Archive for the ‘Senior Wellness Tips’ Category

The commercial, “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up,” is no joke. For seniors, falling rarely just happens but rather results from multiple causes that occur over time. As people age, their muscles and bones can weaken, balance can be affected, and certain medications and medical conditions can make falling and fractures more likely. Seniors who are also more prone to diseases like osteoporosis are more susceptible to experiencing a fall.

According to SeniorAdvice.com, every year more than 1.6 million older adults go to the emergency department for fall related injuries. Falls are the main cause of fractures, loss of independence, hospital admissions and death.

Hip fractures are the most common and serious type fall related injuries. After such a fall, only half of older adults hospitalized with hip fractures can return home and live on their own. About 80 percent of hip fractures occur in women. Women lose bone density at a faster rate than men do. The drop in estrogen levels that occurs with menopause accelerates bone loss, increasing the risk of hip fractures as a woman moves beyond menopause. However, men also can develop dangerously low levels of bone density.

The fear of falling causes older adults to avoid physical activities, such as walking and exercise. But the truth is physical activity can help prevent falls. Some seniors who are concerned with falling go to physical therapy which can help improve balance, maintain physical health and prevent falls.

Bone fractures in senior citizens are not only traumatic but can lead to more serious problems later on, but there are some ways to decrease the probability of falling by following some simple guidelines.

Preventive Measures from the National Institute on Aging:

• The doctor can perform a bone mineral density test that measures bone strength. Some medications can increase bone strength which can prevent likelihood for falling.
• Take part in healthy amounts of physical activity which will improve balance, muscle tone, joint flexibility, or even slow osteoporosis.
• Test vision and hearing since defects in sensory functioning can make one less stable overall.
• Be aware of the side effects of medications which can affect balance and coordination.
• Limit the amount of alcohol consumed which can also affect balance and coordination.
• Use a cane or walking stick if needed, and always be careful when walking on unstable or slippery surfaces
• Wear the right footwear that has rubber soles or low heels.
• Hold the handrails when going up and down stairs and only hold items in one hand so that you can keep a hand on the rail at all times
• Use good judgment – stay away from situations that could cause a fall such as a freshly washed floor, trying to reach something that is too high.
• Research home monitoring systems that will allow for access to help after experiencing a fracture
• Install good lighting with light switch access both at the top and bottom of staircases.
• Keep areas where you walk clear.
• Be sure that carpets are firmly fixed to the floor or apply no-slip strips to slippier surfaces such as wood and tile.
• Install handrails on both sides of the stairs or inside the bathroom.
• Place non-skid mats and strips on surfaces that get wet within the bathroom.
• Keep night lights for easy navigation in the dark in hallways, near the bed, and in the bathroom.
• Keep a telephone near the bed.
• Keep electric cords and wires near the wall and out of paths of travel.
• Tack down carpets and rugs firmly to the floor.
• Be careful!

It’s sad but true. There are bad people are out there. While crimes committed against senior citizens are not as common as crimes committed against younger adults, it is every bit, if not more, disturbing. It’s hard to fathom someone hurting or scamming an older person, but it happens.

Below are some suggestions about safety and staying safe from cons. Those who provide elder care should inform seniors of these guidelines.

Tips to Keep Safe from SeniorAdvice.com:

• Be sure that all doors, locks, and windows are strong and cannot be broken.
• Keep all doors and windows locked especially when out of the house.
• Make a list of valuable belongings, with pictures if desired, and keep track of this list by keeping it in a safe place.
• Ask the local police department to mark valuable property with an I.D. number.
• When strangers are at the door, check through a peephole or ask for identity before opening the door.
• Do not keep large amounts of money at home.
• Know your neighbors. You can watch out for each other.
• Stay alert in public places.
• If you drive, lock the doors at all times.
• Do not open car door or roll down windows for strangers – ever.
• Park in well-lit parking areas.
• Carry your purse close to your body when walking outdoors with the strap over the shoulder and across the chest.
• If you are in the process of being robbed, do not resist and hand over belongings to avoid getting hurt.
• Avoid a regular banking routine that involved transporting money on the same day of the week during the same times. Note, social security checks and pension can be directly deposited into your bank account.
• Never carry large amounts of cash on your person, and put credit cards or wallets within inside pockets.
• Do not keep credit cards and checkbooks together so as to prevent signature forging if the two are stolen together.

Avoiding Cons
Senior citizens can be taken advantage of through telephone, internet, insurance, or home repair scams. Sometimes older adults are taken advantage of by people they know and think they can trust. Here are some tips for avoiding possible cons:

• Do not feel hesitant to hang up on telemarketers to protect yourself from possible bullying, suggestiveness, or false information.
• Never give personal information such as credit card numbers, social security numbers, or bank account numbers over the phone.
• Do not take money out of your account when instructed to by a stranger. A common scam involves strangers pretending to be bank tellers and asking people to take money out of their accounts. Real banks never use these methods.
• Be cautious of deals that sound too good to be true or involve presenting large amounts of money up front with promises of receiving money later.
• Checking with the local Better Business Bureau for more information about the validity of companies.
• Be cautious of people going door to door and offering home repair services. They may not be properly trained and can overcharge for services. If you employ someone for this kind of work, check references, get an agreement in writing for the services, and never pay in advance.

