Tag Archives: Aging

Reviews: “A New Way Of Thinking About Aging”

“People 50 and older hold the vast majority of wealth in the country, but we’re producing products and services for people who don’t have nearly as much money to spend…”

by Alexander Gelfand

April 27, 2023: Thanks to advances in medicine and public health, people are living longer, healthier lives. The world’s population of people 60 and older is growing five times faster than the population as a whole. Global life expectancy has doubled since 1900, and experts say that children born in developed countries now have a good chance of living to 100.

A “silver tsunami” is already sweeping the U.S. labor force: the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that 36% of people ages 65–69 will remain on the job in 2024 — up significantly from the 22% who were working in 1994.

These longer-lived, longer-working individuals generate an ever-bigger slice of global GDP and control an expanding tranche of global wealth. In her recent book Stage (Not Age)Golden estimates that the “longevity economy” is worth more than $22 trillion — $8.3 trillion in the United States alone.

That may be a conservative figure: AARP (the organization formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons) estimates that people over 50 already account for half of consumer spending worldwide, or $35 trillion. (This range of figures may have to do with how “older adult” is defined: The term is variously used to refer to people over the ages of 65, 60, or — sorry, Gen Xers — 50.)

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Healthy Aging: ‘Outlive – The Science And Art Of Longevity’ By Peter Attia

Trained as an oncological surgeon, Attia became interested in longevity because he saw that the “Four Horsemen” worked against it: diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease. All play a role in an unhealthy system, and all interrelate.

‘OUTLIVE – THE SCIENCE & ART OF LONGEVITY’ BY PETER ATTIA, MD

Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity - Kindle edition by Attia MD,  Peter . Health, Fitness & Dieting Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

A data- and anecdote-rich invitation to live better, and perhaps a little longer, by making scientifically smart choices.

If you have Type 2 diabetes, then your chances of developing heart disease, cancer, and neurological disorders increases, and if your goal is to live well in old age, then it behooves you to change your ways in order to keep your insulin reception levels in the clear. How to do so?

READ MORE AT KIRKUS REVIEWS

Medicine: AI Verifies ‘Brain Age’ To Detect Alzheimer’s

National Science Foundation (March 13, 2023) – Harnessing the power of AI, researchers calculate our brain’s age leading to earlier detection of Alzheimer’s and other cognitive diseases.

Researchers at USC have developed a new artificial intelligence model that more accurately captures brain age. This study could result in earlier detection of Alzheimer’s and other cognitive diseases and provide important information about how quickly our brains age.

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Aging: 34% Of The Elderly Feel ‘Socially Isolated’

Changes in feelings of social isolation, 2018-2023

In 2023, one in three adults age 50–80 (34%) reported feeling isolated from others (29% some of the time, 5% often) in the past year. This represents a marked decline compared with the 56% (43% some of the time, 13% often) who felt isolated in 2020, but a greater proportion than the 27% (22% some of the time, 5% often) who reported feeling isolated in 2018.

National Poll On Healthy Aging (March 2023) – More than one in three older adults (37%) reported feeling a lack of companionship (29% some of the time, 8% often) in the past year, compared with 41% (32% some of the time, 9% often) in 2020, and 34% (26% some of the time, 8% often) in 2018.

One in three older adults (33%) reported infrequent contact (once a week or less) with people from outside their home in 2023 (14% once a week, 10% every 2–3 weeks, 9% once a month or less). This rate of infrequent contact was significantly less than the 46% reported in 2020 (19% once a week, 11% every 2–3 weeks, 16% once a month or less), but higher than the 28% reported in 2018 (15% once a week, 7% every 2–3 weeks, 6% once a month or less).

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Research Preview: Science Magazine- January 20, 2023

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Science Magazine – January 20, 2023 issue:

Stem cell factors reverse signs of aging in mice

Will reprogramming technique one day help people?

Light pollution is skyrocketing

Data from citizen scientists reveal a worrying growth in light pollution over the past decade

Pirates and politics

An anthropologist argues that experimental communities in Madagascar influenced the European Enlightenment

In Science Journals

Highlights from the Science family of journals

Epigenetics & Aging: DNA Breakage & Repair Effects

Harvard Medical School – A 13-year international study in mice demonstrates that loss of epigenetic information, which influences how DNA is organized and regulated, can drive aging independently of changes to the genetic code itself.

It also shows that restoring the integrity of the epigenome reverses age-related symptoms.

Learn more at https://hms.harvard.edu/news/loss-epi…

Photography: National Geographic – January 2023

Picture of an older man skydiving surrounded by a yellow border and the words "Living longer–and better. How science could change the way we age."
At 69, skydiving instructor Arnold Camfferman stays active, one of the keys to longevity. As the world grows older, research into the field is soaring.

National Geographic Magazine – January 2023 issue:

• ​Can aging be cured? Scientists are giving it a try.
• A detailed look at how we age—at the cellular level
• We rallied to save manatees once. Can we do it again?
• How manatees eat 100 pounds of food a day
• This ancient Himalayan kingdom has been isolated from the world—until now
• Inside a 15th-century kingdom’s treasure-filled temple
• Bolivian skateboarders use Indigenous attire to battle discrimination

REVIEWS: THE TOP 5 ARTICLES ON HEALTHY AGING IN 2022

National Institute on Aging – As 2022 comes to a close, NIA invites you to explore some of the most popular health information topics from this past year:

High Blood Pressure and Older Adults

— High blood pressure, or hypertension, is common in older adults. The good news is that blood pressure can be controlled in most people.

What Is Menopause?

 — Menopause is a normal part of aging for women, but it affects every woman differently.

Memory, Forgetfulness, and Aging: What’s Normal and What’s Not?

 — As you age, you may wonder about the difference between normal, age-related forgetfulness and a serious memory problem, such as dementia.

Shingles 

— Shingles is a disease that triggers a painful skin rash. About one in three people will get shingles, but there is a vaccine for older adults to help prevent the disease.

Vitamins and Minerals for Older Adults

 — Vitamins and minerals are types of nutrients that your body needs to survive and stay healthy.

Aging: ‘Healthy Longevity’ Journal – November 2022

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Inside the November 2022 Issue:

Research & review on #Alzheimers, global burden of benign prostatic hyperplasia, #WHO def of vitality capacity, IPD meta on social connection &  #cognition#oralhealth for older people & more.


Hope on the horizon for Alzheimer’s disease treatment?

Social connectedness and cognitive decline

Time to take oral health seriously

Aging: How Regenerative Medicine Slows The Clock

“Diverse aging populations, vulnerable to chronic disease, are at the cusp of a promising future. Indeed, growing regenerative options offer opportunities to boost innate healing, and address aging-associated decline. The outlook for an extended well-being strives to achieve health for all,”

Andre Terzic, M.D., Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic cardiologist

Regenerative medicine could slow the clock on degenerative diseases that often ravage the golden years, a Mayo Clinic study finds. Life span has nearly doubled since the 1950s, but health span — the number of disease-free years — has not kept pace. According to a paper published in NPJ Regenerative Medicine., people are generally living longer, but the last decade of life is often racked with chronic, age-related diseases that diminish quality of life. These final years come with a great cost burden to society.

Researchers contend that new solutions for increasing health span lie at the intersection of regenerative medicine research, anti-senescent investigation, clinical care and societal supports. A regenerative approach offers hope of extending the longevity of good health, so a person’s final years can be lived to the fullest.

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