RetirementHomes.com - Environment

Avoid This Dangerous Killer: Winter Dehydration

aadmin — Wed, 20 Jan 2016 20:54:53 +0000

Signs and Symptoms of Winter Dehydration

Dehydration is often seen as an issue that comes up during the hotter months of the year. It's when you're exerting yourself physically on a hot day that you become dehydrated most often, isn't it? The thing is, dehydration can occur at any time of the year no matter what the temperature might be. This means that you could suffer from dehydration during the winter as well. In fact, dehydration may be even more dangerous during the winter.

Why is Dehydration More Dangerous During the Winter?

When you become dehydrated during the summer, it's often much easier to tell. Simply sweating tells a lot of people that they need to hydrate. During the winter, sweat will evaporate much faster, which means that people often don't remember to hydrate. Then there's the fact that cold weather causes your blood vessels to constrict, which in turn results in blood being sent to your body's core. This process ends up tricking your body into thinking that you are hydrated even if you're not. Last but not least, dry air can cause dehydration as well. When it's particularly cold and dry out, you may see your breath as you exhale. What's actually happening is that you are losing water vapor with your breath.

What Are The Signs And Symptoms of Dehydration?

Seeing as how it can be difficult to know whether you're dehydrated during the winter months, it's important to keep an eye on possible signs and symptoms of dehydration. The following are signs and symptoms that you are dehydrated:

You are thirsty.
Your mouth is dry and sticky.
You are not urinating as frequently as normal.
You are suffering from dizziness or light-headedness.
You are constipated.
You are sleepier or more tired than usual.
Your urine is thick and dark. If you are properly hydrated, then your urine should be clear.
Your skin is dry.
You have a headache.

These are all signs that you need to hydrate. There are also more severe symptoms that are associated with severe dehydration, which is a medical emergency. These symptoms include:

Extreme thirst
Extreme irritability and confusion
Extremely dry mouth and skin
Sunken eyes
Low blood pressure
Fever
Delirium
Rapid heartbeat
Rapid breathing

How to Treat Dehydration During the Winter

Anyone that exhibits symptoms of severe dehydration should be taken to the emergency room. However, milder symptoms can easily be treated. The following are a few ways to treat mild dehydration:

Drink water - The best way to treat dehydration is to re-hydrate using water. Make sure not to drink too quickly. In addition to drinking water, you can also drink decaffeinated teas, juices, sports drinks that contain electrolytes.
Avoid certain fluids - Avoid drinking alcohol, soda, liquids that contain caffeine (which will only dehydrate you more) and sugar (which causes you to urinate more).
Keep hydrating - If you've become dehydrated, you'll need to re-hydrate for the next 24 hours by drinking plenty of fluids - it can take a few days to replace all the lost fluids.
Eat certain foods - Some foods have high water content. Fruits such as watermelon, oranges, grapefruit and cantaloupe have high water content. Vegetables such as lettuce, cucumbers, broccoli, celery and zucchini all have high water content as well.

To avoid becoming dehydrated during the winter, make sure that you are drinking plenty of fluids even if you don't think that you are thirsty. Men should drink around 13 cups of water a day, while women should drink around 9 cups a day. And, of course, keep an eye on possible dehydration symptoms, especially during the winter months.

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Environment

Science versus the Environment in Aging Hearing Loss

aadmin — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 10:12:45 +0000

Nearly two-thirds of the population over the age 70 experience some degree of hearing loss.

Robert Gardner, Au.D, an audiologist at The Hearing Clinic in Denver, CO, is representative of the scientific view of age related hearing loss.

Over time, the nerve endings of the inner ear deteriorate leading to hearing deficiencies. According to Gardner, “The most common neural hearing loss is due to prolonged damage to nerve endings in the inner ear.”

Gardner, who also manages retirement villages clinics in the Denver area, outlined the area in the inner ear that is commonly damaged in hearing loss in the elderly - the cochlea.

It is lined with approximately 20,000 tiny hairs – cilia – that act as nerve endings for the hearing nerve (vestibulocochlear nerve).

Cilia deteriorate due to aging, disease, noise exposure and a combination of these factors. Hearing loss cannot be regenerated and can only be replaced or repaired by medical science. “The only way to treat this type of hearing impairment is with hearing aids,” said Gardner.

