Tips for Difficult Family Conversations

There’s nothing better than sitting around the kitchen table with those you love the most, reminiscing about the time Aunt Sally dropped the Thanksgiving turkey right onto Grandma’s lap, that incredible family vacation in Hawaii, or the day little Charlie hid a live toad in the china cabinet. But when the conversation turns to something […]

Can We Slow Down Aging with a Pill?

Perhaps one of the greatest quests throughout the ages has been in trying to discover that elusive “fountain of youth.” What if, however, the answer lies in a simple, generic medication already widely available, with the potential to extend human life to as much as 120 years? Believe it or not, the FDA has recently […]

Senior Loneliness More Deadly Than Obesity

Recent data is both startling and disturbing: seniors who suffer from loneliness and isolation are twice as unhealthy as those who are obese, and have a 14 percent greater risk of dying earlier than those experiencing normal socialization. And with as many as 20 to 40 percent of older adults reporting feelings of loneliness, we […]

Are We Medically Over-Treating Seniors?

Take a peek into the calendars of many older adults, and you’re likely to find them inundated with scheduled doctors’ appointments, therapy sessions, reminders to refill and pick up medications, reminders to schedule MORE doctors’ appointments…you get the picture. Many feel however, that our focus as a society has been far too often on medical […]

THE FINE LINE BETWEEN LOVING CONCERN AND TAKING CONTROL

A disturbing parallel has developed in our society between parenting young children and parenting our aging parents. Although it goes without saying that adult children worry about the many risks associated with aging—falls and other injuries, dementia, chronic diseases and physical limitations—there’s a fine line between loving concern and taking control. As much as we […]

WHEN A HOLIDAY VISIT UNWRAPS MORE THAN GIFTS

The holiday season is full of wonderful surprises: unexpected visits from faraway family and friends, secret gifts tucked into sparkling packages, lights twinkling around every bend. But we may also be greeted by another type of surprise—one of concern when we discover the deteriorated condition of an elderly loved one. Staying in touch only by […]

5 WAYS TO ALLEVIATE CAREGIVING STRESS

If we could choose one perfect gift to bestow upon family caregivers, it would be a blanket of peace to relieve the stress and replace it with a sense of calm purpose. So, in honor of National Family Caregivers Month, settle in with a warm cup of tea and enjoy these peace-inducing tips! Identify stress triggers. What […]

THE BEST SLEEPING POSITION TO PROTECT YOUR BRAIN

Nothing feels better than waking up refreshed and invigorated after a sound night’s sleep. And now there’s one more benefit to chalk up to good sleeping—in particular, your sleep position—helping your brain eliminate buildup of harmful chemicals and the plaques associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Mice were placed in various sleep positions and scanned with MRIs […]

CAN INJECTIONS OF YOUNG BLOOD REVERSE AGING?

It sounds like something from a sci-fi movie: injecting blood from a young person into an aging, Alzheimer’s patient, and watching as renewed youth is awakened. But that’s exactly the outcome realized in studies of mice, which showed astounding brain cell growth in the area of the brain critical to memory and learning—the hippocampus. Perhaps just […]

THIS ONE SIMPLE TEST COULD PREDICT BREAST CANCER RELAPSE

Cancer survivors whose disease has gone into remission have so much to celebrate and be thankful for, and many are celebrating this October during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. But there may always remain a concern in the back of their minds: could the cancer return? For women who have survived breast cancer, there may at […]