Health & Wellness

People with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias may start having trouble managing their finances several years before their diagnosis, according to new research supported by the National Institute on Aging. Published online in JAMA Internal Medicine, the study is the first large-scale analysis of people’s ability to manage their money before and after a dementia diagnosis.

Common symptoms of dementia, including memory and cognitive limitations, can lead people with dementia to have trouble handling money and paying bills, so repeated financial mistakes can be an early sign of the disease.

To learn more about how dementia may cause problems with money management years before diagnosis, CLICK HERE.

More than 25% of seniors experience a fall each year in America. Emergency departments see 3 million seniors for fall-related injuries. While falls are so common they’ve become the leading cause of both fatal and nonfatal injuries in adults over age 65, that doesn’t mean they are an inevitable fact of aging. In truth, the belief that falls are simply a natural part of getting older actually puts seniors at a greater risk for falls.

Balance and agility naturally wane in an older adult’s later years. If nothing is done, this decline puts seniors at a greater risk of experiencing an injury-inducing fall, but it doesn’t follow that there’s nothing you can do to prevent a fall from happening. To learn of some basic steps toward fall prevention that can make a senior much safer, CLICK HERE.

Most of us appreciate the importance of physical wellness both now and as we age. Intellectual wellness too has garnered more attention as we learn about the effects aging can have on our cognitive functions. But what many of us never consider is our emotional wellness and our ability to reduce anxiety, boost happiness, and enjoy sharper mental focus.

Yet, within the ever-growing list of apps with which you can decorate your home screen are a slew of mental health apps that can help all of us in our quest to achieve emotional wellness and improved mental health. Each of these apps can be downloaded from the Apple App Store or on Google Play. To view our list of favorites, CLICK HERE.

It’s no secret that staying physically fit is vital to better health and well-being. But for many of us as we get older, it just seems more and more difficult to incorporate exercise into our daily routine. It might be a busy schedule or chronic pain that makes it a challenge to move freely, or perhaps the thought of joining a gym is too intimidating. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, by the time we turn 75, about one in three men and one in two women engage in no physical activity.

To learn about the many benefits of participating in a fitness program, CLICK HERE.

You have a lot of options when it comes to where you live. In fact, where you make your home is one of the most personal and most important decisions you might make in your life. It’s especially important as you evaluate your senior living options.

According to the latest research, walkable neighborhoods are beneficial for people of all ages, but, in particular, they have a compounding effect on the benefits of independent living for seniors. Before you get too far into your research on the best senior living neighborhoods, let’s define walkable neighborhoods.

To learn what makes a neighborhood walkable, and why that’s so important, CLICK HERE.

Great news: We’re living longer. In fact, for the first time in history, residents of high-, middle-, and low-income countries are likely to live to 60 years of age and beyond. Longevity is one of the greatest achievements of our time.

But this success story is hollow if the quality of those extra years is compromised because of poor health or a loss of autonomy. Research consistently shows that making the most of these years depends largely on our lifestyle choices. And it’s much more than simply physical health.

To learn about the importance of wellness programs, CLICK HERE.

Problem Adaptation Therapy: A Breakthrough for Dementia Care Patients with Depression and Anxiety.

When someone suffers from Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia, their days can be filled with anxiety, sadness and depression, which can lead to suffering and family disruption. Research shows that about a third of people with dementia also have depression, and that anxiety symptoms afflict roughly a quarter to half of the patients with dementia.

Moreover, many people with dementia who suffer from depression and anxiety are prescribed antidepressant medications as a first-line defense. Although data on psychiatric drug use is mixed, current research indicates that antidepressants don’t work well in seniors with dementia. Many also come with serious side effects such as disorientation and confusion, which can lead to falls and fractures.

Fortunately, there are effective new therapies for seniors with depression and anxiety to help them cope and find solace. One such treatment is Problem Adaptation Therapy. To learn more, CLICK HERE.

There was a time when the young and the old naturally co-existed. It wasn’t unusual for multiple generations to live together in the same household or neighborhood, or just a short drive away. They cared for one another and shared in responsibilities, activities and the joys and sorrows of everyday life.

Today, many families are fragmented, often living hours or thousands of miles apart. Though family relationships last a lifetime, separation can cause them to suffer through a loss of comfort, tradition, learning, history, purpose and belonging. And for older adults, especially those still living at home, the loss of intergenerational activities for seniors can lead to isolation and loneliness, and that can lead to even serious health risks.

To learn about the benefits of intergenerational activities, CLICK HERE.