Over the past several decades, too much research has been accumulated to dismiss this lack of attention to the most imperative health factors: the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat.

We don’t need to smoke cigarettes; we need to breathe in polluted air, which will damage our lungs and possibly cause lung cancer. If the damage isn’t confined to our lungs, it may permeate other areas of our body and even affect our brains. Remember, our brains are oxygen-hungry, and when we deprive them of what they need, they cannot function as we wish.

While all of us, our children included, are subjected to the ravages of air pollution, our older adults will suffer severely. We already know that cognitive impairment comes with age for some, but air pollution exacerbates the problem and can lead to early dementia with all its negative trappings.

Exposure to air pollution in old age is a risk factor for dementia that can be changed, but epidemiological studies have shown mixed results for cognitive loss. Improving air quality (AQ) has been linked to better heart health, lower mortality, and better pulmonary health. However, as far as had been known, no studies had examined the link with brain function. A study was undertaken to see if higher AQ levels were linked to a slower rate of cognitive loss in women aged 74 to 92.

During the course of ten years, measurements of brain health were taken from 2,232 women living in the 48 contiguous US states. Findings showed that older women with better long-term AQ had slower cognitive losses.

Studies show that psychosocial stress can make people more or less sensitive to environmental hazards. For example, older people who live in areas with high-stress levels may be more likely to get sick from breathing in harmful substances like air pollution. The immune system is highly sensitive to stress levels in all of us, and once that is affected, our health may be in decline.

Along with the likelihood that they will succumb physically to environmental pollution comes the increased stress of aging, which contributes to difficulties in independence, loneliness, inadequate health coverage, or a lack of availability of health resources and financial factors. Together, this toxic brew subjects older adults to a lower quality of life.

Is this why they worked all those years at low-paying jobs or in environmentally damaging, dead-end careers? Weren’t they supposed to be going into their golden years, where they would enjoy the fruits of their labors? How can that happen if they don’t have clean air to breathe?

Another study of 25,314 adults older than 50 found that higher amounts of traffic-related air pollutants in their homes, such as nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter from road and non-road traffic, were linked to a higher risk of losing their independence. Loss of independence was described as switching to a nursing home or getting help with at least one activity of daily living because of health or memory issues.

A 17-year national cohort study was conducted in the US to examine the links between fine particulate matter and dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The study found that people who are exposed to mass and major pollution elements for a long time, especially from traffic and burning fossil fuels, are more likely to develop dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.

There is renewed interest in maintaining people in their homes rather than moving them to residential facilities, a.k.a. nursing homes, because it has a great effect on positive mental health and longevity. Most adults want to age in place, and it can be very good for them physically and mentally. However, older people need help from their community to age in place safely and with honor.

Familiar places and surroundings can help older people feel like they have a sense of identity, make it easier to use neighborhood services, and keep them socially connected by putting friends close by. How does that happen in a community where the air is polluted? The answer is patently obvious, and anyone who studies environmental science knows it.

Walking in some communities is no longer pleasurable; in some areas of the country, industrial complexes send volumes of particulate matter into the air and over the surrounding homes and backyards, making breathing a battle.

Aren’t we being encouraged to go into the surrounding parklands near our homes? Nature centers and parks are only as good as the air that pervades them. Could this be seen as violating people’s civil rights to breathe, especially those with chronic lung or other health disorders? Air pollution robs older adults of their mentation as research has shown.

We are entering the “silver tsunami” age, when large numbers of people worldwide will live longer but may suffer the effects of air pollution. Society is expanding into a burgeoning group of these adults with multiple medical disorders and potentially dementia from air pollution. Now, there is a significant need for policy decisions to be made regarding what is important: air quality or providing billions of dollars in healthcare to these individuals.

The post Pollution Robs Older Adults of Their Independence and Their Health appeared first on Medika Life.

The preliminary report of this task force appears to lean toward screening of those over 65 as is done for adults with regard to depression. It should be noted that Medicare pays $25 for simple depression screening questionnaires completed in a medical office. The practice begs the question: why no payment for anxiety screenings?

