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Climate change and your health

posted on 12:05 PM in Awareness, Cold and Flu, exercise, Fitness, Lifestyle, Prevention with 0 comments

On some days, you look out the window to check the skies for rain or snow. You stretch an arm out an open window to gauge the temperature or turn on the local news to find out the day's high. Day to day, the weather may decide your wardrobe or your route to work. Season to season, you may notice fluctuations from colds and flu to allergies and sunburns. But what about the climate and the overall quality of the weather over time? Can climate change impact your health?

Climate change in a nutshell

People use a lot of energy, and most of the energy we've used over the last century has been created through the burning of non-renewable fossil fuels. The fossil fuels we use - including the gas in our cars and the coal that still heats some homes - release carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere.

CO2 is also produced naturally by the environment and is an essential part of many natural processes, such as plant photosynthesis. CO2 is naturally regulated to keep the amount of it in balance between the atmosphere and the land and the ocean.

However, this CO2 and other greenhouse gases appear to be accumulating and trapping the sun's heat and radiation in the atmosphere. This increase of CO2 in the atmosphere is caused by the change in our climate: air and water temperatures have risen and weather patterns have begun to shift. Basically, we have managed to change the world's climate.

How climate change may affect your health

In the years to come, our world's climate will become warmer and more unpredictable. Climate change and global warming have been acknowledged by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a threat to human health, especially to those living in the poorest regions of the world.

The heat is on. Climate changes may bring about more frequent heat waves and the health problems that accompany extreme heat: heat stroke, dehydration, respiratory problems, and cardiovascular distress. With hot, dry conditions, some areas of the world may see more droughts and depleted crops, which would contribute to hunger and malnutrition. In urban areas, extreme heat can worsen smog and pollution. Unpredictable shifts in temperature can take people by surprise. The very young, the very old, and the very frail, tend to be most negatively impacted by heat waves.

Rain and its runoff. Inconsistent patterns of rain could result in more frequent catastrophic hurricanes and flooding. Floodwaters can compromise water safety and become breeding grounds and transporters for any number of waterborne illnesses. Floodwaters contaminated with human or animal waste can trigger diarrhea outbreaks due to bacteria, as with cholera, E. coli, and typhoid, or from viruses like hepatitis A.

Bugs spreading bugs. Insects and other animals act asvectors (carriers) of infectious diseases that can be transmitted to people. As the climate grows warmer, mosquitoes, ticks, and other disease vectors spread into new territories and live for longer periods of time than they normally would. With longer lives and wider reach, these vectors have new and more numerous opportunities to transmit infections like malaria, Lyme disease, or dengue fever.

Pollen and other allergens. Climate shifts could also shift the growth patterns of certain plants. This becomes troublesome when those plants are irritants or allergens. Scientists have noted proliferations of stronger, more abundant poison ivy, ragweed, and earlier onset of pollen season.

The climate has changed. Have you?

The climate is the context in which we live, and it's impossible to escape it. It also feels like the kind of thing over which you have little control. While you can't cool a heat wave or pacify a surging hurricane, you can begin to turn the climate tide through your own individual actions.

Be a proactive weather watcher. You can tune in to the weather report for a forecast of the temperature and overall conditions. Will it rain? Do I need a jacket? Warnings and bulletins alert people of pending extreme weather events, like tornadoes, tsunamis, or floods. Additional forecasts and advisories can warn you of various day-to-day fluctuations in atmospheric conditions.

Keep an eye on the barometric pressure and wind velocity, as factors like these can impact your health. Many news forecasts will issue UV warnings to rate the strength of the sun's ultraviolet radiation on a given day. Pollen levels and air quality indexes warn of days with high smog, pollution, or allergen levels. On days with higher warning levels, you would know to take extra precautions to protect your health. Some of these include:

wearing sunscreen, hat, and sunglasses to protect your skin from UV radiation
staying indoors during days of high smog, especially if you have medical conditions that can be affected by poor air quality (e.g., asthma)
drinking lots of water during extreme heat warnings to prevent dehydration

Help those who need it. Those who have limited resources to adapt to climate changes and extreme weather shifts can fall victim to the elements. During extreme weather shifts, remember those in your area who may need extra support: the elderly, the homeless, or the economically challenged. Act on the behalf of their health and safety by making material or financial donations to help provide fans or air conditioning and cooling units during a heat wave, blankets or coats during an intense cold snap, or shelter after a catastrophic storm.

