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for senior citizens on H1N1 and Seasonal Flu
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
Older Problem Drinkers Down More Alcohol, More Often
than Younger Counterparts
But adults over age 60 were less likely than other
groups to be in the abuse or dependence categories
Nov. 20, 2009 - Older adults who have alcohol
dependence problems drink significantly more than do younger adults who
have similar problems, a new study has found. Those over age 60 gulp
down more alcohol per drinking session and have more binge episodes that
younger Americans.
Read more...
Caregivers & Elder Care News
Seniors May Find Relief from Pain, Distress of
Illness in Free Palliative Care Brochure
Online publication from National Institute of Nursing
Research also addresses misconceptions senior citizens may have about
palliative care
Nov. 20, 2009 – The pain and distress that too many
senior citizens battle when afflicted with serious illness can be
managed with palliative care. A free new brochure from the National
Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) describes the comprehensive
treatment that helps reduce or eliminate the pain and other distressing
symptoms of illness or medical treatments.
Read more...
Medicare News
Medicare Tightens Controls to Catch More Improper
Fee-for-Service Payments in 2009
Part of administration-wide strategy to eliminate
errors and prevent waste and fraud
Nov. 20, 2009 – HHS and CMS, the managers of the
Medicare program, announced this week it has taken actions to obtain
more complete information about errors so that the Agency can better
target improper payments in the Medicare fee-for-service (FFA) in 2009.
CMS has significantly revised and improved accounting in this program to
improve the identification of improper payments, according to the
announcement.
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more...
Medicare News
Medicare to Continue Paying for Annual Mammograms
for All Women Over Age 40
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius says controversial
breast screening recommendation by U.S. task force is not government
policy
Nov. 19, 2009 – HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius
made it clear yesterday that Medicare will not be changing its policy of
paying for annual mammograms for women beginning at age 40 and
continuing for life, despite recommendations by a government task force
that women in their 40s and those age 75 and older should not get the
breast cancer test that often unless recommended by their doctor.
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more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Niacin Added to Statin Therapy Fails to Clear Plaque
in Senior Citizens Like Earlier Study
Cholesterol levels did improve, but arteries of
seniors with coronary artery disease do not show it
Nov. 18, 2009 – Research focusing on senior
citizens that is being presented today challenges a study released only
days ago that found adding the cholesterol drug niacin to a statin
improved HDL (“good”) cholesterol levels and significantly reduced
arterial plaque. The newest study says niacin with statins does not
significantly diminish plaque buildup in seniors who already have
coronary artery disease.
Read more...
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
NHLBI Publishes Heart Healthy Cookbook, Keep the Beat
Recipes: Deliciously Healthy Dinners
Recipes based on heart healthy principles
from the NHLBI, reflect the Dietary Guidelines for Americans,
and include a nutrition analysis
Nov.
18, 2009 - The health of your heart – a priority for all senior
citizens - has a lot to do with the foods you eat. To help busy
people and families shop for, prepare, and serve healthy meals,
the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the
National Institutes of Health created and published Keep the
Beat Recipes: Deliciously Healthy Dinners. The new cookbook
features 75 “simple and delicious recipes” influenced by Asian,
Latino, Mediterranean, and American cuisine that are “good for
your heart and taste great too.”
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
U.S. Winning the War Against 'Bad' Cholesterol as
Number Shrinks of Those with High Levels
A high percentage of adults still are not being
screened or treated for high cholesterol levels
Nov. 17, 2009 – Looking at the change from 1999 to
2006, it appears the war is being won against LDL cholesterol, the “bad”
cholesterol. The number of adults in the U.S. with a high level of LDL
decreased by about one-third during that period. But a high percentage
of adults still are not being screened or treated for high cholesterol
levels. Read
more, Watch Video
Senior Citizen Politics
AARP Finds Member Support for Health Care Reform
Provisions; Older Members Hardest to Sell
‘Strong majorities reported that many of the bill’s
key provisions were convincing reasons to support the legislation;’ AARP
launching TV ads today
Nov. 17, 2009 – A new poll of AARP members released
yesterday found “strong support across party and ideological lines for
elements of health care reform” in the current bill in the House of
Representatives. But, it also shows, as have other polls, that senior
citizens are a tougher sell on health care reform than are younger
Americans.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Value of Mammography for Senior Women Questioned by
U.S. Task Force; Wants Research
Recommendation for breast exams from age 50
- 74, not enough known to make firm decision on women 75 up;
American Cancer Society sticks with test as long as you are healthy
Nov.
