by trevor@addfuelfire.com | Oct 18, 2013 | Dear Donna, Healthy Aging, Uncategorized
Dear Donna:
I am trying to persuade my 80-year old mother who lives alone in Traverse City, Michigan to move to an independent living community. We live almost 6 hours away from her and worry about her safety in the cold and snowy northern Michigan winters. She is very active and involved in her community. She even spends 4 or 5 hours a week volunteering. My mother somehow has the idea the senior living is just “a bunch of old people playing bingo.” What can I do to help her get a true picture of independent living?
Tammy in Toledo
Dear Tammy:
The out-of-date stereotypes of “homes” are still alive in the minds of many older adults. While we do play Bingo, independent living communities have so much more to offer. Here are a couple of suggestions that might help:
- You could start by talking with her about two of the main reasons older adults choose to move to independent living: to be free of the maintenance and upkeep of a home and for the life enrichment and socialization that happens every day. Most residents of an independent living community are a lot like your mother!
- Have a few of your local senior living communities mail you their monthly activity calendar. You could share those with your mother so she could see the wide range of programs that are offered. For example, at The Village at Bay Ridge in Traverse City life enrichment programs include book clubs, trips to the casino, quilting and theater outings. If she finds an activity that sounds interesting, most communities would happily invite her to join them.
- Visit a few communities without your mother along. You probably know her likes and dislikes well enough to determine if it might be a good fit. Then try to start with just having her visit for lunch and/or a tour. Agree ahead of time that she will be under no obligation to go again if she doesn’t like it.
I think once your mother can see for herself how active independent living residents really are, you will have a better chance at convincing her to make a move.
Good luck, Tammy!
Donna
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by trevor@addfuelfire.com | Oct 14, 2013 | Healthy Aging, Uncategorized
If you are part of the 83% of Americans who drink coffee every day, you’ve probably wondered what the real facts about its risks and health benefits are. We hear conflicting reports almost daily. Older adults are often warned that the risks are even greater for them. According to the National Coffee Association, the average American coffee drinker chugs down three cups per day. How do you know what you can believe about your morning cup o’ joe? We took a look at the latest research from sources ranging from the Mayo Clinic to the Journal of Vascular Medicine
Here is what we found:
- The risk between heart disease and coffee consumption occurs when you have a particular gene mutation that slows the breakdown of caffeine in your body. The Mayo Clinic experts warn that the gene mutation is a fairly common one.
- If you are concerned about neurodegenerative disorders, some studies show coffee can decrease your risks. For Alzheimer’s disease and dementia coffee may reduce the risk by as much as 60%. It may also decrease the risk of Parkinson’s by 32% to 60%.
- Newer research indicates that the high antioxidant levels in coffee may help protect you from type 2 diabetes and liver cancer.
- If you are physically active or trying to lose weight, coffee consumption might help. Because caffeine is a stimulant, coffee may help to improve physical performance and aide in burning more calories.
- Consuming large amounts of unfiltered coffee can lead to moderate increases in bad cholesterol.
- Heavy coffee consumption is linked to sleeplessness, agitation, and anxiety. All can contribute to or worsen hypertension.
- Watch what you put in to your coffee. Sugars, creamers and high fructose flavorings can be an overlooked source of fat and calories, especially if you drink more than one cup of coffee a day.
So what is the bottom line on our friend Joe? As with most things, moderation seems to be the key. Two cups of coffee per day is generally believed to be the maximum for benefits.
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by trevor@addfuelfire.com | Sep 24, 2013 | Caregiving, Healthy Aging, Uncategorized
The physical toll the role of caregiver takes is well documented. Caregivers have weaker immune systems, increased risk of heart disease, and a greater chance of developing high blood pressure. All of these factors can lead to a stressed out, unhealthy caregiver. Maintaining a balanced diet is one of the keys to keeping our Michigan caregivers healthy. And recent studies indicate the Mediterranean Diet may help.
What is the Mediterranean Diet?
