Dr. Mauk’s Boomer Blog
Each week, Dr. Kristen Mauk shares thoughts relevant to Baby Boomers that are aimed to educate and amuse.
Dr. Kristen L. Mauk, PhD, DNP, RN, CRRN, GCNS-BC, GNP-BC, FAAN
Dental Care Tips for the Elderly People of Age 55+
1. Introduction to Oral Health
An increase in education about oral health, as well as better access to toothbrushes, fluoride toothpaste and floss, have led to more older adults retaining their original teeth. However, as you age, your teeth and gums require a little extra attention. Read on to learn about how to care for your teeth after 55.
2. Oral Health Challenges in Aged People
– Dry mouth
Hormonal changes and many medications contribute to reduced saliva production resulting in dry mouth. Dry mouth can increase the risk of tooth decay and gum disease by allowing bacteria to breed more easily and can also lead to difficulty speaking and eating, fungal infections and problems wearing dentures.
– Attrition
Attrition refers to general wear and tear on teeth that occurs as you age. Years of chewing and grinding wears down tooth enamel increasing the risk of cavities.
– Diseases
Older adults over the age of 55 years old have an increased risk of developing thrush, a fungal infection of the mouth, as well as oral cancers.
– Root Decay
Gums can recede as you age exposing the base of the tooth to bacteria which can decay your teeth from the roots.
3. Common Conditions Found in Aged of 55+
Even with a good oral care routine, adults over the age of 55 years old have an increased risk of developing some problems with their teeth and gums. Some common conditions include:
• Darkened teeth which is often due to enamel erosion and changes in the dentine inside the teeth, but can also be caused by regular consumption of dark foods and beverages.
• A reduced sense of taste which may be due to the side effects of some medications but can also be caused by dentures.
• Gum disease which is most often caused by plaque build-up but can also be caused by cancer, anaemia and diabetes.
• Misaligned jawbone as a result of tooth extraction or loss without replacing the missing teeth which lets remaining teeth drift.
4. What Can You Do to Maintain Your Oral Health?
To keep your natural teeth strong and bright for many years to come, there are several ways you can protect your teeth and gums.
– Increase Fluoride
Fluoride is present in most drinking water and in dental products like toothpaste and mouthwash. Increasing your use of fluoride can help to protect your teeth from cavities by helping to remineralise your teeth after acid wear.
– Eliminate Tobacco Chewing
Tobacco chewing has been linked with several negative oral health issues including cavities and discolouration. But quitting tobacco can be a challenge. Talk to your doctor about resources to help you quit and make an appointment with your dentist in Southend for a tooth whitening treatment for a brighter smile.
– Increase Oral Hydration
Staying hydrated is a great way to combat dry mouth as a result of medication. Keep a water bottle close by and sip throughout the day. You can also improve your oral hydration by chewing sugarless gum and limiting your intake of alcohol.
– Antibacterial Wash
Improve your oral health by reducing the build-up of plaque with antibacterial wash. Swish a small amount of alcohol-free mouthwash in your mouth after brushing at night.
5. Conclusion
With proper oral care your teeth and gums will last your lifetime but take extra care of your teeth after the age of 55. If you interested in learning more about how your oral health changes as you age, call your local dentist for an appointment.
Author bio:
Located on the Southchurch Road, Parmar Dental is a multi-award winning
Southend Orthodontics offering high standard and quality dental treatments that
patients always expect. Parmar Dental provides dental care in a very relaxed and
tranquil environment, where each visit would be a unique experience for their
patients.
Sonya Grace: 7 Health Tracking Devices Perfect for Seniors
Advancements in technology have changed how people of all ages monitor their health. While the latest gadgets are generally seen as a trend aimed at younger generations, senior citizens have also reaped the benefits of health tracking devices. Here are seven health tracking devices perfect for seniors:
Fitness Trackers
Best for Seniors explain that fitness trackers show health related metrics like sleep quality, heart rate, and steps taken. In some cases, they even help the user reach a specific health goal.
Personal Emergency Response
This wearable gives the wearer an easy, quick, and convenient way to call for help in case something is amiss with their health. If they feel a shortness of breath all they need to do is press a button to call for attention.
Senior Safety Systems
These wearables track the activities of seniors to establish their activity patterns. They can then identify any abnormalities that will alert the doctor to irregularities.
