January 2010 Newsletter

Dear Subscriber,

Every January brings with it a time of reflection on the past year and thoughts on how to make the New Year a success. More often than not, this includes striving for better health in our daily lives and a desire to maybe not defy age, but certainly age more gracefully. This month’s articles highlight a few ways to accomplish this. In a spirit of sharing and community and with the heartiest of wishes for a wonderful beginning to your year, we hope you will find the included news informative and beneficial.

Thank you,
The Team at Best Senior Home Care

Loneliness is Actually Contagious

New research suggests that loneliness is actually contagious... spreading from person to person up to three degrees of separation. This means if someone close to you is lonely, or his or her cousin or friend is lonely, you may have a good chance of being lonely, too. This research is published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Read more about this in this article.

Listen to John Cacioppo discuss the need for human interaction to combat loneliness in this podcast.

Access the journal, but note there is a fee to purchase articles.

Aging Population Means More Vision Issues

In 2010, an estimated 2.8 million Baby Boomers will celebrate their 60th birthdays, and within the next 30 years, the National Eye Institute estimates the number of blind or visually impaired Americans will double.

According to the AOA, 20.5 million people age 60 and over have cataracts, a leading cause of poor vision in the United States. The American Optometric Association (AOA) is issuing a reminder that early detection through a comprehensive eye exam can prevent or slow vision loss due to cataracts and other age-related eye diseases such as macular degeneration, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy.

Read more here.

Organ Growth Now Possible for Repairing Bodies

This is not science fiction, this is the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine where the researchers are applying the principles of regenerative medicine to repair or replace diseased tissues and organs. A wholly laboratory-grown organ, engineered bladder tissue, has now been successfully implanted in patients. “Smart biomaterials” are being used to patch damaged organs and grow new heart valves, blood vessels, liver, muscle, skin, ears, and even fingers. Although still quite controversial, the researchers are working to grow more than 22 different organs and tissues in the laboratory.

Learn more about it here.

Adding Style to Functional Senior Products

Michael Graves, a world famous architect, is now applying his design style to heating pads and simple shower seats for the mobility impaired. He anticipates that his Michael Graves Solutions line eventually will have its design stamp on everything from walking canes to complicated wheelchairs. Read the full story about how a serious health issue caused the architect and designer to become interested in applying style, multifunctional elegance, and beauty to a line of previously rather mundane products.

See some of his designs that are available for purchase here.