Think globally, act locally. As you move through your days and make choices, the wider world should stay in your thoughts. Even if you live in a big city and work all day in an office, you are part of the natural world. The small decisions you make each day impact everyone else, albeit in gradual, cumulative ways:

carry reusable shopping bags instead of plastic bags
take public transit, carpool, walk, or ride a bike instead of driving your car
invest in a safe, reusable water bottle instead of buying single-serving plastic water bottles
turn off lights when you don't need them - switch to more efficient appliances, and shut them down when not in use

Amy Toffelmire

http://chealth.canoe.ca/channel_section_details.asp?text_id=4375&channel_id=10&relation_id=3883

Home Care Assistance offers the highest quality 24/7 live-in home care in the Region of Halton (Oakville, Burlington, Halton Hills, and Milton), Region of Peel (Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon), Hamilton and surrounding areas.

Running Up New Times for Seniors

posted on 5:43 PM in Aging, Fitness, Heart Health, How to Live to 102, Lifestyle, Seniors' Health with 0 comments

By Jean Sorenson

BJ McHugh stretches after a run. Photo by: Jean Sorenson

Betty Jean “BJ” McHugh challenges today’s concept of aging and the elderly. The 84-year-old North Vancouver running legend, dubbed the fastest senior in the world, has just finished the James Cunningham Seawall 9.5-kilometre road race clocking in at 62 minutes.

“I thought it was a terrible time,” says BJ, who has been running since her 50s and has set some 30 world records for marathons, half-marathons, and shorter races. But, the time was good enough to earn her first place in the age-graded runners’ category. She acknowledges that age has taken its toll on her times. She once ran the 9.5 kilometre James Cunningham Seawall Race - a favourite with runners in Halloween costumes - in 43 minutes and 52 seconds in 1979, three days before her 52nd birthday.

But as she runs - with other elite senior runners such as the 100-year-old Fauja Singh, who holds world records for his age category in eight different distances, including the Toronto Marathon, and Vancouver’s 74-year-old Rod Waterlow who ran the Vancouver 2011 Fall Classic half-marathon in one hour and 46 minutes - BJ makes society question seniors’ capabilities. And, opens new horizons. At age 80, she set a new world record at the 29th Royal Victoria Marathon.

When she first started running, there were no age categories. Today, races have not only a winning time for the fastest runners, but runners are broken into age brackets of five or 10 years. In addition, runners are handicapped according to age using a computer formula, which determines overall performance. In the Cunningham race, BJ’s age-graded performance outranked more than 900 other racers that day putting her at the top of the podium.

BJ’s “running times” are chronicled in a new book My Road to Rome co-authored by her and CBC reporter and runner Bob Nixon, who first met BJ three years ago when a note about her came into the television studio. He subsequently reported on her invitation by the Rome Marathon organizers to run the 26-mile course.

“I could not get her out of my mind,” says Nixon, “not just because she was such a remarkably lively and fun person to interview, but also because I discovered that her world marathon record as an 80-year-old was faster than I had run the same course when I was in my 30s. I had never met anyone that age who was so fit.”

The CBC story grew into a book that tells the life of BJ, who was born in the small village of Stanwood, Ontario. She grew up on a farm and recalls adventures such as horse-drawn sled rides in winter to her grandparents’ home at Christmas, and follows her dream of nursing to a Toronto school. After graduation in Toronto, she moved to Vancouver to work as a nurse, where she met her husband Robert, a car salesman, who landed in her hospital ward.

BJ laughs because she is not the only nurse to meet her husband as a patient. One day, while working out at the gym, a nurse stopped by to tell her how much she had enjoyed the book. “We both have something in common,” quipped the nurse. “We both met our husbands in bed.”