Cochlear Implants for Extensive Hearing Loss

Ninety percent of people with nerve hearing loss are successfully treated with hearing aids. Severe deafness, due to extensive deterioration of the cilia, requires a cochlear implant.

Cochlear implants feed electrical signals to the hearing nerve but only possess a maximum of 32 electrodes as opposed to 20,000 nerve endings of the normal ear, said Gardner. Sound discrimination, such as higher pitches remains extremely poor, enough to understand speech, but not notes in a melody.

“A cochlear implant is a superb solution for the profoundly hard of hearing, allowing them to carry on telephone conversations and other practical behaviors.”

A Different Approach to Hearing Loss

Gail Gudmundsen, Au.D. and Managing Director, of the audiology division of Etymotic Research, in Elk Grove Village, IL, advocates an environmental approach to hearing loss in the aging community.

She points to new research designating the major cause of deafness to be the cumulative effect of lifetime noise exposure. Cilia deteriorate, but early prevention can ward off many problems in the elderly.

“Early exposure to noise sets up hearing loss in later life,” said Gudmundsen. “Age-related hearing loss can be traced back to prolonged noise exposure.”

Gudmundsen pointed to key culprits – including recreational ones – riding motorcycles, snowmobiling, car races, parades, and the subway. “It all adds up,” she noted.

A Growing Alternative to Hearing Aids

According to Gudmundsen, and other hearing specialists, many older people are unwilling to seek out hearing help and procrastinate. To bridge the gap, a new hearing category – PSAPs (Personal Sound Amplification Product) – is on the rise.

PSAPs are accessible and affordable and serve as a starter device for sufferers of mild hearing loss, said Gudmundsen. PSAPs are non-medical devices and are not regulated by the FDA. They don’t correct hearing loss and are not intended for that purpose.

“They are often called reading glasses for the ears,” said Gudmundsen.

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Science or the Environment? Older people need to be aware of hearing loss alternatives, do their research, and be open to diverse avenues.

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Snowstorm bears down on Elderly

aadmin — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 16:00:04 +0000

The massive snowstorm that is creating havoc throughout Northeastern USA is a special threat to the most vulnerable members of society, the elderly.

Erie, Pennsylvania, is doing something about it, distributing emergency bags to 330 local elderly and disabled residents. The aptly-called "blizzard bags" consist of groceries to help recipients get through this major weather wrecker. The bags will be packed with nonperishable food and drinks - juice, soup, crackers, pudding, applesauce, cereal and dried milk.

Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania is partnering with Metro-Erie Meals on Wheels to send out about 15 volunteers to distribute the "blizzard bags".

The food drive is in response to a storm that hit Erie on January 21 and is a lesson learned for the blizzard hitting the Northwest USA.

"This is an important need in our community for seniors during these frigid winter months," executive director of Second Harvest Karen Seggi told GoErie.com. "The partnership between Second Harvest and Meals on Wheels seems like a natural one. Second Harvest distributes food supplies to Erie County. Meals on Wheels volunteers deliver daily meals to more than 300 homebound, disabled or elderly who cannot shop or cook.

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Family and Personal Care

Portland Retirement Residence Goes Green

aadmin — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 16:26:27 +0000

Mirabella Portland Oregon is a youthful community at heart. Environmental concerns are a major driving force behind this the urban community.

It's LEED certification means it has achieved 'green' status. The U.S. Green Building Council certifies that a senior living community has made a commitment to become environmentally- conscience and verifies governmental standards.

The cutting edge community has gained a reputation of one of America's best assisted living communities. Comforts and conveniences like kayak parking, golf gear storage and a woodworking bench might seem unlikely to outsiders, but not to residents.

Mirabella is expensive. Entrance fees range from $260,000 up to $700,000, and monthly fees of $3,500 to $4,200, plus $854 for a second person. Still, the occupancy rate is 95, reports Associated Press.

Cutting edge, it houses 220 apartments of participatory retirement residents who create novel projects, sit on committees and plan their own events. The bonhomie of the residents is palpable, described by a resident to AP "as people traveling the road of life.”

A Portland State University gerontologist told the AP, "Certainly older people can be seen as stewards.” For more information on eco-friendly retirement residences, read: Can you tell this retirement home is ‘eco-friendly?’

