be undone by… Continue reading Understanding the Effects of DNA Damage in Order to Make Healthy Aging Possible

New Method Forecasts Which Long-Term Care Patients Are at Risk of Fracture

A new way to predict the risk of falls in long-term care patients has been developed by researchers. The study on the assessment method, titled “Fracture Risk Assessment in Long-term Care (FRAiL)” was published Aug. 31 in the Journal of Gerontology Medical Science. The FRAiL model was developed by researchers from Hebrew SeniorLife’s Institute for… Continue reading New Method Forecasts Which Long-Term Care Patients Are at Risk of Fracture

Five Post-Summer Skin Problems and How to Solve Them

As we head into the cooler months, we may notice changes to texture, tone, perhaps some breakouts and overall ruddiness and damage from being outside enjoying the summer. Here are some of the most common post-summer skin issues I see in my practice along with some solutions for them. 1. Sunspots and wrinkles. Days at… Continue reading Five Post-Summer Skin Problems and How to Solve Them

Suicide Rates for Men Over the Age of 70 Are Higher Than in Any Other Group of People

(Editor’s note: If you or your loved ones are in danger of committing suicide please call 911 or contact the National Suicide Prevention Line, 1-800-273-8255. As stated on the site: “The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices… Continue reading Suicide Rates for Men Over the Age of 70 Are Higher Than in Any Other Group of People

Some Stem Cells May Control Aging

New research has pinpointed the exact cells in the brain’s hypothalamus that influence how fast physical aging occurs. The finding, by scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, was made in mice and might lead to new strategies for battling age-related diseases, as well as expanding lifespan. The paper was published in Nature. The hypothalamus… Continue reading Some Stem Cells May Control Aging

Aging Could be Affected by Just Smelling Food

According to new research, the goal of reasonable eating that extends lifespan may have as much to do with what’s “eating” you as what you yourself are eating. In a study published in PLOS One, neuroscientists from Florida Atlantic University show that smelling food in addition to consuming calories could influence the aging process. And, what’s “eating”… Continue reading Aging Could be Affected by Just Smelling Food

Centenarians and Better Health

When it comes to aging successfully and remaining in good health, are centenarians the perfect role models? Or is extreme age inextricably linked with increasing levels of illness? How often do diseases affect those who are in their 80s or 90s but don’t reach the 100-year mark? Researchers from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin have been… Continue reading Centenarians and Better Health

“Wise Elders” and What They Can Teach Us

Why do “wise elders” sidestep the cognitive decline associated with aging? New research may have the answer. An international team of researchers recorded and analyzed brain activity of 100 healthy older Portuguese adults with different levels of cognitive abilities and found distinct patterns of brain activity associated with better cognitive performance, according to a study… Continue reading “Wise Elders” and What They Can Teach Us

The Longevity Gene that Isn’t Permanent

Variants of a gene thought to be linked to longevity appear to influence aging into the 90s, but do not appear to affect exceptional longevity, or aging over 100, a new study has found. The research challenges previous findings that indicated some variants of the gene, FOXO3, played a role in exceptional longevity, said Harold… Continue reading The Longevity Gene that Isn’t Permanent

Geriatrics Experts Oppose Budget Cuts Affecting Older Americans

The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) voiced deep concern for proposed cuts to geriatrics health professions programs (which would be eliminated), healthcare research, Medicaid, and a range of services benefitting us all as we age–all cuts outlined by President Trump in his full budget proposal for Fiscal Year (FY) 2018, which begins on October 1, 2017.… Continue reading Geriatrics Experts Oppose Budget Cuts Affecting Older Americans