Category: Longevity News 2013

2/4/2013 - Therapy Plateau No Longer Ends Coverage

The settlement of a class-action lawsuit last month now means that Medicare is prohibited from denying patients coverage for skilled nursing care, home health services or outpatient therapy because they had reached a “plateau,” and their conditions were not improving. That will allow people with Medicare who have chronic health problems and disabilities to get… Read more 2/4/2013 - Therapy Plateau No Longer Ends Coverage

2/4/2013 - Delaying retirement? Have a backup plan

The economic downturn forced a sharp uptick in the number of middle-aged and older workers who say they plan to delay retirement. But if you’re one of those who intend to work longer to rebuild your depleted nest egg, make sure you have a backup plan. Read the full article at MarketWatch.

2/2/2013 - In Hard Economy for All Ages, Older Isn’t Better ... It’s Brutal

In the current listless economy, every generation has a claim to having been most injured. But the Labor Department’s latest jobs snapshot and other recent data reports present a strong case for crowning baby boomers as the greatest victims of the recession and its grim aftermath. Read the full article at The New York Times.

2/2/2013 - Weighing the End of Life

When asked whether it was time to put Byron “to sleep,” our vet said he used the 50 percent rule: Were at least half of Byron’s days good days? Or was it two bad days for every good? When you get to the latter, he explained, it’s time. Of course, we can’t have a 50… Read more 2/2/2013 - Weighing the End of Life

1/30/2013 - Myths of Weight Loss Are Plentiful, Researcher Says

In an article published online in The New England Journal of Medicine, researchers at the Nutrition Obesity Research Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham lay out seven myths and six unsubstantiated presumptions about obesity. They also list nine facts that, unfortunately, promise little in the way of quick fixes for the weight-obsessed. Example: “Trying to go on… Read more 1/30/2013 - Myths of Weight Loss Are Plentiful, Researcher Says

1/30/2013 - Rogue DNA busts out of aging cell ‘prison’

As cells age, they lose control over parasitic strands of mobile DNA that insert themselves into chromosomes, new research shows. Read the full article at Futurity.

1/30/2013 - Pig proteins may help dementia patients: study

A drug containing purified brain proteins derived from pigs may yield modest improvements in patients whose dementia is caused by a lack of blood flow to parts of the brain, according to a new analysis. Read the full article at Reuters.

1/30/2013 - For Some Caregivers, the Trauma Lingers

Recently, I spoke at length to a physician who seems to have suffered a form of post-traumatic stress after her mother’s final illness. There is little research on this topic, which suggests that it is overlooked or discounted. But several experts acknowledge that psychological trauma of this sort does exist. “When something happens that the… Read more 1/30/2013 - For Some Caregivers, the Trauma Lingers

1/30/2013 - The Health-Care Law and Retirement Savings

Because of its definition of affordability, beginning next year the Affordable Care Act may affect retirement savings. Read the full article at The New York Times.

1/29/2013 - Sandwich generation takes a hit supporting adult children and aging parents

More parents are providing significant financial support for their adult children even as they cope with the needs of their own aging parents, according to a new survey of the middle-aged “sandwich generation.” Read the full article at The Washington Post.