17, 2009 – New government guidelines on mammography screening for breast
cancer grabbed headlines by going against the recommendations of the
American Cancer Society for annual screening of women as young as age
40, but, not getting as much attention is their questioning of the need
for annual screening for senior women over 74, which also is counter to
the ACS recommendations issued just last month.
Read more -
watch video
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Surgical Errors Remain a Challenge In and Out of the
Operating Room
Communication problems often occur early and
interventions before incision often occur too late
Nov. 16, 2009 – Surgical errors – a significant
worry for the millions of senior citizens that must visit the operating
rooms of America each year – continue to occur despite a national focus
on reducing them, says a an analysis of events at Veterans Health
Administration Medical Centers published in the November issue of
Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Read
more...
Fitness for Senior Citizens
Playing Active Video Games Can Equal Recommended
Moderate-Intensity Exercise
One-third of Wii sport and Wii fit activities provide
energy expenditures equal to moderate-intensity exercise says Nintendo
funded study
Nov. 16, 2009 – Senior citizens having a difficult
time finding a healthy exercise might consider boxing – on the Wii video
game. A new study says boxing is great, but other video sports games can
increase adults’ energy expenditure as much as moderately intense
exercise. Read
more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Statin Patients Clear Arteries Better Building Good
Cholesterol with Niacin than Reducing Bad with Ezetimibe
Plaque buildup in the lining of the neck arteries was
significantly reduced only in the niacin group
Nov.
16, 2009 - In combination with statins, adding a medication that raises
high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was more effective in
reversing artery wall plaque buildup and in reducing heart disease risk
than adding a drug that lowers low-density lipoprotein (LDL)
cholesterol, researchers reported today at the American Heart
Association Scientific Sessions 2009.
Read
more...
Social Security News
Social Security Announces New Feature on Popular
Online Benefits Estimator
Will save a half-million seniors a year from going
to office to get benefit information
Nov. 13, 2009 - The highly touted Retirement
Estimator at the Social Security Website has just added a new
enhancement to serve senior citizens that have signed up for Medicare
but have not applied for Social Security. Previously, these “Medicare
only” beneficiaries would need to contact a local office in order to
obtain an estimate of their Social Security benefits.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Fat Around Critical Organs – Heart, Liver – Best
Predictor of Decreased Heart Function
Body mass index doesn’t tell the important story,
according to new research
Nov. 13, 2009 – Body mass index (BMI) – the much
talked about measure of obesity and subsequent health risks when an
individual scores too high – is not the best predictor of some important
health dangers, such as cardiovascular problems. Researchers have
discovered that fat collection in different body locations, such as
around the heart and the aorta and within the liver, are a better
indicator of decreased heart functions.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
FDA Clears First Rapid Test for Bacterial
Contamination in Pooled Platelets
Seniors should see lower risk from blood therapy often used
for those undergoing chemotherapy, surgery
| |
 Read more
about Platelets below article. Art from Circulation -
Journal of American Heart Assn. |
|
Nov. 13, 2009 - Adding to the platelet supply to
treat or prevent bleeding in those with dangerously low platelet counts
– primarily senior citizens undergoing chemotherapy for cancer,
suffering major trauma, or having surgery, and in individuals who do not
produce adequate numbers of platelets – should be a lot safer after the
Food and Drug Administration today cleared the Platelet PGD Test System
for marketing.
Read more...
