Help Get Seniors Active This Spring Cold weather temperatures have kept many seniors confined to their apartments or homes this winter. We all know how important it is for older loved ones to take the proper precautions when traveling, especially when the potential for slips and falls is the greatest on icy sidewalks and roads. But now that spring has sprung and warmer temperatures abound, it’s the perfect time to take advantage of the fresh air and sunshine that comes along with more favorable outdoor conditions even if you are already taking advantage of alternative therapy options. Here are a
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Archives for Senior Care
Spring Cleaning Tips for You and Your Senior
With spring comes budding trees and plants, blooming flowers and changing temperatures. It’s also a time when people begin to organize and de-clutter clutter the space around them. What you may not consider is how much caring for your senior involves a routine spring cleaning of their apartments or home in order to help them stay organized, as well. Oftentimes old photographs, papers and mementos have a habit of accumulating and collecting dust in the basement or attic. But before you begin the process of straightening and systematizing the memories of your loved one, it might be good to sit
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How to be Prepared for in Home Emergencies
When loved ones begin to age, the risks for in-home injuries begin to rise. However, preparing for the unexpected before it actually happens may help decrease that number and save the day. Home fall related injuries are at an all-time high, affecting about 2.5 million older folks per year. About 1 in every 3 people aged 65 and older will fall, and only about half of those individuals will actually tell a doctor about it. Here are a few tips to help you prepare for a health related emergency, as well as ways to make your home as safe as
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Let Freedom Home Care Help You Get Up to Speed on Preparing for A Cozy (and Safe) Winter Season!
Though the winter season certainly has some undeniable power to create a picturesque wonderland, it’s important for us to remember that with the beauty of cold weather also comes much season-specific danger. When preparation makes all the difference between cozy comfort and a host of imposing winter dangers, there’s no doubt that it’s worth taking some time to plan for the best possible holiday season a bit ahead of the icy curve. In the spirit of preparation and of a truly enjoyable winter season, the folks here at Freedom Home Care have organized some of the most common risks, and
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The Benefit of Seniors and Interaction with Young Children
Senior citizens run a high risk of loneliness and isolation due to a lack of social interaction – especially with younger generations. But that’s where the Intergenerational Learning Center at the Mount (ILCM) is trying to change things: they recently put a preschool in their nursing home. And it changed everyone’s lives. Studies have shown that 43% of older adults experience social isolation, which is closely correlated with loneliness and depression as well as mental and physical decline. And many elderly become lonely when they move into nursing homes, or lose a loved one and remain alone in their own
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Tips To Outdoor Fun for Good Senior Health
Rita Altman, Senior Vice President of Memory Care services for Sunrise Senior Living in Pennsylvania, recently wrote for Huffington Post a list of recommendations on how to keep summertime activities safe and enjoyable for those living with memory loss, and how to achieve the best senior health during these hot months. Citing research suggesting that singing and playing music contributes to memory retention, Altman recommends playing “music from summers past” at family gatherings. And when it comes to physical activities, Rita says that those living with dementia can – and should – participate, but most activities will need a little
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Promise for Senior Health in Wearable Tech
Wearable technology is helping all of us get fitter, but it’s so far been marketed primarily to youth and people in their twenties whose lives are already well integrated with technology. Just look at ads for things like FitBit. But wearable tech has immense potential to help seniors who could do without nagging sons or daughters – or might not have anyone around to nag them. However, how likely are people over 50 to find the technology, well, wearable? A recent AARP study sought to find out. The senior advocacy group teamed up with Georgia Tech Research Institute’s HomeLab to
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Is Driving Cessation Really The Best Idea for Aging Seniors?
There are plenty of studies that list the reasons why older adults are no longer behind the wheel after 65 years of age, and drivers in the U.S. beyond 65 will represent about 25 percent of the population by 2025. But according to a new study conducted by RAND (research and analysis company), the results of a number of studies based on data like miles traveled for various age groups, traffic accidents and causes and various age groups have shown to be inconclusive. With the help of information released through the Fatal Accident Reporting System and more defined parameters, it’s been
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Falling Down: Prevention Tips
Trips and falls can lead to serious injuries, hip fractures, and head traumas in older adults – Freedom Home Care wants to help you take steps to prevent them. Each year, one in every three adults ages 65 and older slip and fall in the U.S. According to Physical Therapist Alice Bell, seniors who have fallen once are the most at risk of falling again. There are a number of factors that contribute to falls experienced by seniors, and any kind of fall can be especially dangerous for people with Osteoporosis. Known to many as the silent disease, Osteoporosis causes
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Talking To College Students Is Good for Older Adults
It is perhaps a well-known fact that storytelling and sharing from one generation to another is good for everyone, young and old. But a new study has put it to the test, and has found that it is especially good for older adults on multiple levels – mentally, emotionally, and physically. The study focused on writing workshops for older adults living at home and in retirement communities. These workshops were conducted in group settings where adults were prompted to write “life reviews,” a form of memoir and personal writing. Thirty-nine seniors were randomly assigned to two distinct groups: one group
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