BJ’s story is full of urban family life - such as the rigours of manually defrosting fridges, sewing new dresses for social events and the kids, seeing her daughter Jennifer off to sporting events, swim meets, training sessions and finally the 1972 Olympics, and outfitting the family for skiing trips to the North Shore mountains. BJ’s recounts are far from dull as she delves into the fabric of life. Nixon says she describes those new ski pants of the ‘70s as “so tight that if a woman put a dime in the pocket you could tell if it was head or tails” and “the whole book is dotted with such McHugh gems.”

Throughout the story, her four children and husband are focal points of her life. But, after finding tennis hard on the body, unable to ski during summer and with the children flying from the nest, she sought out a new sport - running. It turned into a passion and led to record-smashing performances.

Today, BJ says she never set out to smash any records, although the records started falling as she entered races. She continues to run for the pure joy of the sport and, along the way, has developed a group of friends that are as foundational as her sneakers. She doesn’t wear a runner’s watch but marks time with a stopwatch, nor does she worry about pace or the distance she has run. She also doesn’t use a heart monitor. “I know my body,” she says, adding that really is what she listens to when she is running in or out of a race.

She also doesn’t follow a special diet, like many runners who are vegans or vegetarians, nor takes dietary supplements. Instead, she cooks regular meals, although she does watch what she eats, especially near a race date; she suffers from a mild form of irritated bowel syndrome. Her big meal is breakfast - fruit, oatmeal and a bagel.

Regularly running with a group of women starting out at around 6 a.m. three times a week for an hour, she runs a fourth, longer run on Saturday mornings and can last up to three-and-a-half hours, if a marathon is beckoning. She cross-trains with cycling, lifts weights in the gym, and practises yoga.

BJ credits her group of friends - all younger - as her inspiration. Having younger friends is important as one ages, she feels, as they keep her active. “It’s hard to stay in bed when you have friends waiting - even if it is raining outside,” she says. They also provide a source of energy, optimism and humour.

At the crack of dawn, they are a noticeable crowd, chattering down the street. She tells of one North Vancouver resident, who obviously rolled out of the wrong side of the bed to set out his garbage, turning to the noisy group and said: “Why don’t you girls shut up!” Then, there was the morning when an owl swooped down and tried to wing off with the ponytail of a running buddy.

The group works as a team planning events, booking hotels and airfare. “I’m really quite spoiled,” says BJ about the group cheering her accomplishments at events. But, they celebrate their victories together. “Thirteen of us ran the [2011] Chicago Marathon,” she says, adding that all completed the course to take home finisher’s medals.

BJ has not come through the record books unscathed. Husband Robert, long a support member for her and friends at the events, and the family’s main breadwinner, fell 23 years ago on a sidewalk curb, hit his head and sustained brain trauma. Through his decline into dementia, and financial difficulties, BJ tells in her book how she continues to run and stay by the side of the man she calls “the great love of my life.”

BJ has also sustained numerous injuries: she once tripped over her dog as it darted out to catch a squirrel and injured her shoulder, which required surgery. Her running buddies came to the rescue during her convalescence and ran over dinners for her and Robert, adding the occasional bottle of wine. What comes from BJ’s life is not being down, but getting back up.

As she ages, BJ continues to open new doors for runners, as race organizers have to add new age categories to accommodate more seniors entering road racing. Nixon says that what has intrigued him as a journalist in his 50s about BJ is her “secret” to aging as he found himself facing that “slippery slope” of declining health expected in old age. But, here is BJ healthy at 80. And she doesn’t see any mystical fountain of youth; running is part of her active lifestyle. Her book sets out 10 life lessons in the last chapter, including “think young” and “don’t just get into shape - BE in shape by being active.”

She plans to take that perspective into the Honolulu Marathon in December 2012. She has two daughters, Jennifer (the Olympic swimmer) and Jillian, and two sons, Brent and Gyle. They all run or have run, but son Brent competes in marathons.

“My granddaughter Ava wants us to do a three-generation run in Honolulu,” says BJ, an event that takes place a month after her 85th birthday.

