Archive for February, 2011

How Pets Help Seniors Live Happier Lives

One of the best prescriptions for good senior health is to have the senior citizen adopt a cat or dog as a pet. Provided that the senior family member or friend is physically and emotionally capable of providing care for one or more pets, research has proven that pets not only have a positive impact on a senior’s longevity but also affects their physical as well as emotional health in a very positive manner. Actress Betty White, a long-time animal rights advocate and pet owner, is a shining example of a senior whose animal companions keep her physically and emotionally active.

Studies have shown that individuals with a variety of senior health issues benefit from having ownership of a pet, usually a cat or a dog which can give and receive affection. Seniors with memory problems or slight depression are often more alert and engaged when caring for a companion animal. Just the act of stroking or petting a dog or cat’s fur has proven to lower an individual’s blood pressure. Heart attack victims who return to a home with a pet recover more quickly than others.

The care of pets requires some regularity of action from their owners and it is this physical activity as well as regular schedule that greatly benefits the health of senior pet owners. A senior who has a hungry dog or cat nudging them awake to be fed or played with isn’t likely to sleep the day away or stay in bed feeling listless or depressed. A pet can provide a senior with a sense of daily purpose, because the animal must be fed several times throughout the day, brushed or groomed on a daily basis as well as taken for a walk in the case of dogs. Any physical activity related to pet ownership helps to extend a senior’s longevity because it helps give them a reason to get out of bed, or get up off the couch or get away from the television set and get moving. Even the simple act of grooming a pet can increase a senior’s blood circulation. Throwing a ball for a dog to retrieve or rolling a ball filled with catnip toward a cat helps to keep the fingers flexible.

There is another very valuable benefit to any senior citizen who shares his home with a pet companion. Studies have proven that owning a pet provides important companionship to seniors who would otherwise feel alone and disconnected from society. Seniors who have no nearby friends or relatives to communicate with on a regular basis or neighbors to interact with daily can interact instead with their dog or cat, providing some relief from the sense of isolation that they usually experience.

Although caring for a pet is not an option when a senior citizen is in a nursing home, scheduled visits by dogs trained to provide therapy, have had a noticeably positive effect on the nursing home resident’s mental outlook, as well as providing the same physical benefits such as lowered blood pressure when interacting with the animal. The unconditional love provided by therapy dogs is a much welcome bright spot in the day of anyone confined to a hospital bed or with limited mobility living in a nursing home day in and day out.

Many senior citizens whose health enables them to care for a loving cat or dog in their home or apartment feel that their companion animals serve as a kind of daily emotional tonic that has only positive benefits for both their physical as well as mental well-being.

The caregivers at Age Advantage are available to talk with you and your family about all of your live-in home care needs. Age Advantage is a home care agency providing quality, affordable home care in Orange CA and the surrounding areas. Call 714-385-2864 for more information.

Why Caregivers in Orange CA Need Respite Care

Giving Yourself a Break Helps You and Your Loved One

From Carrie Hill, PhD

Caregivers who use respite care often tell me that although caregiving is one of the hardest jobs they’ve ever had, they wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. Helping a family member or close friend who has Alzheimer’s disease can provide a sense of purpose and great satisfaction.

Still, the emotional and physical demands of caregiving make it hard to be a caregiver 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Without respite care — a temporary break from the demands of caregiving — you may be more susceptible to the effects of caregiver stress, such as depression, exhaustion and other health problems.

Continue reading…

Source: About.com

The caregivers at Age Advantage are available to talk with you and your family about all of your live-in home care needs. Age Advantage is a home care agency providing quality, affordable home care in Orange CA and the surrounding areas. Call 714-385-2864 for more information.