The underlying premise of the Mediterranean Diet is very simple. It focuses on eating very little processed foods and opting instead for a diet rich in fruits, lentils, fish and vegetables. Olive oil is one of the main components of the diet. Breads are multi-grain and low in carbohydrates. Dairy should be consumed in moderation. And the best news is that the diet includes a glass of wine or two each day.
When researchers at The University of Louisiana evaluated people who had adopted the Mediterranean Diet they discovered the following:
- A reduction in bad cholesterol. Believed to be the result of reducing fat and carbohydrates and increasing foods rich in soluble and insoluble fiber.
- Improved brain activity. They attributed this to the benefits of olive oil and omega 3 fatty acids in the fish.
- Lower risk of cancer. Researchers credited consuming lower red meat and animal fats to the decreased risk of cancer.
- Decreased risk of stroke and heart disease. Blood pressure was also reduced.
- Lower incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. Experts agree that antioxidants are probably the reason. They help to decrease inflammation that is believed to contribute to decreased cognition.
If you are wondering how to get started, this Mediterranean Diet Food Pyramid might be of help.
Have you adopted the Mediterranean Diet? What benefits have you experienced?
by trevor@addfuelfire.com | Sep 16, 2013 | Caregiving, Healthy Aging, Uncategorized
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), people over the age of 65 are 2.5 times more likely to be injured or die from a kitchen fire than the general population. That is a pretty frightening statistic if you are an adult child of an aging parent who lives alone. So why is the risk so much higher for seniors?
There are five areas where seniors get in to trouble in the kitchen:
- Not having a working smoke detector in the house. As important as that life-saving alarm is known to be, estimates are that between 10 – 15% of our nation’s seniors either don’t have a smoke detector or the one they have doesn’t work. That allows kitchen fires to get out of control before the senior may even realize there is a problem.
- Along the same lines is not having a fire extinguisher in the kitchen. Many older adults reach for a kitchen towel to try to extinguish a stove top flame. That can actually make the fire worse and put them in greater danger.
- Dementia can make seniors more forgetful. They may leave soup simmering on the stove or a casserole cooking in the oven then walk away and forget about it.
- Older equipment that isn’t safe. This is especially true of an older kitchen range. Many of them have on/off dials that are located at the back of the stove top. This forces seniors to reach over burners to turn them off. Loose sleeves can easily drop against the flame or burner and ignite.
- Chronic health conditions can cause physical impairments that may make it more difficult for seniors to spot trouble and react quickly. This includes tremors from Parkinson’s disease or loss of dexterity in fingers and hands caused by Osteoarthritis.
What can adult children do to decrease the risk of a kitchen fire for aging parents?
- Make sure they have working smoke detectors on every level of their home and a small, easy-to-use fire extinguisher in their kitchen. Review with them how to operate both. Make sure to test the smoke alarm batteries when you visit.
- Remind them not to wear clothing with loose sleeves while cooking, but to instead wear short sleeves or keep long-sleeves tightly rolled up.
- Consider replacing their stove if they have to reach across burners to turn temperature controls on and off. Most newer ranges have the dials on the front of the stove.
- New to the consumer safety market but gaining in popularity are stove alarms and stove guards. They use sensors to sound an alarm when a pan is left on the stove or in the oven too long.
Are you an adult child of an elderly parent?
Have they had a close call with a kitchen fire?
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by trevor@addfuelfire.com | Aug 7, 2013 | Caregiving, Healthy Aging, Uncategorized
As the number of adults over the age of 65 in Michigan continues to climb, the average age of drivers on our roads climbs too. Contrary to the stereotype we see in the media about older drivers, they are not creating the greatest risks on the road. Teenagers still lead the way in the number of accidents that harm other drivers. Instead, seniors are more likely to be a hazard to themselves. Older drivers in Michigan are no different.
According to the Institute for Highway Safety, older drivers are more likely to have an accident where they are injured. In 2009, almost 4,000 drivers 70 and older died in automobile accidents.