BJ’s optimistic she will make it, but quips, “At my age, you don’t buy green bananas.”

http://www.seniorlivingmag.com/articles/running-up-new-times-for-seniors

JANUARY 2012 SENIOR LIVING MAGAZINE VANCOUVER & LOWER MAINLAND

Walking Tips for Seniors

posted on 2:57 PM in exercise, Fitness, Seniors' Health with 0 comments

http://www.walkandrollpeel.ca/walking/seniors.htm

Walking for daily exercise is low-impact, safe and free. It can also improve cardiovascular fitness and strengthen muscles and bones.

The Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines for Older Adults (65+) recommends accumulating at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week to achieve health benefits and improve functional abilities.

Speak to your health care provider before starting a walking program, especially if you have an existing chronic medical condition or have been inactive for a long period of time.

Stay safe while walking

Choose a familiar route that is flat and free of obstacles.
Consider the surface you’ll be walking on. A smooth, soft surface that’s free of debris will put less strain on your joints and feet.
Wear supportive footwear – wear low-heeled footwear with non-skid soles.
Avoid rushing – rushing increases your risk of falling. Take you time.
If using a walking aid (e.g. cane or walker) ensure that it is fitted for your height.
Check the Clean Air Peel website for the daily Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) and theUltraviolet (UV) Index to plan outdoor activities accordingly and to protect your health or the health of seniors in your care.
Be extra careful in cold weather — sidewalks and paths can be slippery.
Cold weather can cause numbness and make it difficult for you to feel any pain or an injury. When it’s cold outside, consider walking in an indoor place, like a mall or community fitness centre.
Walk with friends or a walking club.
Carry a cell phone in case of emergencies.
Dress appropriately for the weather and drink plenty of water.
Stop or take a break if you feel any pain during your walk. Consult a health care provider if pain continues after your walk.

Sources: Canada Safety Council’s
Ontario Seniors’ Secretariat
Peterborough Moves’ Safe Walking
Region of Peel Public Health’s “It’s Time to Prevent Falls” brochure (PDF 134kb, 2pgs)

World Mental Health Day

posted on 2:31 PM in Aging, Alzheimer's, Brain Health, Dementia, Fitness, Health communication, Mental Health, Oakville senior, Women's Health with 2 comments

Did you know that Monday October 10th is World Mental Health Day? This day was established by the World Federation for Mental Health in 1992 to provide education, awareness and advocacy for those affected by mental illness worldwide.

Family caregivers are disproportionately affected by mental health concerns as a result of the stress and strain of caring for individuals with chronic disease or other health issues. Beyond managing the day to day activities for the care recipient, many family caregivers find that the biggest struggle they face is letting go of the person they used to know and accepting the current status of the individual they care for. Other factors that can impact a caregiver's mental health include the nature of the relationship with the care recipient, the stage of the disability or disease and the strength of the social support network.

There is hope – and there is help. We would like to share with you the Caring for the Caregiver Plancreated by the World Federation for Mental Health. This customizable plan ensures that the mental and physical health of the caregiver is not only maintained but also improved.

The Caring for the Caregiver Plan has three components:

1) Cope with day-to-day demands by getting the help that you need

Understand that it is okay to ask for help
Define the help you need
Seek out resources in your community for help

2) Create a community of care providers

Utilize a web-based caregiving coordination service, or a paper and pencil calendar method, to organize offers of help
Contact a reputable home care agency to provide respite care

3) Care for your mental health

Monitor signs of caregiver burnout
Watch for signs of anxiety, and if necessary, seek help
Watch for signs of depression, and if necessary, seek help

Take the time to write out a Caring for the Caregiver plan for yourself. In doing so, you can help sustain – and ultimately improve – your own mental and physical well-being while continuing to provide excellent care. At Home Care Assistance, we wrote the book on family caregiving, and we're here to help with respite care when you need us. Have a great weekend!

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Read about our Live-in and Hourly services

How to become an optimist

posted on 4:10 PM in Alternative Health, Awareness, Balanced Care Method, Brain Health, Fitness, Health Care, Health communication, inspiration, Seniors' Health with 0 comments

ARTICLE BY: CYNTHIA ROSS CRAVIT

- SEP 08, 2011

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When times are tough it's easy to expect the worst. But a positive attitude benefits your health, your happiness -- and your productivity.

