All posts tagged: older

Morning blue light exposure improves sleep and activity levels in older adults

Morning blue light exposure improves sleep and activity levels in older adults

Published by José

Want to improve sleep and feel more active during the day? For older adults, the answer might be as simple as switching to blue-enriched light in the mornings. A recent study published in GeroScience shows that this type of light can positively influence the body’s natural rhythms, resulting in better sleep and increased daytime engagement for seniors at home. As people get older, their sleep patterns often change, and they may find it harder to get restful sleep. These changes can include sleeping less deeply, waking up more during the night, and feeling tired during the day. One reason for this is that as we age, our eyes become less effective at letting in light, which is important for regulating our body’s natural sleep-wake cycle. Think of our bodies as having an internal clock that is set by daylight. Reduced light input can weaken this clock, making it harder to maintain a consistent sleep schedule. Furthermore, older adults may spend less time outdoors in bright daylight and more time indoors under artificial light, which can also …

Extreme heat may speed up biological ageing in older people

Extreme heat may speed up biological ageing in older people

Published by skeptic

A woman drinks water during a heatwave in Hyeres, France Magali Cohen/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images Extreme heat seems to speed up biological ageing in older people, suggesting that it could raise the risk of age-related diseases. “This is one of the first large-scale studies to link long-term heat exposure to biological ageing in humans,” says Eun Young Choi at the University of Southern California. “Older adults living in areas with more extreme heat days aged biologically faster than those in cooler regions.” Choi and her colleagues analysed genetic data extracted from blood samples collected by other researchers in 2006-7 from 3600 people across the US. All were aged 56 and over at the time. They estimated each participant’s biological age using three so-called epigenetic clocks, which involves looking at patterns of chemical tags called methyl groups on DNA. These patterns alter as we get older and such changes have been linked to age-related diseases. The researchers also examined daily air temperature readings taken within a few kilometres of where participants lived for the six …

Aptoide Alternative App Store Launches in the EU With Access to Older Versions of Games

Aptoide Alternative App Store Launches in the EU With Access to Older Versions of Games

Published by skeptic

iPhone and iPad users in the European Union now have access to another alternative app store with the official launch of Aptoide, a gaming marketplace. Aptoide has been around for quite some time as an app marketplace on Android devices, but the company began working on an iOS marketplace when Apple added support for sideloading apps last year. The marketplace has been in testing in a beta capacity since June 2024, but it is now available to all EU users. “This full launch marks a major milestone in game distribution on iOS and Aptoide’s commitment to an open and unrestricted app distribution ecosystem. Apple users now have access to newfound freedoms, but there’s a huge amount of work still to be done to continue opening up iOS globally and reduce friction for users, and game developers.” Aptoide is a free alternative app store that’s available on iPhones and iPads for those who are located in the European Union. It is unique among app marketplaces because it adds support for App Versions, so users are able …

Older people in England are more satisfied after covid-19 pandemic

Older people in England are more satisfied after covid-19 pandemic

Published by skeptic

The pandemic may have changed people’s outlook on life DisobeyArt / Alamy The covid-19 pandemic gave older people in England a stronger sense of purpose and greater life satisfaction, possibly because it deepened their appreciation for the simple things in life. We already knew that some people’s well-being and life satisfaction dipped during the early years of the pandemic, but what happened later on, after most restrictions had been lifted, is less well understood. “Unfortunately, most of the studies that were carried out did not continue [in the later years of] the pandemic, so there was a big gap in the research,” says Paola Zaninotto at University College London. To address this, Zaninotto and her colleagues analysed data from surveys on the well-being and depressive symptoms of nearly 4000, mainly white, people in England, all of whom were aged 50 or older at the time of the study. Each participant completed a survey in the two years running up to the pandemic, a second one in the first year of the pandemic in 2020 and …

Brain structure and connectivity linked to financial ability in middle-aged and older adults

Brain structure and connectivity linked to financial ability in middle-aged and older adults

Published by José

A new study published in the Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics suggests that the way the brain processes language and arithmetic facts may play an important role in how well middle-aged and older adults manage their money. The findings indicate that individuals with healthier brain tissue and stronger connections between specific brain regions tend to perform better on everyday financial tasks, which may offer some protection against scams and financial exploitation. Financial scams targeting older adults are a widespread problem. These scams range from simple email phishing attempts to complex schemes designed to steal life savings. Because financial ability tends to decrease somewhat, starting in midlife, older individuals become more vulnerable to this kind of exploitation. Researchers are therefore interested in understanding how age-related changes in the brain might affect financial decision-making, to help protect people from fraud and to maintain their independence. While prior research primarily investigated individuals with cognitive impairments, like mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease, the new study aimed to examine the brain mechanisms of financial ability in individuals without these …