Home Fall Detection System
Falls are a big concern for people in their old age, and this is where detection systems come in. These small wearable sensors detect falls and will instantly send out an alert that will bring help.
Medication Alerts
Medicines are a big part of life for those already in their golden years. These devices send out notices that make sure that the medicine is not forgotten and taken at the right time.
GPS Trackers
Seniors suffering from degenerative conditions need to be constantly monitored as they might wander aimlessly and get lost. GPS trackers help in this regard as they can let family members or carers keep track of them all the time.
Virtual Reality
Virtual reality is helping many different industries break new ground.Coral’s article on technology’s impact on sports details how VR is now changing how professional teams train. For instance, NFL quarterbacks are now using the technology to practice additional repetitions. This very same tech is also being used to improve and track the health of seniors. VR Fitness Insider reports that virtual reality helps seniors be more active without the need to leave their home. All they need to do is put on a headset and enjoy! They will also get a digital record of the exercise session.
Sure, the aforementioned health trackers may be perfect for seniors, but nothing will ever beat the attention and love that you, as a relative, can provide.
Guest Post: Why dieting isn’t sustainable
A diet is simply a way of eating. Some people diet with too much food, some people with too little food. But for most people, it’s just the wrong foods. However, one thing is for sure, diets don’t work. They never had and they never will. Just ask anyone who has been on any of the well-known, celebrity-endorsed diet plans for any length of time.
Note: Check out this guide to flexible dieting on how to escape the dieting life!
Dieters are often excited about the quick weight loss, but invariably, the diet doesn’t last forever and they quickly find that not only did they gain back all they lost, but they have taken on extra pounds too.
Dieting in the typical sense actually sets you up to fail in your attempt to lose those extra pounds. Immediately on any diet plan, your caloric intake is limited. That in itself isn’t a bad thing. Most meal portions have become unnecessarily large these days and actually need to be kept in check.
When you limit the number of calories consumed to get quick weight loss results on your diet plan, your body has to compensate for this loss. That’s when it begins to break down muscle tissue so as to maintain energy levels. The body also adjusts its requirements for energy and slows down its rate of metabolism.
But what happens when you go back to eating the way you did before? Well, your body is still functioning in diet mode. Your metabolism has slowed, so all that extra food is stored as fat. So you end up heavier than you were before you started dieting.
It’s also important to stress that activity can play a vital role in this too. If you can maintain your normal activity while dieting then you’re one of the few. Take a look at athletes for example. They follow a nutrition plan that that’s heavy in calories as activity like rugby training needs to be fueled. Dieting wouldn’t be an option for athletes and they do not put on unnecessary weight. The point here is that you need to also try and be active to help with your new lifestyle, dieting makes it even harder.
Aside from calorie restriction, here are other reasons why dieting isn’t sustainable for most people;
Too Restrictive – frankly speaking, diets are depressing. They take away all the fun foods and all of a sudden you can’t have chocolate anymore. Oh, now all you see is chocolate, it’s everywhere and everyone is having a bite… except you. Then, you cheat and go right back to square one.
Your Body Rejects It – your body likes eating and wants to eat. Denying your body means your body fights you to get more food. It forces you to cheat and go right back to square one.
The ‘fad diet of the week‘ is not right for your metabolism – your body needs certain nutrients. Your cravings match those nutrients. When you force your body to eat a way it doesn’t like, it slows downs, becomes clogged, and sick. You don’t even need to cheat and you’re worse now then you were at square one.
So how do you really lose fat and keep it off for good?
Getting down to your ideal weight and maintaining it means eating a balanced diet and getting plenty of exercise. It doesn’t mean a severe restriction in calories and spending hours at the gym. Simply pay more attention to the foods you eat and move around more.
Easy exercises like walking, cycling and swimming can go a long way to shaping a leaner, healthier you. Even walking 5 minutes per day is enough to get started. Then, work up to better and better exercises until you are exercising every day, alternating between strength training, cardio, and stretching.
Attaining and maintaining a healthy weight is as much about adjusting your self-concept and attitude as it is your lifestyle.
When you change the way you see yourself, it’s easy to make those necessary changes. In fact they often happen subconsciously. Your weight is governed by your self-concept. When you change the assumptions about yourself and your body, you change the results. That’s how you master weight loss forever.
