Senior Living Blog & Events

Changes that happen with age may increase a person’s risk of heart disease. A major cause of heart disease is the buildup of fatty deposits in the walls of arteries over many years. The good news is there are things you can do to delay, lower, or possibly avoid or reverse your risk.

How Does the Heart Work?

Your heart is a strong muscle that pumps blood to your body. A normal, healthy adult heart is about the size of your clenched fist. Just like an engine makes a car go, the heart keeps your body running. The heart has two sides, each with a top chamber (atrium) and a bottom chamber (ventricle). The right side pumps blood to the lungs to pick up oxygen. The left side receives blood rich with oxygen from the lungs and pumps it through arteries throughout the body. An electrical system in the heart controls the heart rate (heartbeat or pulse) and coordinates the contraction of the heart’s top and bottom chambers.

How Your Heart Changes with Age

People age 65 and older are much more likely than younger people to suffer a heart attack, to have a stroke, or to develop coronary heart disease (commonly called heart disease) and heart failure. Heart disease is also a major cause of disability, limiting the activity and eroding the quality of life of millions of older people.

Aging can cause changes in the heart and blood vessels. For example, as you get older, your heart can’t beat as fast during physical activity or times of stress as it did when you were younger. However, the number of heartbeats per minute (heart rate) at rest does not change significantly with normal aging.

To learn more about the impact of aging on your heart, signs of heart disease and how to help prevent it, from the National Institute on Aging, CLICK HERE.

Embracing the positives about growing older could add years to your life

What five words first come to mind when you think about someone who’s old?

Yale researcher Becca Levy says that most Americans who answer that question include at least a few words that have a negative connotation, like senile, grumpy and weak.  

The problem, Levy says, is that believing those ageist stereotypes can be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

In a new book, Breaking the Age Code: How Your Beliefs About Aging Determine How Long & Well You Live, Levy lays out a deep body of research demonstrating that many health problems formerly considered to be entirely due to aging are instead strongly influenced by negative age beliefs.

Studies reveal that people with negative beliefs about aging are more likely to experience cardiovascular events like heart attacksand strokes, chronic stress, walking and balance issues, memory problems and psychiatric illnesses such as depression and anxiety.

To learn more about the effects of attitudes on aging, and how to reverse your negative beliefs about aging, from AARP, CLICK HERE. 

Almost anyone, at any age, can do some type of physical activity. You can still exercise even if you have a health condition like heart disease, arthritis, chronic pain, high blood pressure, or diabetes. In fact, physical activity may help. For most older adults, physical activities like brisk walking, riding a bike, swimming, weightlifting, and gardening are safe, especially if you build up slowly. You may want to talk with your doctor about how your health condition might affect your ability to be active.

Staying physically active: Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias

Researchers are assessing the benefit of exercise to delay mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in older adults and to improve brain function in older adults who may be at risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease. Older adults with MCI may be able to safely do more vigorous forms of exercise, similar to older adults without MCI, provided there are no other underlying health concerns.

Being active and getting exercise may help people with Alzheimer’s or another dementia feel better and can help them maintain a healthy weight and have regular toilet and sleep habits. If you are a caregiver, you can exercise together to make it more fun.

To learn about exercising with other conditions, such as arthritis, COPD, diabetes, heart health, osteoporosis and chronic pain, from the National Institute on Aging, CLICK HERE.

While we know that regular brushing, flossing and general dental care can prevent common problems such as cavities and gum disease, your teeth can also offer clues to brewing health problems. 
It’s important to find out what potential dangers can hide behind your smile.

To lean about 8 important things your pearly whites can reveal about your health, from the AARP, CLICK HERE.

“My mom has narcissistic personality disorder,” one of my psychotherapy clients said to me. “She is unaware of my feelings as her caregiver.” “You wouldn’t believe the tantrums my mother throws when she doesn’t get her way,” said another. “I think she has borderline personality disorder.” “My father doesn’t feel guilty about hurting anyone’s feelings because of his antisocial personality,” said a third.

It sounded a little odd to hear people who aren’t clinical professionals applying mental health diagnoses to their family members, but psychiatric and psychological terms have always found their way into regular jargon. Thirty years ago, I heard psychotherapy clients say they were afraid they were “codependent” because they relied too much on others’ approval to feel good about themselves. Ten years ago, clients asked me if they were “bipolar” because they reacted to caregiving stressors with up-and-down moods. Nowadays I’m hearing more references to “personality disorders” when describing some care receivers.

I don’t think this is being disrespectful. Caregivers have always struggled to understand why some family members they are caring for are argumentative, demanding or all-around difficult. It is sometimes easier to think of those relatives as having some condition beyond their control that affects their behavior rather than seeing them as personally hostile to the caregiver. “My mother doesn’t mean to ignore my needs,” a caregiver son or daughter might say, “but her narcissism prevents her from understanding what I’m going through.” That’s also a way for caregivers to protect themselves from disappointment by lowering their expectations that care receivers might change.

To better understand personality disorders, and to learn how caregivers can best work with a care receiver who has one, from AARP, CLICK HERE.

Diabetes is a serious disease, and it affects many older adults. People get diabetes when their blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. The good news is that you can take steps to delay or prevent type 2 diabetes, which is the most common form of the disease to develop in older adults. If you already have diabetes, there are steps you can take to manage the condition and prevent diabetes-related health problems.

To learn more about diabetes, the various types and available tests, and how to best manage the disease, from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), CLICK HERE.