Research shows that having a positive attitude can make a huge difference in promoting better health and an improved sense of well-being — which in turn can lead to improved confidence and productivity.

And while optimists are often accused of oversimplifying or being unrealistic, the Mayo Clinic says that people who tend to view situations in a positive light experience a higher level of both physical and mental functioning than their pessimist counterparts.

Optimists, for example, have:

- Greater resistance to catching the common cold

- Reduced risk of coronary artery disease

- Easier breathing if you have certain lung diseases, such as emphysema

- Better coping skills during hardships

- Less negative stress

Further, studies have found that optimistic people decreased their risk of early death by a full 50 per cent compared to those who were more pessimistic. (For more, see Will your personality determine how long you live?)

Retrain the brain

If you’re not a natural optimist, can you change the way you think — and become more upbeat? Experts say yes, that with practice, people can basically retrain their brains to think more positively. Mainly this has to do with monitoring — and changing, if necessary — the ’self-talk’ or the automatic stream of thoughts that runs through your head, endlessly, every day. These thoughts can be either negative or positive, and can be based on logic or on misconceptions and lack of information.

According to the Mayo Clinic, some common forms of negative self-talk include:

Filtering. This happens when you magnify the negative aspects of a situation and filter out all of the positive ones. For example, after a fantastically productive day at work, you suddenly realize you forgot one task – and it is this task you focus on instead of the ones you did accomplish.

Personalizing. In this case, when something bad occurs, you automatically blame yourself. Did your company lose an important account? You think it must be entirely your fault — when in reality other factors came into play.

Catastrophizing. This happens when you automatically anticipate the worst in any given situation. Your boss asks to see you? It must be bad news.

Polarizing. In this instance there is no middle ground: You view things as either good or bad, black or white. You feel that you have to be perfect or that you’re a total failure.

Silence the internal critic

Instead of automatically giving in to them, challenge your negative thoughts. You can weed out negative self-talk by replacing thoughts that are based on irrational thinking with rational, positive ones. For example, if you’re feeling out of the loop at the office, instead of saying to yourself: “No one bothers to communicate with me”, say instead, “I’ll see if I can open the channels of communication.”

http://www.50plus.com/lifestyle/how-to-become-an-optimist/2021/

Aging: Too Old to Benefit From Exercise? Pish!

posted on 4:49 PM in Aging, Eat Right and Get Active, exercise, Fitness, Oakville senior, Women's Health with 0 comments

Researchers divided a group of 64 volunteers with an average age of 84 into three groups. The first group exercised by walking, the second did resistance training, and a control group did no exercise.
After 16 weeks of regular exercise twice a week, the exercise groups had lower systolic blood pressure, improved upper and lower body strength, improved hip and shoulder flexibility and improvements in tests of agility, balance and coordination when compared with members of the group that did not exercise.
All of the participants, who ranged in age from 66 to 96, were healthy enough to take care of daily tasks on their own, but some exercisers used canes or walkers during their sessions. Three-quarters of the participants were women, and only five participants were younger than 75. The study appears in the February issue of The Journal of Aging and Health.
Ross Andel, a co-author of the study, suggested that the exercise program would also be suitable for older people who had greater handicaps. "Based on our findings," he said, "it is reasonable to expect that a similar exercise program would be successful in older individuals who have difficulties in activities of daily living." Dr. Andel is an assistant professor of gerontology at the School of Aging Studies at the University of South Florida.
Both the resistance program and the walking program led to significant improvements, leading Dr. Andel to suggest that the exercise itself, and not the type of exercise, provides the benefit. "It is at least as important to exercise in advanced age as earlier in life," he said.

By NICHOLAS BAKALAR

Published: February 28, 2006

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/28/health/28agin.html

10 Everyday Activities for Seniors to Boost Memory

posted on 12:00 PM in Alzheimer's, Dementia, Fitness, Food and Nutrition, Home Care, Lifestyle, Mental Health with 0 comments

Changes in your thinking processes and memory are inevitable as we age. According to the 2011 Alzheimer's Association's Annual Report, someone in the U.S. develops Alzheimer's disease every 70 seconds. Luckily, simple lifestyle activities, both physical and mental, can decrease your chances of dementia and keep your mind sharp as a tack!

