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Could House Calls Be Making a Comeback?

Date: June 30, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
Could House Calls Be Making a Comeback?

Have you ever not felt well and wished that your doctor could come to you? While house calls are thought to be a thing of the past, they could be making a comeback. This comeback could be especially helpful for seniors who struggle with transportation.

Could House Calls Be Making a Comeback?

Could House Calls Be Making a Comeback?

 

The idea of house calls is old. It was common for doctors to go to patients’ homes in the early 1900s. The practice went extinct as hospitals and better technology evolved.

This practice would be a great addition to the care that seniors already get in their homes.

Even though technology killed the house call industry, it’s also going to bring it back. Technology has become small and more comfortable to carry around. Things like EKGs, small refrigerators for vaccines and blood, and other devices can now fit in a backpack.

Support from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicaid Services (CMS) is making the return of this idea a reality. It’s reported that patients who receive care at home are readmitted to hospitals less and have shorter hospital stays. Research also shows that house calls can improve the overall quality of life for people with many conditions or near the end of their life.

There does need to be a complete nationwide change in structure so that house calls can succeed. Doctors will also have to be trained in home care. Hopefully, as time goes on, a plan on how to implement this idea will become clearer.

Read more here.

Seniors Getting Surgery Don’t Always Work Out

Date: June 23, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
Seniors Getting Surgery Don't Always Work Out

Right now the amount of people 65 and older is around 16% of the U.S. population, yet somehow they account for 40% of people who undergo surgeries. Seems like a lot, right? It’s going to get bigger as more seniors consider surgery. It’s essential to know all the info before getting surgery because seniors and surgery don’t always end well.

Seniors Getting Surgery Don't Always Work Out

Seniors Getting Surgery Don’t Always Work Out

 

Seniors are actually getting more surgeries that were considered dangerous a few years ago. One doctor, Dr. Clifford Ko, did major surgery on an 86-year-old.

“Ten years ago, I’d think ‘My God, can this person even survive the operating room?’ Now, it’s increasingly common to see octogenarians for these types of operations. “

Both Ko and Dr. Ronnie Rosenthal, another surgeon and geriatrician, lead the American College of Surgeon’s Coalition for Quality in Geriatric Surgery. Because more seniors are getting surgeries, the coalition has focused more on the results of the operations. They found that seniors struggle more after surgeries than young adults.

One study looked at nonemergency surgeries of 165,000 adults 65 and older and found that mortality and complications increased with age. Their hospital stays were longer too. A different study found that patients in their 80s that have surgery for lung, esophageal, and pancreatic cancer have a much higher mortality rate than those who are between the ages of 65 through 69.

It’s not surprising that older people struggle more, but the question is why? One issue is that they already have many chronic conditions in addition to what they need surgery for. Each condition can affect the other, leaving both the patient and the doctor to struggle to get the patient healthy. There’s also the fact that seniors are more vulnerable to infections and can lose mobility after spending days in bed. Frailty can also be a significant factor in recovering.

Can Hospitals Do More for Senior Patients?

The coalition decided that hospitals can do better for their older patients. Yale will be introducing a geriatric surgery verification program in July. They spent four years planning and researching this program. It sets up 30 standards that hospitals should meet to improve results for older patients.

In October, hospitals can start applying for the verification, giving patients and their families assurance that they will get the best treatment possible.

A team from the program will visit each applying hospital. They will look at charts, interview people, and see in real time if hospitals meet the standards they created. Some of which are “geriatric-friendly” rooms, managing medication, and having less reliance on opioids.

The participating hospitals will have to screen older patients for factors like advanced age, cognitive problems, malnutrition, and impaired mobility that can put them at higher risk. Some of these risks will be addressed before surgery, like doing “pre-habilitation” to help patients get stronger.

Most of the other standards have to do with communication. Surgeons need to make sure patients truly understand the risks and any available alternatives. They also need to respect the patient’s wishes. Seniors’ wants can be different from someone who is 50.

Read more here.