Medicare News
Medicare Urges Senior Citizens to Review Health
Plans as Window Opens to Make Changes
Annual period to make changes in Medicare coverage
opens Sunday, Nov. 15, runs through Dec. 31
Nov. 13, 2009 – This Sunday – November 15 – is the
first day of Medicare’s annual Open Enrollment period, when all people
with Medicare can review and, if necessary, change their current health
care coverage.
Read
more...
Caregivers & Elder Care News
New GPS Tracking Device Helps Elderly Live More
Freely While Protected from Wandering
i-TAG along GPS uses global positioning satellites,
features geofencing to establish electronic barrier
Nov. 11, 2009 – A major problem in the care of many
elderly people, especially those with Alzheimer’s Disease, is to protect
them from wandering. Many, for example, are lost every year who wander
from their residence and forget the way back. New technology, however,
is offering a promising solution – the i-TAG along GPS.
Read
more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Those with Heartburn Paying Too Much Green for
Nexium ‘Purple Pill’ Says Consumer Reports
Report finds no one drug works better than another
and all are relatively safe but some far more costly
Nov. 11, 2009 - Just in time for the holidays, when
many senior citizens may suffer from occasional heartburn, a new Best
Buy Drugs report from Consumer Reports Health finds that you
probably don’t need an expensive drug like Nexium, the “purple pill,”
for relief.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Another Notch in the Bottle for Statin Drugs: They
Decrease Gallstones Requiring Surgery
Not too surprising when you realize most gallstones
are formed from cholesterol
Nov. 11, 2009 – There seems to be no end to the
research reports unveiling startling new health advantages for those who
take statins, the drugs used primarily to lower cholesterol. The latest,
reported in today’s issue of the Journal of the American Medical
Association, says taking statins for more than a year reduces the
risk of gallstones requiring surgery. Not too surprising when you
realize most gallstones are formed from cholesterol.
Read
more...watch video
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Older Women Least Likely to Have Continued Pain
After Breast Cancer Treatment
Researchers find women age 60 to 69 most immune
from pain found 2 to 3 years after treatment
Nov. 11, 2009 - Nearly 50 percent of women surveyed
indicate they experience pain symptoms 2 to 3 years after breast cancer
treatment, but older women and those who did not receive supplemental
radiation therapy are least likely to have pain, according to a study in
the November 11 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association
(JAMA). Read
more...
Features for Senior Citizens
More than 40 Percent of the 23 Million Honored on
Veterans Day are Senior Citizens
Over 1.8 million veterans are females; $84.4 billion
spent by U.S. on veterans benefits in 2008
Nov.
11, 2009 – It is rather amazing that as the U.S. celebrates Veterans Day
2009, almost 40 percent of all U.S. veterans are senior citizens. In the
last count, which was last year, there were 23.2 million military
veterans and 9.2 million of those were age 65 or older. It is also
amazing to learn there are 92,000 veterans who served in three wars -
World War II, Korean War and Vietnam.
Read more...
Aging News & Information
Escaped Proteins Add to Age-Related Hearing Loss for
Senior Citizens
UF researchers find protein that is central to
oxidative damage to cells and leads to age-related hearing loss
Nov. 10, 2009 - Age-related hearing loss is the
most common sensory disorder among the elderly. More than 40 percent of
U.S. senior citizens (older than 65) suffer from age-related hearing
loss, according to data from the National Health Survey. It is estimated
this will affect more than 28 million by 2030. But scientists are still
trying to figure out what cellular processes govern or contribute to the
loss. Read
more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Cataract Surgery Does Not Appear to Make Age-Related
Macular Degeneration Worse
Editorial says more research is needed; patients
should be briefed on all study findings
Nov. 9, 2009 - Age-related macular degeneration
(AMD), the leading cause of blindness among senior citizens, does not
appear to progress at a higher rate among individuals who have had
surgery to treat cataract, the leading cause of blindness worldwide
among all ages. The study challenges previous reports that treating one
cause of vision loss worsens the other.
Read
more...
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