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CCRC Continuing Care Retirement Communities

Environment

Senior Living

Green Spaces Renew Elder Care

aadmin — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 19:31:38 +0000

Bingo and Wii bowling are valuable to the social well-being of people living in retirement homes. But, in Halesworth, Suffolk, England, a creative chain of retirement homes has come up with an alternative: 'get back to nature.'

According to the Guardian, Bupa Care Services has partnered with RSPB, a British conservation group, to create green spaces for their residents. Wrens, blue tits, coal tits, are seen on a regular basis. White butterflies and plenty of bees, are common visitors, too.

Bupa's back-to-nature campaign has swept aside residential manicured lawns and restored them with longer grass, wild flowers, and deadwood for insects. The residents participate in feeding birds, and assisting the gardeners and maintenance staff to construct and paint bird boxes.

Siobhan Drane, community and partnerships manager at Bupa, told The Guadian: "We found it was extremely successful for people with dementia – they were
getting involved in physical tasks. When relatives came to visit they were really amazed by the difference."

At Bupa, walking around the grounds in the morning, feeding the birds and filling the bird feeders, make for a broad range of wildlife activities for residents.

The connection between human health and contact with nature has long been regarded. Physical and mental benefits include lower levels on obesity, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, stress, ADHD and aggression. Other English organizations have shown interest in the Bupa-RSPB partnership.

"We can find ourselves so divorced from the natural world, that even if we are healthy in our bodies, our wellbeing is actually more about our place in the world", said Richard Bashford, senior project manager at RSPB.

As one Bupa resident remarked, "You can't beat a bit of fresh air."

Assisted Living and Continuing Care residences are considering the 'nature' approaches in England.

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Health Guide

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Environment

Study says pollution hurts seniors' mental capacity

aadmin — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 17:22:02 +0000

It’s well established that regular exercise and a healthy diet contribute to longevity, and a sedentary lifestyle and poor diet can cause the opposite effect, but a new study has found another potential hazard to seniors’ mental health: pollution.

As reported by HealthDay News, researchers from the Gerontological Society of America followed 14,000 people aged 50 and over, and discovered that those who lived in areas with high levels of airborne pollutants did not score as well in language, word recall and knowledge as well as those living in areas with less pollution.

“As a result of age-related declines in health and functioning, older adults are particularly vulnerable to the hazards of exposure to unhealthy air,” Jennifer Ailshire, one of the authors of the study and a researcher at the National Institute on Aging (NIA), was quoted as saying.

And while this research may seem shocking, Ailshire said high levels of pollution can also cause breathing problems and even premature death, especially among seniors.

But before there’s any panicking among Baby Boomers who live in big cities, it’s important to note that there major gaps in the research, according to HealthDay News: first, the studies simply reported a correlation, not actual causation, and the study has not yet appeared in a peer-reviewed journal, which will ensure all details are confirmed to be true.

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Environment

Brooklyn Seniors Join Forces to Promote Road Safety

aadmin — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 15:37:43 +0000

In Brooklyn's Ocean Hill neighborhood, 50 seniors have formed an advocacy group to inspect unsafe road conditions.

Veronica Daniel, 63, is one of the group's leaders, writing out safety issues in her notebook.

Daniel and other elderly members are on a road-condition-inspection mission, examining roads, taking notes on dangerous intersections in need of traffic lights, stop signs, and sidewalks in need of repair. Then, they report them to the Department of Transportation, according to MetroFocus.

Since 2010, East Harlem, Upper West Side and Bedford-Stuyvesant have become New York's first Aging Improvement Districts, aimed to help older New Yorkers age better and more easily.

Ruth Finkelstein, senior vice president for policy and planning at the New York Academy of Medicine told MetroFocus: “The core transportation in New York City is walking, and older adults are no different than anybody else.” Ms. Finklestein also said the city needs to give seniors more time to cross the street, to mark some of the crosswalks more clearly, and install countdowns and curb cuts.

Although Brooklyn seniors generally praise the city's transit system, they bemoan the difficulty in walking to the closest bus or subway. The poor condition of the streets, dodging traffic, means its more likely they'll stay at home and lose out on expeditions to see family, or go to entertaining outings.

Dwellers in Assisted Living and Continuing Care need assurance that travel is safe from their residences.

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Environment

More retirement communities are going 'green'

aadmin — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 19:06:20 +0000

The coldest months of winter are approaching, and when the weather gets colder, more heat is used to heat homes, apartments and senior living communities. For many senior living communities, utility bills during the winter months can be a significant expense.