Hunger Hits American Seniors and Will Only Get Worse as Boomers Age

Date: June 18, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips

When we talk about hunger, it’s usually in a different country that’s far from home. Now hunger hits American seniors too. It will only get worse as Boomers get older. According to a new study done by Feeding America, if we don’t address this problem, the number of seniors that face hunger will be up to eight million by 2050.

Hunger Hits American Seniors and Will Only Get Worse as Boomers Age

Hunger Hits American Seniors

 

Half the population of American seniors is in danger of being malnourished. This is especially dangerous with seniors because of how vulnerable they are to chronic health problems. Hunger and health issues go hand in hand, which will lead to more hospitalizations.

The government is trying to find more funding for food programs under the Older Americans Act (OAA). This act is meant to help older Americans stay healthy and comfortable through a variety of programs. Ninety-five percent of people that use the OAA’s nutrition programs have many different chronic conditions. Almost half of the people who used the OAA meal programs and nearly two-thirds of those who use home delivery meal programs have six or more chronic conditions.

The Old Solutions Won’t Work Anymore

 

The reason this issue has become so dire is that the Boomer generation is different from previous ones. For example, family isn’t as much of a safety net as it was before. Many Boomer women chose to stay single and focus on their career, so that means more people are relying on federal programs like Meals on Wheels. Some people even consider the Boomer generation to be the divorce generation. The rate of divorce among Boomers is high, depending on how the divorce went, adults may be alienated from their children.

Sad to say, programs like Meals on Wheels have been underfunded for a long time. Combine that with rising healthcare costs, America could become the survival of the fittest battle arena. Many younger older adults could face health deterioration and death before they reach their 70s and beyond because of all this.

Hopefully, because the situation is so dire, the government will pour more funds into meal programs, and we as a country can help keep American seniors well fed.

Read more here.

10 Best Senior Athletes All Around the World

Date: June 9, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
10 Best Senior Athletes Around the World

For these best senior athletes, age is just a number. Their achievements range in golf, basketball, and running. They all started exercising for one reason or another, but either way, they are happy and healthy even when they’re in triple digits. Here are some of the best senior athletes around the world.

10 Best Senior Athletes Around the World

10 Best Senior Athletes All Around the World

 

1. Gary Player

This golfer is one of the best in history. He started in 1953 and has nine majors to his name. These include three Masters and three British Opens. He was even inducted in the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.

2. Nancy Lieberman

Nicknamed “Lady Magic,” this basketball star was the oldest player in Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), playing at age 50 in 2008. Now, she is the coach of the Sacramento Kings. She has a list of awards like inductions into the Nassau County Sports Hall of Fame, Basketball Hall of Fame, and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.

3. Stanislaw Kowalski

Kowalski competed in the Polish Veterans Championships in 2015 at over a hundred years old. He competed in the 100m race, finishing in only 34.50 seconds.

4. Sue Martin

Martin rode her mare, Blue Haze, to the finish line at Tampa Bay Downs in Florida in January 2017. She was 62 at the time. She has seven kids, eighteen grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. She has scored thirty wins from 721 mounts.

5. Saoul Mamby

Mamby has a boxing career that spans forty years. He was actually forced to retire in his fifties by the California State Athletic Commission in 2000. That didn’t stop him from returning to the ring at the age sixty to fight Anthony Osbourne in 2008. He lost the match but became the oldest boxer to appear in an officially sanctioned fight.

6. Edwina Bricklesby

Not starting an exercise regime until her fifties, Bricklesby is now a well-known triathlete. Running helped her cope with her husband’s death, and the more she did it, the more she wanted to join a marathon. She ran her first marathon in 1996 when she was 53, and completed her first London Triathlon when she was 58. She is still going at 76.

7. Eddy Diget

At 74, Diget spends his time as a personal trainer. He’s done cross-country running, ice skating, roller skating, fencing, and cycling. He’s represented England in the Commonwealth Games in 1962 for diving and swimming. He’s been doing weight training for 45 years and was a British bodybuilding champion twice at age 58 and 68 respectively.

8. Gwyn Haslock

Haslock entered her first surfing competition in 1965 and was the only woman. She became a champion in 1969. She doesn’t surf as much as she used at 73, but she does a bit of fencing.