Healthier aging: Study finds older adults are functioning better than ever

Healthier aging: Study finds older adults are functioning better than ever

Published by skeptic

Over the last century, life expectancy has steadily risen, marking a profound shift in global demographics. Longer lives, now commonplace in many developed nations, are primarily due to improved survival rates at older ages. However, a recent study by the Robert N. Butler Columbia Aging Center at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health sheds light on an even more intriguing trend: older adults today exhibit higher levels of physical and mental functioning compared to previous generations. Traditional health metrics often focus on the presence or absence of disease, a perspective that provides limited insight into the actual well-being of aging populations. While advances in healthcare allow individuals to survive conditions that were once fatal, they also contribute to an increased prevalence of chronic illnesses among older adults. Yet, survival alone doesn’t paint the full picture. Older adults today exhibit higher levels of physical and mental functioning compared to previous generations. (CREDIT: CC BY-SA 4.0) For instance, medical interventions such as joint replacements now restore locomotor capacity, reducing the disability burden from conditions like osteoarthritis. …

Religious service attendance linked to lower dementia risk in Black older adults

Religious service attendance linked to lower dementia risk in Black older adults

Published by José

An analysis of data from the Health and Retirement Study focusing on Black participants found that older adults with higher participation in religious or spiritual activities were less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias. Those who never attended religious services had 2.37 times higher odds of being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or related dementias than those who attended such services more than once a week. The research was published in the American Journal of Human Biology. Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder and the most common cause of dementia. It is characterized by memory loss, cognitive decline, and adverse behavioral changes. Alzheimer’s disease is caused by the accumulation of abnormal protein deposits in the brain, including beta-amyloid plaques and tau tangles. These accumulations disrupt neuronal function and connectivity, ultimately leading to cell death. Symptoms typically begin with short-term memory loss and gradually worsen to include difficulties with reasoning, language, and performing daily tasks. However, Alzheimer’s is not the only type of dementia. Other conditions can produce cognitive decline similar to Alzheimer’s disease but …

Here’s why older adults are drawn to dubious news

Here’s why older adults are drawn to dubious news

Published by José

A recent study published in Public Opinion Quarterly challenges the prevailing belief that digital illiteracy is the primary factor behind older adults interaction with unreliable online sources. The new findings provide evidence that while older adults are more likely than younger cohorts to engage with unreliable new sources, their susceptibility does not stem from an inability to identify false content. Instead, heightened partisan bias and entrenched political identities appear to drive their engagement. The internet’s role in spreading misinformation has sparked global concerns, particularly regarding older adults’ engagement with unreliable content. Past research identified older Americans as disproportionately responsible for sharing dubious news, raising alarms about their vulnerability to online misinformation. Previous explanations often pointed to digital illiteracy, cognitive decline, or social isolation among older adults as key factors. However, evidence has remained inconsistent. While older adults consume and share more dubious news, they often outperform younger individuals in discerning false headlines in controlled experiments. To reconcile these conflicting findings, researchers designed a study that integrates survey data and real-world digital behavior to better understand …

MIND diet slows cognitive decline in older adults, but effects vary by race

MIND diet slows cognitive decline in older adults, but effects vary by race

Published by José

A new study published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia provides evidence that the MIND diet—a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets—may help slow cognitive decline in older adults, though its effects vary by race. While both Black and White participants showed benefits, White adults needed only moderate adherence to the diet to see improvements, whereas Black adults required stricter adherence. Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are growing public health concerns, particularly for underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. Black and Hispanic older adults have higher rates of dementia than their White counterparts, often due to a combination of socioeconomic disparities, healthcare access issues, and vascular risk factors. While dietary patterns like the Mediterranean, DASH, and MIND diets are known to benefit cognitive health, most existing research has focused on predominantly White populations. This new study aimed to investigate whether the MIND diet’s protective effects against cognitive decline apply across diverse racial groups and whether benefits differ within specific racial and gender subgroups. “I am a trained nutritionist and a nutritional epidemiologist and was always …

‘I couldn’t care less if I saw another sunrise’ – what older people who are ‘tired of life’ can tell us about the assisted dying debate

‘I couldn’t care less if I saw another sunrise’ – what older people who are ‘tired of life’ can tell us about the assisted dying debate

Published by Sam

I can totally relate to tiredness of life. Guess what? I saw a beautiful sunrise yesterday morning, acknowledged it, and couldn’t care less if I saw another one. Nina* is a 72-year-old woman in reasonably good health. She talked to one of us (Sam) recently about her life – and in particular, the sense that she had grown tired of being alive and was ready for the exit. Nina wasn’t feeling suicidal or filled with anxiety and depression, but she was certain that she was ready to die. Living, she said, had become a burden. In Nina’s case, not only did this mean that she felt like a burden to society, but also that life felt a burden to her. You know, other people [family and friends] don’t get it. But I believe this is actually a positive thing, because it means I am less and less attached to Earthly things – to being alive. In our interviews with older people over the past 15 years, some have described the phenomenon of “tiredness of life” …