Isabelle Fetherston's shared items in Google Reader

18% of all boomers expected to develop Alzheimer's

2008-03-18T02:04:06Z

About 14 million, or roughly 18%, of the USA's 79 million baby boomers can expect to develop Alzheimer's or some other form of ...

New CDC Study Underscores Impact Of Older Adult Falls

2008-03-11T08:00:00Z

About five percent of all people over age 65 had to see a health care provider or restrict their activity due to a fall during a three-month period, according a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An estimated 5.8 million adults over age 65 reported they fell at least once in the previous three months, and 1.8 million of them sought medical help or restricted their activity for at least a day, said the study in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Problems Getting Around in Old Age? Blame Your Brain

2008-03-17T21:00:00Z

New research shows how well people get around and keep their balance in old age is linked to the severity of changes happening in their brains. The study is published in the March 18, 2008, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. White matter changes, also called leukoaraiosis, are frequently seen in older people and differ in severity.

Increasing Income Support to Poor Elderly Might Improve Health

2008-03-10T05:00:00Z

A modest boost in financial support to the elderly poor might reduce old-age disability and be a good investment in public health, according to a large-scale, nationwide study. An increase of $100 per month in the maximum Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit led to an 11 percent reduction in the number of people reporting a disability, the researchers found.

Alarming Rates of Poverty Persist Among Older Women

2008-02-28T14:04:00Z

AARP: Marriage, Employment, and Health Key Variables In Determining Wealth As Women Age

Alzheimer's Study: Grief Is Heaviest Burden for Caregivers

2008-03-06T17:50:00Z

The hardest part of caring for loved ones with Alzheimer's-type disorders is not the everyday practical challenge, but rather the emotional impact of losing the patients' support and companionship as the disease robs them of their faculties, according to new research at the University of Indianapolis. Associate Professor Jacquelyn Frank of UIndy's Center for Aging & Community is available for interview.

Current Strategies to Employ and Retain Older Workers

2008-03-08T15:49:51Z

Current Strategies to Employ and Retain Older Workers
Source: Urban Institute

As the U.S. population ages and the number of people reaching traditional retirement ages increases, employers need to do more to attract and retain older workers, many of whom are highly experienced, knowledgeable, and skilled. Successful approaches include offering formal and informal phased retirement options and creating flexible work arrangements, such as part-time work, flexible schedules, job sharing, telework arrangements, and snowbird programs. Federal, state, and local governments, as well as nonprofit organizations and post-secondary educational institutions, help older workers find employment and secure job training. They also educate employers about the value of older workers.

+ Full Report (PDF: 162 KB)

Self-Reported Falls and Fall-Related Injuries Among Persons Aged >65 Years — United States, 2006

2008-03-10T17:03:50Z

Self-Reported Falls and Fall-Related Injuries Among Persons Aged >65 Years — United States, 2006
Source: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (CDC)

Falls are the leading cause of fatal and nonfatal injuries for persons aged >65 years. National estimates for rates of fatal falls and fall-related injuries treated in emergency departments have been published previously; however, this report presents the first national estimates of the number and proportion of persons experiencing fall-related injuries associated with either restricted activity or doctor visits. The results in this study suggest that in 2006, approximately 1.8 million persons aged >65 years (nearly 5% of all persons in that age group) sustained some type of recent fall-related injury. Even when those injuries are minor, they can seriously affect older adults’ quality of life by inducing a fear of falling, which can lead to self-imposed activity restrictions, social isolation, and depression. In addition, fall-related medical treatment places a burden on U.S. health-care services. In 2000, direct medical costs for fall-related injuries totaled approximately $19 billion. A recent study determined that 31.8% of older adults who sustained a fall-related injury required help with activities of daily living as a result, and among them, 58.5% were expected to require help for at least 6 months.