9. Ida Keeling

Keeling was 67 when she started running. She was using it to cope with the loss of her sons. After that, she couldn’t stop. Now at 104, she is still running and is now in races. She goes to the gym, rides her bike, works out, and more. Her doctor says she’s as healthy as a 25-year-old.

10. Fauja Singh

Singh ran a marathon for the first time when he was 89. His last race was in 2013 when he was 101. While a hernia stops him from running, he still walks around five miles each day.

A Healthy Mind Creates a Healthy Body

Date: June 9, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
How to Care for Seniors During Covid-19

Studies show that depression gets worse as you get older. Some people may think that it’s normal to be sad as you age. A lot of changes happen when you’re in the later half of your life. Not all of them are good, but depression isn’t something you have to suffer through. It’s essential to take care of your mental health like you do with your physical health. After all, a healthy mind creates a healthy body.

A Healthy Mind Creates a Healthy Body

A Healthy Mind Creates a Healthy Body

 

The CDC says that 20% of people over 55 have a mental health concern. Only 2/3 of that group get professional healthcare. While that’s worrying, it’s even worse because mental health issues can make treating physical health harder. While there is no clear cut connection between the two, doctors agree that one affects the other.

Professionals think that therapy should be better integrated into primary care. General practitioners and psychiatrists need to create better relationships with each other and use a collaborative care model. In this model, a psychiatrist is known as a behavioral health care manager and is a consult for your primary. If the new model goes into place, your primary will have some basic training to screen patients for mental health issues.

From there, your primary will refer you to the behavioral care manager instead of a psychologist. This will normalize mental health being part of your overall health. It will also get rid of the stigma that surrounds mental health problems.

This New Model in Action

 

 

A study used this collaborative model with a lot of success. The model doubled the efficiency of treating depression. Over a year, half of the patients reported around a 50% reduction in their depression symptoms compared with the 19% reduction in the control group.

This new model even saves money. Every dollar that’s spent in using the model, hospitals get 7 dollars back over the course of four years.

Read more here.

4 Lifestyle Changes to Help with High Blood Pressure

Date: June 2, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
4 Lifestyle Changes to Help with High Blood Pressure

Around 46% of U.S. adults have high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, according to The American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiologists. Around half of that percentage have it under control. There are lifestyle changes you can do in addition to medication to help with this condition.

4 Lifestyle Changes to Help with High Blood Pressure

4 Lifestyle Changes to Help with High Blood Pressure

 

High blood pressure is a common problem in seniors because your arteries harden and fatty deposits build up.

1. Dietary Changes

A big thing you can do to help yourself is to lessen the amount of salt you eat. There is a lot of evidence that salt is connected to hypertension. Also, limit how much alcohol and caffeine you drink.

Potassium can lower blood pressure, so add foods like bananas, pomegranates, sweet potatoes, and spinach. Olive oil, cocoa flavonoids, tea, and garlic should be added too.

2. Everyday Health Changes

There are small changes that you can make that not only help with your hypertension, but with your overall health. Sleep apnea has been connected to high blood pressure levels and other conditions. Get tested for sleep apnea if you have any suspicions.

Supplements are helpful too. You should find ones that are good for potassium, Vitamin C, fiber, Omega 3 fish oil, and coenzyme Q10.

3. Meditation

Keeping calm does fantastic things with blood pressure levels. Taking part in meditation, relaxation practices, yoga, slow breathing, and Tai Chi are beneficial to those with hypertension.

4. Biofeedback

This can help people deal with symptoms with a variety of different health problems, including hypertension. How it works is that a person does deep breathing with Resperate, which is a biofeedback device. It encourages slow, deep breath by giving feedback about the patient’s breathing.

Read more here.

Geriatricians Vs Primary Doctors

Date: June 2, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
How Ageism Hurts Seniors' Health

Do you know the difference between geriatricians vs primary doctors? Both are doctors, and both can help you stay healthy. Geriatricians focus on senior care. Sometimes they have individual offices, or they work as a consultant for primary doctors.