Also note that debilitating memory loss doesn't happen to everyone. Here are 10 ways to boost your memory power. You will notice that most of these activities are probably already incorporated into your daily routine.

1.    Take the stairs – Exercise benefits your brain as well as the rest of your body. Increasing blood flow to the brain results in less brain shrinkage and lowers the risk for Alzheimer's disease.

Remember, one step at a time – it all adds up. Avoid elevators, park at the far end of the lot and try taking an evening walk around your block.

2.    Take a nap during the day – Memory storage happens while you sleep, which is why a good night’s sleep is so valuable. A six-minute nap is as valuable for short-term recall as a 90-minute nap has been shown to speed up the process that helps the brain consolidate long-term memories.

3.    Play a ‘brain’ game - A study in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society shows that people over 65 who used a computerized cognitive training program for an hour a day, over a period of eight weeks, improved memory and attention more than the control group.

4.    A Cup of Joe - Green and black teas have a protective effect on memory by influencing enzymes in the brain while the caffeine sparks concentration. People who drink moderate amounts of coffee, as many as three to five cups, have lower odds of developing dementia later life.

5.    Eat your greens - People who are deficient in folate and vitamin B12 have an increased risk of developing dementia. Great vegetable sources for folate include romaine lettuce, spinach, asparagus, turnip greens, mustard greens, parsley, collards, broccoli, cauliflower and beets. Don’t like vegetables? An abundant amount of Folate can also be found in lentils, calf's liver, pinto and black beans. Home Care Assistance offers a great health-oriented program for clients that caregivers are trained in called the Balanced Care Method.

6. Learn something new - Pursue a new type of activity using skills far different from those you are accustomed to using. Learn a new language or try a sculpting class!

7. Eat chocolate! - In 2007, a study by the Journal of Neuroscience reported on the memory-boosting effects in rats from a plant compound called epicatechin. In addition to cocoa, epicatechin is found in blueberries, grapes and tea.

8. Put everything in its place - Your memory needs a certain amount of familiarity to keep your life functioning smoothly. Place your keys and glasses in the same place every time. Write notes to yourself as a reminder (the very act of writing will help your recall).

9. Don’t retire – Volunteer. A satisfying work life offers social stimulation and decision-making opportunities, exercises and problem-solving skills. Volunteering after retirement involves learning new material and interacting with others.

10. Spend time with loved ones – Being around other people who keep you engaged and stimulated lowers your risk of developing dementia.

By setting aside time each day to walk, learning something new and munching on chocolate, you can help boost your memory for years to come.

(via Home Care Blog)

Eat Right and Get Active - Get the adrenaline pumping

posted on 12:00 PM in Eat Right and Get Active, Fitness, Lifestyle, Stress with 0 comments

According to a study researchers at Texas A&M University, people who partake in adrenaline-pumping exercises like mountain climbing or white water rafting handle stress better than those who live sedentary lifestyles.

Source: Men's Health

Taking care of a pet can improve your health

posted on 8:30 AM in Blood Pressure, Cholesterol, Fitness, Heart Health, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Stress with 0 comments

A dog may be more than just a best friend – research is suggesting the importance of a pet as a means for treatment.

According to aarp.com, 62% of Americans own a pet for the companionship, love and affection that these animals afford them. While these benefits are great, numerous studies are reporting actual health benefits associated with owning a furry friend.

Here are a few ways in which pets can improve your health:

Pets help recovery from heart attacks – A study from the National Institutes of Health found that dog owners had a higher survival rate after a heart attack, compared to those who did not own dogs.
Pets help reduce stress…more so than humans do.
Pet owners are less obese – Pet owners are more active, simply because they want their pets to stay active and healthy as well.
Pet owners have better mobility as they age – a National Institutes of Health study found that adults aged 71-82 who regularly walked their dogs were more mobile, compared to those who did not own pets.
Pets can help with cholesterol – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that owning a pet can decrease cholesterol, triglycerides and blood pressure.