Is it a given that the older a person is, the more medications he or she takes? Not necessarily, but people are more likely to develop one or more chronic illnesses with advancing age. It’s wonderful that appropriate medication can help seniors live longer and more active lives, but there is a safety concern. Taking multiple medications increases the risk for drug interactions, mix-ups, and the potential for side effects.

According to Pfizer, the effects of aging cause older adults’ bodies to process and respond to medicines differently than those of younger people. Age-related changes in the liver, kidneys, central nervous system, and heart are among the contributing factors causing elderly people to be more vulnerable to overdose and troubling side effects.

Also, age-related challenges like memory loss or poor eyesight can make it harder to follow instructions for taking medication.

If a person is seeing several doctors at once, there’s a chance these doctors may not all be communicating with each other, and the person may not be reporting all medications at each visit. This lack of communication among doctors leads to what is called “a prescribing cascade,” according to AARP. This means a doctor may prescribe medication to treat what he or she believes is a medical condition, when in fact the medication will really be treating a side effect of another drug that the patient has neglected to report.

The more medications the patient is on, the more risks there are for side effects and risky medication interactions. There are two kinds of interactions:

• Drug-drug interactions happen when two or more medicines react with each other to cause unwanted effects or make either medicine’s effects more or less potent. Such interactions may also be caused by alcohol, nutritional supplements or herbal products, and nonprescription medicines as well as prescription medications.

• Food-drug interactions happen when medicines react with foods or beverages. For example, grapefruit juice should not be taken with certain blood pressure – lowering medications. And dairy products should be avoided with some antibiotics and antifungal medications.

Medication Dos and Dont’s from WebMD:

• Do take each medication exactly as it has been prescribed.
• Do make certain that all doctors know about all medications being taken.
• Do let doctors know about using any over-the-counter medications, vitamins, supplements and herbs.
• Do use the same pharmacy to fill all prescriptions. Their computers are a boon to accurate tracking.
• Do keep medications out of the reach of children. Use the childproof safety caps.
• Don’t change the dose of schedule with consulting the doctor.
• Don’t use someone else’s medication.
• Don’t crush or break pills unless told to do so by the doctor.
• Don’t use medication past its expiration date.
• Don’t store medications in places that are too hot or too cold. The bathroom cabinet may not be the best place for medications.

“There are short-cuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them.” ~Vicki Baum.

Ms. Baum is right. Dancing also can be a short-cut to health – both physically and mentally. According to Brain Fitness For Seniors.com, dancing is a boon to health because it stimulates different areas of the brain. How? Well, it often requires learning new steps, and it keeps seniors connected to others. It involves balance, coordination, listening, rhythm, motion, emotions, and physical touch.

Present day seniors grew up dancing. There were grand, lavish ballrooms, and people in cities took the streetcars to dance the night away. Ballroom dancing was a popular choice for a date. Big Band orchestras under the batons of Tommy Dorsey or Harry James toured the country playing in these wonderful ballrooms.

Today’s seniors are still dancing. Seniors’ dances are everywhere, and there are even exercise classes of “seated” dancing. If an entertainer performs the “old favorites” at a senior center or assisted living community, the audience instantly responds with toe-tapping and probably a rush of memories.

Health-wise, a dance routine for older adults can improve fitness in a low-impact way. More specifically, the physical benefits of dance from Ehow.com include:

• Improves cardiovascular fitness – Even light dancing will increase the heart rate and give the heart a good workout.
• Builds muscles – Through dance, seniors work their muscles and help to combat the effects of age.
• Improves social outlook – By joining a dance class—no matter what type of dance—they can enjoy the company of being with other dancers.
• Increases balance and control – The improved balance that comes from dancing helps prevent slips and falls.
• Increases bone mass – Both men and women begin to lose bone mass as they age, leading to more broken bones when they fall.
• Improves flexibility – A good dance workout will include stretching time which can help senior citizens increase flexibility and reduce muscle aches.

Again, from Brain Fitness For Seniors.com, by improving the social interactivity of seniors, dancing increases social harmony, understanding and tolerance in the community which is important because aging requires people of sometimes diverse backgrounds to live closer together in retirement homes and communities.

Music and rhythm have measurable effects on the brain and are the subject of multiple studies of brain-fitness benefits in both the young and old. Listening to music itself can have clear effects on the brain, stimulating different areas, changing brainwave patterns, and relieving stress.

Some believe that just watching dance stimulates the brain – mental stimulation that may be almost as powerful as performing the activity first hand. Even seniors who are too physically restricted to move freely can still participate and gain brain fitness benefits from social dance groups.

In summary, the lyrics of country music star Lee Ann Womack’s signature song say it all:

“I hope you still feel small when you stand behind the ocean.
I hope whenever one door closes, another opens.
Promise me that you’ll give faith a fighting chance,
and when you get the choice to sit it out or dance…
I Hope You Dance.”