Geriatricians Vs Primary Doctors

Geriatricians Vs Primary Doctors

 

This type of doctor is more than just a specialty. The current state of primary care isn’t prepared for the influx of the senior population that’s coming. Some primary doctors are even unwilling to see older patients.

Especially, people with many different chronic illnesses, have dementia, or other related issues due to aging.

Primary care doctors are under stress because they have a broader population of patients to see and can’t give the time senior patients deserve. Primary doctors are also expected to see more patients and spend less time with them. Due to these constrictions, they don’t want to see time-consuming senior patients.

Where are all the Geriatricians?

 

You would think that because the geriatric field is wide open, young doctors would be rushing to it. Sadly, that’s not the case. Many geriatric fellowship programs don’t get filled up due to lack of interest.

Geriatricians don’t make a lot of money compared to doctors that get paid for seeing as many patients as they can or doing procedures. In fact, they make less than any other specialty doctor.

Why would young people go into this field, knowing that they have thousands of dollars in student loans?

This type of doctor is used to working in teams: working along with specialist physicians, social workers, nurses, nurse practitioners, physical therapists, pharmacists, and nutritionists. They also recognize that social factors like transportation, nutrition, and housing can affect seniors.

Primary doctors may lack this sort of experience.

What are Some Solutions?

 

While not all primary care doctors are ill-equipped to work with seniors, there still needs to be back up before primaries are drowning in patients.

It’s actually thought that family physicians should double as geriatricians due to their training, which has a focus on a holistic approach. This could be a possible solution for the lack of geriatricians. If you can find one with this training, you should hold onto them.

Geriatricians have three essential skills that other physicians usually don’t. The first being trained in aging-related physiological changes and clinical syndromes. They have training in team-based care and systems of care for older adults. Finally, they have a clinical focus on functional status and a holistic approach to managing health. This means they share decision making with the patient.

Geriatricians also understand that seniors are different than the average adult. They lose some of the mechanisms that help systems adapt to changes and stress. This makes medications react differently and makes them agitate more easily.

Another solution is to have these doctors make more money is to pay them based on how much they save programs like Medicare. When people see a geriatrician, they can prevent hospital visits, which will cost more. This would be instead of getting paid per patient.

Read more here.

Why Won’t People Wear Their Hearing Aids?

Date: May 26, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
Not Getting Hearing Loss Treated Can Lead to More Isolation

Do you have anyone in your life that needs hearing aids? It’s not an uncommon tool that’s needed as you get older. Despite this, there is a trend where people who are hard of hearing are refusing to wear their hearing aids.

Why Won't People Wear Their Hearing Aids?

How Many Seniors Need Hearing Aids?

 

Around a third of adults between 65 and 74 need hearing aids. Half of those that are 75 and older need these aids as well.

Only around 20% of these people who can benefit from the aids actually use them.

Why Won’t People Wear Their Hearing Aids?

 

A big part of this trend is that people don’t want to get aids adjusted by an audiologist. Without an adjustment, the aids won’t work as well.

People who use prescription hearing aids or over-the-counter personal sound amplification products (PSAPs) don’t like the stigma that comes along with using these aids. They could also be bad with technology and not want to be seen as a stereotypical old person. Finally, it could be a matter of not being able to afford the extra cost of an appointment.

A lot of people don’t buy them because they can cost anywhere between $2,200 to $7,000. On top of the price, both Medicare and private insurance don’t cover hearing aids.

What good are the aids though if seniors can’t afford to get them adjusted? People on Medicaid and Medicare were 41% less likely to use services like an audiologist than people with more money.

Why They are Important

 

Hearing aids do so much more than just letting you hear better. Hearing loss can cause emotional, physical, and financial damage. It’s been tied to cognitive decline, dementia, falls, and higher health care costs. Overall, those who don’t wear aids have worse health compared to people with good hearing.

Read more here.

Diet Soda Raising Older Women’s Stroke Risk?

Date: May 19, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
6 Surprising Reasons You're Thirsty

You know that drinking a lot of soda is bad for you. When you have a craving for soda, you probably reach for a diet one. If you are an older woman, you may want to think twice. A new study shows that diet soda and artificially sweetened fruit juices are raising older women’s stroke risk.

