Pet therapy is gaining in popularity and there are many dogs like Boston who spend countless hours cheering elderly patients. Boston is a retired guide dog who entered pet therapy as his second career. But pet therapy is not just for cheering. Pets have been proven to help lower blood pressure, as my own doctor’s [...]
Recently on Twitter, one of our followers asked if there was a resource for global age-friendly cities. Well now there is! A new website has been launched this week to showcase the Age-friendly world. Organized by the World Health Organization and International Federation on Ageing (IFA) this e-portal will become a central resources for developing, [...]
At 116 years old, Bessie Cooper of Monroe Georgia, has been deemed the world’s oldest person by Guinness World Records. That was not without some controversy since the late Maria Gomes Valentin of Brazil had been proven to have been 48 days older. Since Mrs. Valentin’s death, all of that is behind Mrs. Cooper and her record [...]
In the latest Alzheimer’s news, Eli Lilly’s, Solanezumub, (where do they get these drug names?)shows some hope for mild cases of Alzheimer’s, but not for more advanced cases. The drug is not due for FDA approval any time soon because its goal was to aggressively alter the destruction of Alzheimer’s for the more advanced cases. That goal has [...]
The books listed here are: Sipser, Introduction to the Theory of Computation (2nd edition) Gowers et al. (eds.), The Princeton Companion to Mathematics Koller & Friendman, Probabilistic Graphical Models: Principles and Techniques Sethna, Entropy, Order Parameters, and Complexity Russell & … Continue reading →
This notion of offering specialized culture-specific hospice and palliative care programs is spreading quickly. There are many communities that already offer culture-specific teams to care for particular ethnic groups or those sharing common languages, religious affiliations or traditions. Now, Hospice of the Good Shepherd in Boston, Massachusetts, is accommodating Russian-speaking residents by offering a Russian-speaking [...]
Here is a strong warning for those of us who are 55 and older. According to a recent explosive article from the New York Times, many of us are approaching a retirement crisis cliff. Here’s the problem. We have lost up to 10 % of our wealth worth over the last ten years. They’re now [...]
New research shows that a lack of sleep is a growing health problem around the world, and not just in developed countries. It was found that Bangladesh, South Africa and Vietnam have extremely high levels of sleep problems. On the other hand, India and Indonesia reported relatively low levels of sleep problems. Sleeplessness has been [...]
My garden does not whet the appetite; it satisfies it. It does not provoke thirst through heedless indulgence, but slakes it by proffering its natural remedy. Amid such pleasures as these have I grown old. - Epicurus A recent study in the American Heart Association’s Journal Circulation, found that heart health can be improved by [...]
For your enjoyment, some recent whiteboards at the Singularity Institute…
Next week, William (Bill) T. Smith of Aging in America will attend the Open Ended Working Group 3rd session in New York on behalf of IAHSA, where the Committee on Ageing will be presenting to the government delegations, a list of nearly 100 endorsements on a call to action. IAHSA is one of the many [...]
Are house calls a practice of the past or the future? Well, it depends on who you ask. An article in the Ottawa Citizen recently write that “Doctors’ house calls aimed at seniors poised to make a come back”. However, the Times of India stated that “The number of doctors visiting patients’ homes is declining [...]
The Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, adopted in April 2002, marked a turning point in how the world looked at ageing. The report had delineated guidelines for policy development and implementation, made suggestions for mainstreaming ageing issues into government agendas, and helped promote dialogue in the information exchange. The United Nations Department of [...]
In honor of the UN International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, it’s essential to pause and consider the social fabrics that dictate our understanding and perception of the field of ageing. An article from Indian Countryon North American indigenous peoples’ reaction to dementia within their communities helps us learn from one another. While Alzheimer’s [...]
Doctors have been saying all along that physical exercise is essential for healthy ageing, better moods and fewer accidents. But it’s not just aerobic exercise like walking – the exercise of choice for the majority of seniors – that keeps the doctors away. While walking is “beneficial to heart fitness [it] does little to protect [...]
An article about the challenges faced by home care providers in the United States was recently published by the Associated Press. Facing low wages, lack of benefits, and no leave options, care givers have little incentive to fill the growing demand expected to add 1.3 million positions over the next decade. The real staffing challenge [...]