But high utility costs can be avoided. Retirement communities can save money and invest in their own infrastructure by investing in becoming environmentally-friendly. Being environmentally-friendly will help retirement communities use less energy. And that will save them money.

Using data provided by Gray is Green, an environmental advocacy organization for seniors, here are four communities across the United States who have invested in energy-efficient projects, and are seeing significant savings as a result:

Kendal at Hanover, a continuing care retirement community in Hanover, New Hampshire, invested $12,000 in their energy efforts. This investment in becoming environmentally friendly has lowered Kendal’s utility bill by 8.5%, resulting in annual savings of $136,000.

Plymouth Harbor, an independent living community in Sarasota, Florida, changed their ceiling lights in the hallways from standard light bulbs, and replaced them with Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs) and LED light bulbs. These changes are saving Plymouth Harbor about $44,000 per year. Plymouth Harbor also invested in low-flow efficient toilets in their remodeled units, and this change is saving the community about $45,000 annually.

The Hudson Senior Center, a senior day program facility located in Hudson, Massachusetts, renovated their building to make it more energy-efficient. They installed motion sensors in the interior and exterior of the building to ensure lights only turn on when they are needed. The Hudson Senior Center also installed energy-efficient windows, low-flow toilets aimed at saving water, as well as connecting the central power grid to the office of their Director, so all electricity can be shut down in a particular room if it is completely empty. These savings have meant a 26% decrease in utility usage, saving the Hudson Senior Center about $150,000 ever year.

Friends Homes, a non-profit continuing care retirement community in Guilford, North Carolina, is another example of a senior living community which has invested in becoming environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient. Some of the projects undertaken by Friends Homes include installing a solar hot water system on the roof, consisting of 157 separate panels. This change is expected to save Friends Homes about $150,000 per year.

As recently reported by the U.S. Green Building Council, environmentally-friendly buildings do not need to be brand-new buildings. Rather, they simply need to have changes made to make them more energy-efficient. Communities and buildings of any size can be renovated; nothing is too large a job. According to the report, New York City’s Empire State building recently became environmentally-certified, and the building will save more than four million dollars in energy costs every year.

Energy can be saved in any retirement community, and when communities are more energy-efficient, not only are they helping the environment, but they are saving thousands of dollars in the process.

This research article is written by RetirementHomes.com, using data provided by Gray is Green

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Environment

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Older persons in Staffordshire should beware the cyanide leak

aadmin — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:04:07 +0000

A long stretch of river in Staffordshire has been contaminated with a deadly chemical, and older persons are advised to stay away from the area.

Thirty miles of the River Trent has been polluted with the dangerous chemical cyanide, according to the BBC. Thousands of fish have died as a result.

The news provider reports the length of river that's between Stoke-on-Trent and Yoxall is getting better, as pollution levels are beginning to drop.

The Environment Agency (EA) says the source of the cyanide cannot be disclosed for legal reasons.

"We've had staff working around the clock," said the EA's David Lowe to the BBC of the agency's efforts.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that cyanide can sometimes have a "bitter almond" smell, but that many people do not detect it. Prolonged exposure to the chemical can lead to heart and brain damage.

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Seniors in Western Canada and Alaska should be mindful of wildfires

aadmin — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:04:07 +0000

Elderly residents of independent living communities in the Yukon Territory and Alaska may wish to stay inside for the next several days as wildfires in Canada continue to burn, releasing smoke that can hamper lung function.

"Anyone noticing it that is extra sensitive should take it easy and stay inside,"

Â Cindy Dettmer-Shea, a meteorologist at Alaska's Department of Environmental Conservation, told the Juneau Empire.

Firefighting officials in the nearby Yukon Territory are saying that the high temperatures have left more than 60 fires still ablaze in Western Canada, and they let them "burn naturally" which can cause them to grow larger and give off more smoke before eventually dying, George Maratos, Yukon Territory fire information officer told the newspaper.

A more long-term issue is being noted in Fairbanks, where air quality measures are detecting increasing levels of Zinc, according to the News-Miner.

Many car dealerships and repair shops burn waste oil to heat their offices during the winter, and seniors may want to limit their outdoor activities until the borough government comes up with an environmental plan to deal with exposure to the particulate contamination, reported the news provider.

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