Diet Soda Raising Older Women's Stroke Risk?

Diet Soda Raising Older Women’s Stroke Risk?

 

The study tracked around 82,000 postmenopausal women. These women drank two or more diet drinks a day. They saw their overall stroke risk rise by 23% compared to others who didn’t drink as much.

They studied these women for around 12 years. After three years, they were asked how much diet sodas and fruit drinks they had over every three months.

They didn’t keep track of the brands of the drinks or any artificial sweeteners they used.

Two-thirds of the women in the study admitted to drinking diet sodas not often, less than once a week or never. Only around 5% were found to drink a lot (2 or more a day) of artificially sweetened drinks.

 

What Does Diet Soda Do?

 

Why the concern? Blocked arteries are the main reason. Drinking a lot of diet drinks has been linked to a 31% percent greater risk for an ischemic stroke. A clot triggers this.

The study did take into consideration other risk factors, like their blood pressure, smoking history, and their age.

Drinking a lot of soda can raise cardiovascular risks in different ways. Women who drank two or more diet beverages a day saw their risk for developing heart disease go up 29%. They were also 16% more likely to die early from any cause.

Obese women and black women with no history of heart disease or diabetes pushed clot-driven stroke risk up to twofold and fourfold.

The author of the study does want to acknowledge that the association doesn’t mean causation. Though the findings held up even when taking into account the nutritional value of the participants’ diet.

It’s not known yet if these drinks affect men or younger women, however.

So what does this all mean? Diet drinks aren’t as tame as we thought them to be. If you can, you should probably start limiting your sugary drink intake.

Read more here.

Could You Have a Food Allergy and Not Even Know It?

Date: May 19, 2019
Author: Erynn
Categories: Stories & Tips
7 Ways Your Oral Health Affects Your Body's Health

You probably thought you figured out all your allergies when you were a kid, but actually, you can get more allergies as you age. Getting older can cause your stomach to make less gastric acid. This can make deficiencies in nutrients like zinc, vitamin D, or iron, which can cause the immune system to change. Could you have a food allergy and not even know it?

Could You Have a Food Allergy and Not Even Know It?

Could You Have a Food Allergy and Not Even Know It?

 

Around 1 in 10 people have food allergies and get them as adults. As mentioned, a food allergy is an immune system response to food, causing itching, hives, swelling, low blood pressure, anaphylactic shock, or a respiratory reaction. These can be life-threatening.

How Can You Find Out if You Have One or Not?

An allergist uses a skin prick test and pricks your skin with tiny allergen laden needles to see how your skin reacts. Blood tests are another option. Even though the testing is easy, many older adults don’t get these tests. They think they know how to handle it or that they don’t have an allergy.

Food Intolerance or Food Allergy?

 

It’s easy to confuse a food intolerance for an allergy. One study guesses that 25 to 30% of adults self-diagnose themselves with allergies.

A food intolerance makes a digestive reaction to food like cramping, diarrhea, gas, or bloating. These are common and not life-threatening. 30 to 50 million adults in the U.S. have a level of lactose intolerance.

The most common allergen adults get is shellfish. Around 7.2 million adults in the U.S. have this allergy. Other common allergies that adults get is milk, peanuts, tree nuts, finfish, eggs, wheat, soy, and sesame.

It can be hard to identify a food allergy in adults 50 and older. This is because the symptoms aren’t as obvious as when people are younger. It’s easy for professionals to mistake an allergy for problems with medication, sleep issues, viruses, autoimmune diseases, general aging, or stomach issues like irritable bowel syndrome.

Living with Food Allergies

 

Living with a food allergy requires constant vigilance on your part. You can’t just avoid the food. It could be an ingredient in foods you never thought of. It could also be in supplements. Eating out can be tough because you need to find a meal that’s safe for you.

Make sure to read the ingredient list on foods and supplements. Avoid cross-contamination if others in your house eat the food you are allergic to. Wash dishes before using them, and if you can afford it, have separate appliances like a toaster for example. Also, make sure that your family knows about your allergy that way, no accidents happen.

Read more here.