4 Fun Mood-Boosters for Aging Parents (Guest Post)
If you are one of the over 40 million family caregivers in the U.S. providing care for an aging parent or relative, chances are you wear several hats including chauffeur, insurance wrangler, cook, housekeeper, pharmacist, nurse, and therapist. The truth is that many seniors struggle with feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and depression, and it falls to their care network to help them stay positive and seek help.
Everything from hearing loss to mobility impairment can strip a senior of their sense of independence and self-reliance, so finding creative and fun ways to boost their mood is a must. Check out these top ideas:
Give Their Mobility Aid a Makeover
If having to use a cane, walker, or wheelchair has your loved one feeling down in the pits, help them embrace the situation more positively by upgrading their mobility aid with some helpful add-ons. Personalize your wheelchair or your loved one’s with helpful accessories like bags, baskets, and hanging pockets that make toting around personal items easier. Decorate their cane or walker with a bright-colored paint job. Add padded grip covers and cushions for extra comfort or don their cane with a helpful wrist strap.
Volunteer Together
Few things fill the heart quite like helping others. Even if your aging parent isn’t able to get out of the house to help at the food pantry or join the walk-a-thon, they can still make a difference in the lives of others right from home. Online tutoring, making a meal for a local children’s shelter or neighbor in need, joining a local political group to make calls or do neighborhood canvassing, putting together bags of toiletries, water, socks, and snacks for homeless people . . . the ideas are endless. Serving others helps to re-instill a sense of purpose in your loved one’s life and can be just the silver lining they’re looking for.
Video Chat Faraway Friends and Family
Maintaining strong social connections and interacting with other people goes a long way to fighting depression in seniors as well as keeping their minds sharp. It’s not easy to make long trips to see faraway relatives and friends, and talking on the phone isn’t always the clearest experience. Set up a free, live video chat for your loved one instead with services like Skype or Google+ Hangout. You will need a webcam/mic if you don’t already have one installed on your computer, however, it’s super easy to video call someone over Wifi (for free!) and chat with them face to face.
Listen to Music
A growing body of research is pointing to more and more benefits when it comes to the idea of ‘music therapy’. Music has not only been shown to help thwart motor impairment associated with conditions like Parkinson’s disease, but it can also improve mood and help relieve stress. For older adults with dementia, listening to nostalgic music from their younger years may help stimulate stronger memory and cognitive functioning too. Free services like Spotify and Pandora let you create playlists of songs based on genres and artists your loved one enjoys, try them out today!
Guest Blog: How Long-Term Care Facilities Can Reduce Hospital Readmissions
Reducing hospital readmissions is a noble goal for any long-term care facility, wound care practice, or other medical professional to work towards. Going up through the supply chain of medical care, we even find this shared vision amongst the professionals and companies which ensure that necessary prescriptions, medical products, and other shipped goods, land in the right hands at the right time. In short, reducing hospital readmissions represents a major community responsibility, and one that shouldn’t be taken lightly.
However, in long-term and wound care, this goal isn’t always so easy to achieve.
Nursing homes, long-term care facilities, and other medical care-adjacent companies can greatly help themselves and their communities’ health infrastructures by adopting practices which reduce the number of residents who have to be readmitted to hospitals and other healthcare facilities. This phenomenon is known as re-hospitalization, or sometimes less formally as bounce-backs.
Hospital readmission is a very real and significant problem in America today. Studies have shown that one in five elderly patients are readmitted to their healthcare facility within 30 days after departing, and one-third of patients 65 or older are readmitted within three months. This results in Medicare costs that exceed $17 billion total every year.
In response, some insurers are adopting harsh penalties on patients with high readmission rates. As a result, healthcare providers are reassessing their relationships with long-term care providers in an attempt to address this issue. Beyond the issue of the need to improve patient care, this comes with very real consequences for home care agencies. The ratings awarded to such agencies by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) are also affected by readmission rates, and an agency with poor ratings in this area can dramatically decrease its reimbursement levels.
Greater Attention to Patients with High Risk of Re-Hospitalization
An effective method for dealing with this problem is for caregivers in long-term care facilities to develop ways of identifying those patients who are most likely to experience difficulties, and to enact measures to help them before these situations develop into crisis situations. A few specific techniques for achieving this are outlined below.