MIT AgeLab and The Hartford Center for Mature Market Excellence conducted a study that explored the relationship between physical fitness and older drivers. They discovered that exercise can play a key role in keeping older drivers safe behind the wheel. That is because physical activity can help improve range of motion and flexibility.
Surveyors examined three areas that older drivers identified as difficult:
- Turning their neck, shoulders and upper body to look behind them – the action you take when backing out of your driveway or a parking space at the mall.
- Bending down to slide behind the wheel of the car. Getting in and out of their car was often considered difficult for older adults in the study. We know that seniors are at greater risk from falls when entering and exiting a vehicle.
- Turning their head to look over their shoulder while driving. This makes it difficult to merge in traffic and change lanes on the highway.
Using that insight, researchers developed a series of exercises that worked on improving four key areas for older adults: overall strength, flexibility, range of motion and coordination. The eight exercises they recommend are no-impact and many can even be performed while seated.
After eight to ten weeks of participating in the exercise training program, older drivers reported:
- Greater ease in turning their head to back up and to check their blind spot.
- Better able to rotate their bodies to survey their driving environment.
- Stronger muscle tone and flexibility helped them get in and out of their car more easily.
Exercise for Mature Drivers is a free download from The Hartford Center for Mature Market Excellence and MIT AgeLab.
What do you think? Are you an older driver in Michigan?
Let us know what you think about these exercises after you try them!
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by trevor@addfuelfire.com | Jul 18, 2013 | Dear Donna, Healthy Aging, Uncategorized
Dear Donna:
I’m concerned about my 83 year old father. He lives alone in his home in Grand Haven, Michigan since my mother died two years ago. I live in Saline, Michigan with my own family. Because of the distance and our kids busy school schedules, we only make it up to see him about every six weeks. I talk to him on the phone every day. He always says he is “fine” and that he doesn’t need anything. But during the last few visits with him, he hasn’t seemed like himself. He has lost a noticeable amount weight and seems much quieter than he’s ever been. I know he misses my Mom. They were married for 64 years. How can I tell if this is grief or depression or something else entirely?
-Christina in Saline, Michigan
Dear Christina:
Long distance caregiving for an aging parent brings unique challenges. It is an issue that adult children across Michigan struggle with every day. And your question is a common one among our elderly. Separating grief from depression or another illness can be difficult. They can all exhibit similar symptoms. And two years isn’t an unreasonable amount of time to grieve for someone you were married to for 64 years. Wow! What a milestone.
To help you better understand what may be wrong with your father, I recommend you consider a few things:
- Does your father still drive? If not, does he have friends and family close by that help him stay connected to the community? For example, if church was always an important part of your parents Sunday routine, is he still able to go? Socialization can help someone who is lonely and alone for the first time in their life. Many of the residents of our independent living apartments move to a community for that very reason.
- You are right to be worried about weight loss. It can be a warning sign of depression or an illness, but it can also mean your father isn’t able to get to the grocery store or prepare meals on his own. Can you tell if the later might be the issue from your visits with him? Poke around in his refrigerator and see what you find. Are there healthy foods? Do you see foods with expired date labels? Ask him what is does for meals each day.
- How is his appearance? Does it look as if he is able to maintain his own personal care? Do you see bruises or other evidence he has experienced a fall or two? If he has fallen and not told you about it, he may be fearful of falling again and may avoid using the bathtub or the stairs or other areas of the house he thinks are hazardous.
- What is the condition of his house? Are bills piling up? Does the house look dirty? At 83 years of age, it may be too much for him to keep up with it all and that could be wearing him down.
- How long has it been since he has been to see his primary care physician? They can be a good resource for family caregivers and a great place to start if you are trying to get to the bottom of what is wrong. Try to schedule a check-up for a day and time you can go with him. If that isn’t possible, you may want to consider calling the office ahead of time to share your concerns with the doctor.
I would also like to recommend one resource that I think might help you in your caregiver role. The Family Caregiver Alliance. They are a part of the National Center on Caregiving. They have online support groups that you may find helpful.
Good luck, Christina! Please keep us posted on how your father is doing.
Donna