New Harris Survey Finds that Most Baby Boomers Underestimate Disability Risk

2008-03-12T13:07:05Z

New Harris Survey Finds that Most Baby Boomers Underestimate Disability Risk
Source: America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP)

Most Baby Boomers underestimate their risk of suffering a disability that would cause them to miss work for an extended period of time, according to a new survey conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP). The survey also found that Baby Boomers are unaware of the most common causes of disability and are not too concerned about their risk of becoming disabled.
…
The survey found that just over a third of Baby Boomers think the chances of becoming disabled due to illness or injury is 5 percent or less, a slight majority think the chances are 10 percent or less, and two-thirds think the chances are 20 percent or less. In reality, a worker has a 30 percent chance of suffering a disabling injury or illness causing him or her to miss three or more months of work before reaching retirement, according to the Social Security Administration.

The survey also found that nearly half (47 percent) of Baby Boomers say they are not too concerned about their chances of suffering a disabling illness or injury.

One of the reasons Baby Boomers underestimate their risk is because they are unaware of the most common causes of disability, mistakenly believing that injuries cause more disabilities than illnesses. According to the survey, Boomers believe the most common causes of disability are back, muscle or joint problems (26 percent), injuries on the job (18 percent) and injuries off the job (16 percent). In actuality, research shows that the most common causes of disability are illnesses such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

+ Memo of survey findings (PDF; 24 KB)
+ Questionnaire (PDF; 32 KB)

Income Security and Stability During Retirement in Canada

2008-03-13T13:51:33Z

Income Security and Stability During Retirement in Canada
Source: Statistics Canada

Past research has shown that the Canadian pension system is relatively effective in helping seniors to stay out of poverty. However, the extent to which the pension system enables individuals and families to maintain living standards achieved during their working years after retirement (income security) is less well understood. To help fill this knowledge gap, we employ 20-year longitudinal data to track individuals as they move from age 55 through their retirement years. We use various measures of an individual’s family income to study four main issues: change in income levels through retirement; the role that various income sources play in this change; variation in replacement rates through time and between poorer and richer individuals; and, finally, the degree of long-term stability in individual incomes. For workers with average incomes, family income falls after age 60, declines until age 68, and then stabilizes at approximately 80% of the income level they had at age 55. In contrast, low income individuals (those in the bottom income quintile) experience little change in income as they move from age 55 through the retirement years, largely because of the income maintenance effects of the public pension system. They experience high levels of individual income instability in their late 50s and early 60s, but income instability falls dramatically after retirement. Individuals in the top quintile experience substantially larger income declines in retirement so that income inequality within a cohort declines as the cohort ages. More recent groups of retirees are experiencing higher income levels than earlier cohorts, largely because of higher private pensions. Replacement rates have changed little among cohorts, however. Whether recent gains in income levels will persist in future cohorts is unknown since pension coverage has been falling among younger workers.

+ Full Document (PDF; 480 KB)

CRS — Impact of Rising Energy Costs on Older Americans

2008-03-21T20:11:28Z

Impact of Rising Energy Costs on Older Americans
Source: Congressional Research Service (via OpenCRS)

Energy-related expenditures include spending for utilities and fuel to operate, heat, and cool homes and spending for gasoline and motor oil for private transportation. Energy prices to consumers have increased 70% between 2000 and 2007, driven largely by growth in prices for energy commodities such as petroleum. Petroleum-based products such as fuel oil, propane and gasoline comprise about 50% of household energy expenditures. Older Americans are disproportionately affected by higher energy costs. As a share of income, households headed by a person age 65 or older spend more on energy-related expenditures than their younger counterparts. In addition, low-income households (those with less than $15,000 in household income) spent nearly 20% of their household income on energy-related expenditures in 2006 (the latest year for which data are available). This compares to 7.3% spent by older households with incomes above $15,000. These estimates are for 2006 and do not reflect the additional 17% increase in energy prices that occurred in 2007. The key public program that provides energy assistance to low-income households is the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Approximately 40% of low-income households that were eligible for LIHEAP have a household member aged 60 or older. Funding for the LIHEAP Program has not kept pace with recent increases in energy costs of older Americans. This report will explore the burden of rising energy costs on older Americans and discuss implications for public policies. This report will be updated when new data is released.