When patients first return home after a stay in a healthcare facility, they may have difficulties readjusting to their surroundings. This, in turn, increases the risk of falls and other injuries that may result from mobility issues. Caregivers can reduce these risks by looking for ways to simplify the spaces that recently-returned residents have to navigate. Similarly, caregivers should ensure that a resident has readjusted to life at home before undertaking physical therapy or other activities that may be overly-taxing for them.
Research has indicated that over 30% of bounce-backs among elderly patients result from the mismanagement of medications. Facilities can address this by reconciling medications often, and by providing reminders to their residents regarding the use of their medications.
Language barriers between a patient and staff at a long-term care facility, or patients whose cognitive condition makes it difficult for them to understand instructions, may leave them unwilling or incapable of following their caregivers’ guidance. This can be circumvented by asking the resident to repeat any instructions they are given, so that the caregiver can be certain that they were properly heard and understood.
Practical Techniques to Avoid Re-Hospitalization
The installation of sensor technology in residents’ rooms can also allow staff to react more quickly in an emergency, thus reducing the likelihood that minor incidents may develop into more serious issues. Data suggests that equipping residents’ homes with sensors can reduce bounce-backs by nearly 50%. Facilities can also make it easier for residents to receive non-emergency visits from healthcare providers within the facility itself, rather than going to a hospital.
Caregivers at a facility should also be provided with clear lines of communication with other staff members to ensure that everyone is getting the information they need to address the needs of patients who are more acutely at risk. These communications should be well-documented, both to ensure the accuracy of the information exchanged, and to place responsibility where it belongs when something does go wrong. This can also be aided by establishing electronic health record protocols for the residents in a facility. These methods can also help to guarantee strong clinical oversight, which further ensures success in at-home treatment.
When re-hospitalization does occur, facilities should be prepared to examine the reasons why it happened in order to figure out what changes might have led to a better outcome for the patient. Statistics suggest that approximately 75% of hospital readmissions could have been avoided with better procedures in place.
Lastly, care facilities need to ensure that all of their staff are adequately trained to deal with a range of medical issues. Facilities who trained their caregivers in CPR and infection control, for example, saw 24% fewer readmissions in the first year after training and 41% during the second year.
Benefits of Treating Patients within a Long-Term Care Facility
Besides avoiding penalties, long-term care facilities have much to gain by addressing the problem of re-hospitalization among their residents.
Patients who spend less time outside the facility have more opportunities to participate in scheduled activities such as hobbies, physical therapy, and social interactions. A routine visit by a healthcare provider at a facility can be as brief as 15 minutes, leaving the patient free to go about his or her life as normal. This is as opposed to in-hospital treatment, which can often take an entire day or more.
Secondly, if residents are seen by healthcare providers in their homes, they can usually be accompanied by their regular facility nurse. This can greatly aid communication and ensure that the provider receives as much information as possible when planning treatments for a patient. This also reduces the time it takes to identify wound-related complications. In some cases, the patient may not be able to communicate at all with the healthcare facility, so the nurse may be the only person with necessary information about their needs.
Additionally, allowing healthcare providers to see their patients in a facility greatly reduces the transportation costs they would otherwise incur by taking the resident to a clinic and back. If this is the case, the facility must then undertake the fees associated with the wound care visit, as well as the cost of seeing the healthcare provider. When healthcare professionals can see their patients at a facility, it eliminates all costs apart from the price of the professionals’ services. It also greatly reduces the amount of time that a patient must wait before he or she can receive treatment for an injury.
These are just some examples of the steps that long-term care facilities can take to prevent and decrease hospitalizations, improve the level of service they provide to their residents, and reduce their own risks and costs. Developing better strategies for preventing rehospitalization and allowing healthcare professionals to see residents in their homes are both a win-win for everyone involved.
Guest Blog: Auto Safety Tech Innovations That Will Excite Boomer Drivers
As automotive technology has improved, increasingly more consumers are seeking out that technology during the car shopping process. Every year, the rate at which technology changes personal transportation accelerates. As a matter of fact, NY speeding violations lawyer http://www.zevgoldsteinlaw.com/ quotes General Motors CEO Mary Barra; “We’re going to see more change in the next five to ten years than we’ve seen in the last 50.”
