According to the Pew Research Center, most seniors in the United States, Italy, and Germany live independently. This means that many seniors don’t share the same living space as their grown children. Yet, in all three countries, family members provide most of the assistance seniors receive. Such assistance can include help with housework, home repairs,…
According to the AARP, caregivers generally spend an average of 24.4 hours a week providing care for loved ones. Here’s a startling statistic: almost 25% of caregivers spend more than 40 hours a week helping with Activities of Daily Living (ADL). Not surprisingly, caregiver stress compounds when medical/nursing tasks, such as tube feedings and catheter…
Caring for a loved one who requires ongoing medical attention can be stressful. After all, it’s impossible to remain in a state of persistent alertness. Additionally, any effort to do so may be counter-productive to your health. Fortunately, modern technology offers caregivers efficient and safe ways to care for loved ones. In this article, we…
Dementia: the diagnosis rings in your ears. The doctor emphasizes that all symptoms point to the disease. He’s surprisingly calm and explains that he’s ordering tests; he’s also sending your mother to a neurologist. However, he cautions you that anxiety may be premature at this point. After all, a cause for your mother’s condition has…
Seniors are living longer than ever before, and fewer are dying from major diseases. That’s undoubtedly good news. However, it’s important that caregivers keep up with new research on senior health concerns. Doing so will help them make more informed decisions about their loved ones’ care. Below, we discuss the latest information on geriatric health…
Healthcare is one of the biggest barriers preventing seniors from staying in their homes. Mobility issues, transportation challenges, and lack of a supportive network make treatment plans impossible to follow. In fact, 38 percent of Medicare recipients report difficulties meeting their healthcare needs. However, seniors still prefer to play an active role in the healthcare decision-making…
Improved healthcare resources and healthier diets have contributed to longer life spans. However, emergency room visits among seniors remain high. In fact, people over 65 account for 20 million trips to the ER annually, and almost 15% of these patients will develop a lasting disability within six months of their visit. In this article, we examine…
Gerda Saunders served as the University of Utah’s associate director of Gender Studies until she retired in 2011. That year, her colleagues gave her a leather-bound notebook as a farewell gift. Nine months prior to leaving her job, Sanders was diagnosed with cerebral microvascular disease, a precursor of dementia. She was only sixty-one. In her…
For the elderly population, a hospital admission can be life-changing. It is more difficult for people to recover from traumatic events as they age, and a health crisis requiring hospital care often signals a change in the level of support a patient needs. Here is an overview of some of the most common reasons elderly people…
Food guru Michael Pollan’s memorable words make good health simple at any age: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” There’s a great message packed into those short phrases. Essentially, what we eat makes a huge difference in our health. Pollan recommends the inclusion of unprocessed whole foods in our diet. So, healthy meals for…