With travel back to pre-pandemic levels, people are itching to get away. But for older adults and their caregivers, travel comes with challenges — like managing mobility and keeping track of prescriptions. “When traveling with seniors, nobody wants surprises,” says Susan Diamond, a Chicago-area group leader for Road Scholar, a not-for-profit educational travel organization for […]
Many people confuse mild cognitive impairment (MCI) — memory loss that doesn’t impact daily functioning — with normal aging. Yet, MCI isn’t part of the typical aging process. This forgetful, confused thinking affects 12% to 18% of people ages 60 and older and can be a precursor to Alzheimer’s disease. Symptoms include forgetting important information […]Read More
Teepa Snow thought TikTok was just for singing, dancing, and funny videos. At her team’s urging, Snow, founder of the dementia education company Positive Approach to Care, gave #caregivertiktok a try. Her videos offer dementia care tips in an engaging and digestible format. In total, they’ve racked up more than 25 million views since she […]Read More
Sandy and Jon Miller of Downers Grove are passionate about music and its power to bring people together. While running seven choirs for older adults in Chicagoland, they heard about a Twin Cities-based choir for people with dementia. After visiting the choir, the couple returned home determined to bring the same joy to Chicago. Two […]Read More
About 230,000 people with Alzheimer’s disease live in Illinois, and many will wander away at some point. But thanks to Silver Search, a collaborative statewide effort, not all who wander are lost. Some 400 people with dementia have gone missing in the state over the past five years, but 95% have been found through Silver […]Read More
As our parents get older, it’s imperative we understand their end-of-life wishes. This involves some hard questions — and that’s okay. Just be sure to ask them in the right way. “Don’t expect them to just go along with what you are asking,” says Liz Birch, founder of Des Plaines-based Home Care Angels. “If you […]Read More
JoAnn King, a retired teacher and school librarian, couldn’t take ballet lessons as a child because her parents opposed them. Then, two years ago, the 82-year-old Evanston resident’s wish came true. She started taking a ballet class for older adults at the Levy Senior Center in Evanston (cityofevanston.org, 847-448-8250). Nichola Goss, 51, who has danced […]Read More
Next time you nap, you can rest easy. Because it turns out that if you snooze, you don’t lose. Taking a nap can positively affect cognitive function in older adults, according to a recent Chinese study in General Psychiatry of participants age 60 and up. Camelia Musleh, MD, a neurologist with NorthShore University HealthSystem, says […]Read More
Covid-19 vaccines have recently stolen the spotlight, but other vaccines are also important to keep older adults healthy. Consider these key immunizations, says June McKoy, MD, MPH, an internist and geriatrician at Northwestern Medicine. Influenza. This shot, refined annually, protects against the four flu strains expected to be most common each year and reduces the […]Read More
Urinary incontinence grows more common as we age, but finding the right incontinence supplies to keep older adults comfortable can involve plenty of trial and error. Northbrook resident Adam Greenberg watched his family members struggle to get the correct products, which inspired him to start his own incontinence supply company, NorthShore Care Supply. Greenberg recommends […]Read More
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