There are so many different pet options out there for everyone. If you are not a cat or dog person, try getting a fish or other small animal. It will be great for your health and happiness!

Courtesy of CareNotes: The Home Care Newsletter

5 activities to ease your mind during tax season

posted on 4:46 PM in Fitness, Food and Nutrition, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Stress with 0 comments

With tax season upon us, it is important to stay calm during this stressful time of year. Although you may not be fully aware of the tension your body is under, your psyche will thank you by making a habit of these five activities.

1. Be aware of your thoughts: Henry Emmons, MD, author of The Chemistry of Calm, suggests focusing on your body during a stressful or frustrating experience. For example, concentrating on your breathing patterns is much more beneficial than replaying the situation over and over in your mind.

2. Be physical: Move your body in fast-paced exercises, or walk up a few flights of stairs to help balance out stress hormones. Deep-breathing also helps to keep you calm and controlled.

3. Eat carefully: Anger and frustration can lead to poor eating habits. Keeping the lid on the cookie jar during a stressful moment can also help keep your blood-glucose level down (and caloric intake!). Instead, Elizabeth Somer, RD and author of Eat Your Way to Happiness, suggests treating yourself to fruit dipped in dark chocolate. The dark chocolate can help reduce stress hormones in the body.

4. Phone a friend: Research shows good company causes our bodies to release oxytocin, a hormone that releases endorphins and brightens your mood. Creating time in the day for a friend is a great way to naturally increase your mood.

5. Before-bed writing: Once you are settled in bed, grab a paper and pen to jot down any disconcerting or troubling thoughts that are lingering on your mind. Transcribing your experiences will not only help clear your mind, but also give you a better night's rest.

So, if tax season and life’s other nuances are weighing on your mind a little more than normal, implement several of these five tips to help cope with the stress and ease your mind.

Eat Right and Get Active - Tip #2 Try Aromatherapy

posted on 2:44 PM in Eat Right and Get Active, Fitness with 0 comments

Aromatherapy is not only relaxing but also helps you burn calories during exercise as well. According to research from the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, exercisers who inhale strawberry and buttered-popcorn scents burn more calories than those who sniffed neutral odors.

Time.com: How to live 100 years

posted on 6:21 PM in Fitness, Food and Nutrition, How to Live to 102, Lifestyle, Prevention, Seniors' Health with 0 comments

Time Magazine has a great online feature on their website called "How to Live 100 Years" featuring advice from Dr. Mehmet Oz from the Dr. Oz Show and Oprah. We are living in an age of unprecedented longevity as more and more seniors live gracefully well into their 100s.

Link: http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/0,28757,1963392,00.html

Eat Right and Get Active - Tip #1

posted on 10:45 PM in Eat Right and Get Active, Fitness with 0 comments

Start running or jogging. A Yale University School of Medicine study reports that people who run for at least four hours a week melt more calories than non-runners, even when they are at rest.

Staying healthy is more than just nutrition and exercise

posted on 2:37 AM in Fitness, Food and Nutrition, Lifestyle, Prevention, Seniors' Health with 2 comments

Staying healthy and living longer doesn’t just mean eating healthy and staying fit. Dr. Howard Frumkin, the Dean of Public Health at the University of Washington, suggests we should create healthier communities to help people stay as self-sufficient as possible.

Everything from housing and parks to transportation systems can be altered to promote a healthier lifestyle. Frumkin explains that by helping the growing elderly population stay healthy, it will positively affect everyone in the community.

Research in Japan showed that the death rate amongst the elderly was significantly lower in neighborhoods with parks, tree-lined streets and green spaces. Similar research in Indiana found that the greener the neighborhood, the slower the weight gain in children who lived there.

Public transportation systems can also be changed, giving the elderly other alternatives when driving is not an option anymore. Decreasing traffic congestion is an obvious advantage to public transportation as well as the health of the entire community.

These factors need to be applied when planning for our future. Considering that almost one-third of the population will be over the age of 55 by the year 2050 (aarp.com), it is imperative that public health management is put into place in all of our communities.

By Dr. Kathy Johnson
From Home Care Blog