A Must-Do Checklist When You’re Turning 65
By Joseph L. Matthews, Caring.com Author

If you’re about to turn age 65 (or know someone who is) it’s time to consider some things that can greatly affect your finances and healthcare. In the months leading up to — or in the months immediately following, if you’ve been a little slow — your 65th birthday, do the following:

Health-Related Matters

• Enroll in Medicare Part A and Part B. Almost everyone age 65 and older is eligible to enroll in Medicare Part A (inpatient care) and Medicare Part B (outpatient care). You may sign up as early as three months before your 65th birthday to ensure that your coverage begins on the day you turn 65.
• Consider a Medicare Part C managed care plan. Many people age 65 and older enroll in a Medicare Part C Medicare Advantage HMO or other managed care plan. These plans replace and provide broader coverage than traditional Medicare Parts A and B. They are somewhat cheaper than the combination of regular Medicare plus a private Medigap supplemental insurance policy, but they limit the health providers you may use. Some Part C plans include prescription drug coverage.
• Consider a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. The high cost of prescription drugs leads the majority of people age 65 and over to enroll in a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan, which provides some reduction in yearly drug costs.
• Shop for a Medigap insurance policy to supplement Medicare. Medicare leaves unpaid a large portion of most people’s medical bills. To fill in the gaps in Medicare payments, many people buy a private Medigap supplemental insurance policy. Your right to buy the policy of your choice only lasts until six months after you enroll in Medicare Part B.

Source: Caring.com

Age Advantage caregivers are available to talk with you and your family about all of your care needs, including, how to reduce caregiver stress while providing better, affordable care. Age Advantage is a home care agency providing In Home Care in Palm Orange CA and the surrounding areas.

Cataract Awareness, Conditions And Treatment

The basic definition of a cataract is where there is a clouding of the lens of the eye. When this takes place the light that normally enters the eye is changed or blocked off. Behind the colored iris and pupil lies the actual lens of the human eye. This lens is basically transparent and helps to focus images viewed onto what is called the retina of the eye. The retina is the part of the eye which sends the images that people see straight to their brain to be decoded. The most basic cause of eye loss stemming from a cataract forces vision to become dim or sometimes blurry. So how often do cataracts affect ordinary people in the world? One of the top causes of blindness and poor vision amongst older adults in countries like the Unites States is a cataract. There is an estimated twenty million folks in the USA alone that are around the age of forty, and they all have a cataract. 

It has been proven that literally one half of the people in America will develop a cataract by the time they have reached eighty. There are even studies showing a cataract forming in newborn babies, and some percentage of young people. Nobody really knows the exact reasons a cataract forms, but it has been assumed that they generally come along with age. So the older a person gets the more likely they are to form a cataract. There are also a multitude of risk factors that can cause a cataract. These include diseases like diabetes, extremely hot temperatures, long periods of exposure to the suns UV rays, inflammation of the eye, genetic factors, prolonged use of steroids, diseases that form in the eye, injuries to the eye, and smoking all play a role in the risk of a cataract forming. 

So what are the general symptoms associated with a cataract? It is well known that cataracts cannot cause conditions such as tears, pain, or redness, yet there are a few warning signs a person can use to judge if there is a possibility they have a cataract. These are things like feeling as if there is some sort of film cover, or ghost images and blurry vision. Also if there is a startling feeling that spawns from being exposed to very strong light. Also if the person often has a hard time seeing close-range objects. Sometimes it is even possible to physically spot a cataract, and they will normally have a sort of milky look to them and resemble a yellowish spot in the pupil. So what are some of the treatments that are available for older adults with poor vision? 

It is actually a common fact that most eye problems can be cured if they are treated as soon as they are discovered. Just like with any other disease if it is discovered early there is a much better chance of curing it, and avoid longer-term damages. The most important factor when it comes to safeguarding a person’s vision is taking part in eye exams regularly. Any person who is 65 and older should have a full eye exam completed at least one time every 1 to 2 years. This should be done even if there are no apparent eye conditions at the time. One more step to maintaining healthy vision is to ask the eye doctor for what is known as a dilated exam of the eye, and this just adds an extra level of safety against these sorts of conditions.

Home care counselors at Age Advantage are available to talk with you about your live-in home care needs including how to reduce caregiver stress while providing better, affordable home care in Orange CA and the surrounding areas.