+ Full Report (PDF; 69 KB)

How Many Struggle to Get by In Retirement?

2008-03-07T05:00:00Z

This paper uses data from the 2004 Health and Retirement Study to demonstrate how the poverty rate of adults 65 and older changes using alternative resource and threshold measures. Results show that alternative poverty measures that account for health spending produce higher poverty rates than the official measure, even those that include the value of housing and financial assets. Poverty remains concentrated among singles (disproportionately women), blacks and Hispanics, and adults 85 and older regardless of how it is measured because these populations have relatively little housing equity or financial assets.

Older Americans' Reliance on Assets

2008-03-18T05:00:00Z

People think of retirement security as balancing on a three-legged stool, with income from assets, private pensions, and Social Security as the legs. However, despite growing awareness about the importance of saving for retirement, many elderly people cannot rely on their financial assets. According to data from the 2004 Health and Retirement Study, lower-income adults age 65 and older rely less on income from assets and traditional defined-benefit pensions than their higher-income counterparts. Instead, older adults with lower income rely primarily on Social Security and public transfers for their retirement security.

Balance in Old Age Tied to Brain Changes (HealthDay)

2008-03-19T03:47:08Z

HealthDay - TUESDAY, March 18 (HealthDay News) -- The severity of age-related changes to white matter in the brain affects how well older people are able to move around and keep their balance, a new study says.

Keeping Dementia Sufferers In Their Own Homes For As Long As Possible

2008-03-17T09:00:00Z

APH Ltd is using KNX technology as part of a project which is looking to helping dementia sufferers stay in their own homes for as long as possible - a flat within a Sheltered Housing Scheme in Bristol, England, has been converted into a prototype "Smart Home". APH is a member of the KNX UK Association and was asked to tailor an intelligent design to suit the requirements of the occupant of the flat.

Cognitive Impairment Without Dementia Affects 5 Million Elderly Americans

2008-03-18T10:00:00Z

A new study by researchers in the US suggests over 5 million elderly Americans below the threshold for dementia have cognitive impairment that reduces the performance of memory, thinking and other faculties.The study is published in the 18th March issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine and is the work of Dr Brenda Plassman, of Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina, and colleagues.

10 Million US Baby Boomers Will Have Alzheimer's, Report

2008-03-19T09:00:00Z

A new report released today by the Alzheimer's Association suggests that 10 million American baby boomers, that is one in every eight, will develop Alzheimer's in their lifetime. The report also estimates that as many as 5.2 million people are living with Alzheimer's in the United States, including up to 250,000 under the age of 65.

Baltimore Sun Examines Medicine Mismanagement Among Elderly U.S. Residents

2008-03-10T05:00:00Z

About half of all U.S. seniors have improperly managed at least one prescription medication, and seniors are twice as likely as others to be admitted to an emergency department for drug safety issues, according to some experts, the Baltimore Sun reports.

According to a 2006 analysis by Medco Health Solutions, the drug...

AARP Global Network Expands International Reach

2008-02-28T18:22:00Z

Italian and Canadian Organizations Serving the 50+ Population Join the Network

AARP Launches "AARP TV" Original programming

2008-03-06T16:23:00Z

AARP, the largest membership organization for people 50+, today announced the launch of AARP TV, a franchise that will create original lifestyle and news content catering to the boomer and 50+ demographic. AARP TV’s first two syndicated television shows—Inside E Street and My Generation—will debut on March 10 and 11, 2008, respectively and be distributed through and air on Retirement Living Television (RLTV) which reaches more than 29 million households nationwide. These two weekly half-hour shows extend from AARP’s lifestyle and news platforms as well as select single-topic specials.