For baby boomers, who are hoping to stay on the road for as long as possible, this is more important than ever. The question many consumers find themselves asking, however, is what technologies will make their way into the mainstream market and which ones will remain in the realm of science fiction. In the very near future, there are 25 advanced car technologies that we expect to see making their way into showrooms.
- Intelligent Brake Lights are being developed that indicate whether a driver is stopping quickly or simply decreasing acceleration.
- Smart Windshields will use augmented reality to help display key information about what’s happening on the road.
- Night Vision Enhancements make it easier for seniors and others with night vision troubles to see when they’re out on the road at night, removing obstacles that might create an earlier curfew for seniors.
- Automated Parking Systems make parking easy. Simply put the car into parking mode and it will slide itself into the parking space—perfect for those who have started to see their motor skills deteriorating.
- Lane Departure Warning Systems don’t just help distracted drivers who might have wandered out of their designated lane. They’re also designed to help elderly drivers who may struggle to keep their car inside the lane when they’re driving.
- Crash Notification and Avoidance Technologies recognize the conditions that can lead to an accident, from someone running into the road to a car slamming on its brakes ahead. Some of them are designed to notify drivers so that they can react. Others may even slam on the brakes or have another reaction to help avoid the collision.
- Blind Spot Detection and Back-Over Prevention Systems note any time there’s something behind the car or in a blind spot, making it easier to avoid accidents.
- Fatigue Warning Systems analyze driver behavior and notify them when they are becoming fatigued, letting drivers know when it’s time to pull over for a while.
- Forward Collision Warning with Auto Brake notices when accidents are going to happen and puts on the brakes to avoid them.
- Self-Driving Cars were the technology of the future just a few short years ago. Now, however, they’re becoming a very real possibility, removing the responsibility of driving the car from the senior’s shoulders.
- Driver Override Systems recognize when drivers are accelerating faster than the driver intended, such as when the gas pedal is slammed instead of the brake. The unsafe response is then overridden.
- Biometric Vehicle Access offers an even greater level of safety and protection, pulling together the safety systems needed by an individual driver based on biometric scans.
- Comprehensive Vehicle Tracking lets you know where your car is at any moment. It’s a fantastic resource for children who might worry about their elderly parents wandering off.
- Active Window Displays bring GPS and other apps straight to the windshield, removing the need to look away in order to effectively use those apps.
- Remote Vehicle Shutdown allows a car to be shut down from a distance—especially effective in conjunction with the GPS tracking that will let adult children know if their parents are out of the geographic area where they should be traveling. This feature is one of 10 advanced car technologies predicted by Forbes contributor Karl Brauer by 2020.
- Active Health Monitoring is something nearly everyone is now familiar with. Active health monitoring in a vehicle allows drivers to know when their health isn’t adequate to safe driving.
- Reconfigurable Body Panels change the shape of the car, making it possible to use a single vehicle for many purposes.
- Tablet Transforming Steering Wheels use gesture control, similar to what’s used on a tablet screen, to make cars easier to maneuver—even for those with joint problems.
- High-Tech Car Seats with Stress Gauges help drivers stay calm behind the wheel, shifting responses to help create a safer driving experience.
- Dashboard Safety Integration provides safety information on the dashboard, where it’s easy to view while driving.
- Augmented Reality provides warning messages and other key information on the windshield, making it easier to see obstacles and other concerns.
- Hydrogen-Powered Fuel Cell Cars combine hydrogen and oxygen to produce the power for fuel cells that run the car—truly the car of the future.
- Rotating Motorized Lounge Chairs provide an increased level of comfort for drivers who might otherwise have trouble in the car.
- Eye-Tracking Holographic Dashboard technology uses gestures and eye movements to allow apps to be accessed without needing to touch the screen.
- Autopilot systems, like self-driving car technology, provide drivers with the safe travel they need without reducing their independence.
These new technologies have helped make traveling by car safer than it ever has been before. This is particularly true for older drivers who may need additional assistance behind the wheel. This offers a significant improvement in quality of life for aging baby boomers who may no longer feel safe behind the wheel. New technology, however, prepares the way for them to drive longer.