Consider, for a moment, how major healthcare organizations have addressed the question of anxiety disorders in over-65-year-old patients.

Mild anxiety symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, steadily increase with age, from about 12% in adults 18 to 29 to 7% in adults 65 and over. The problem is that little research has addressed the incidence of serious anxiety disorders in the older-old population, even among the statistical data supplied by the World Health Organization there’s a gap. How many people in the US are living well beyond the age of 65 these days?

Over 54 million Americans, or roughly 16.5% of the total population, were 65 years of age or older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The population aged 65 and above increased by more than a third (34.2% or 13,787,044) over the past ten years and by 3.2% (1,688,924) between 2018 and 2019. Over 56 million Americans — or 16.9% of the country’s total population — were 65 or older in 2020.

The apparent lack of information on this age group is also noted in the National Institute of Mental Health reports, where there is statistical data lacking for those over 65. The lack of data on this age group is, again, noted in the Anxiety and Depression Association of America reports, which primarily show levels of anxiety and depression below the age of 65.

Information on anxiety disorders in general or on specific disorders can be found in other sources. For instance, according to Hopkins Medicine, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), panic disorder, and phobias affect roughly 18% of adults between the ages of 18 and 54 in a given year. Where’s the data on the over-65s? It’s missing.

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA), social anxiety disorder affects 15 million adults, or 7.1% of the country’s population, whereas panic disorder affects 6 million adults or 2.7%. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Americans aged 45 to 54 had the highest suicide rates in the United States in 2020.

Again, there is no data on the 65 and older individuals who may have committed suicide because of severe anxiety, loneliness, depression, and lack of medical care. Nevertheless, the ADAA statistics do not reveal how many of those people are above 65.

One concern raised by mental health organizations is that people over the age of 65 are less likely to report or seek treatment for depression or anxiety because they prefer to deal with these conditions on their own. This can be because of the stigma still associated with mental health services and treatment. But there is no scientific evidence for this idea; it’s just what most people think.

Although anxiety, in all of its manifestations, can be a serious threat to both mental and physical health, the healthcare sector currently does not. Not only is it unethical, but it could also be dangerous to say that common lifestyle changes cause those worries about the elderly.

Take into account the fact that as one ages, work options diminish. Being a medical consultant for the Social Security Administration, I was aware of the unwritten rule that if you are above 50, you are unemployable. How can someone who doesn’t have enough ways to make money, isn’t working, and is getting worse physically keep from getting nervous or having panic attacks? Anxiety is the outcome of their lack of control over any of this.

Shouldn’t healthcare professionals take a more proactive approach to finding and treating anxiety in their older patients? Indeed, 15-minute sessions don’t provide much time for a thorough examination of something about which the patient hasn’t complained. Should it remain that way forever?

Do we let down our elderly patients? For everything they’ve done for us, shouldn’t they be treated better?

The post People Over 65 Can’t Be Anxious, Right? Wrong. appeared first on Medika Life.

Dallas County Health Services (DCHHS) is partnering with the Office of Emergency Management to offer the Covid-19 vaccine to homebound residents who are unable to get to a vaccine site physically.

Many older adults and people with disabilities face challenges finding access to Covid-19 vaccination. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends state and local agencies work together to ensure equitable vaccine access.

Dallas County is setting the bar high.

Judge Clay Jenkins reports DCHHS will work with the Dallas Fire-Rescue Department to directly bring the Janssen/Johnson and Johnson vaccine to people’s homes. Cedar Hill Fire Department, located in the southwest corner of Dallas County, was the first to party with the health department to help homebound seniors.

Dallas county will work with The Visiting Nurse Association (VNA), a local nonprofit community-based health care entity offering homebound care through Meals on Wheels to local seniors since 1934.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Janssen Covid-19 Vaccine under emergency use authorization (EUA) on February 27. Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies is the vaccine arm of Johnson & Johnson.

The Janssen vaccine is now approved for use in people 18 years and older. It only requires a single dose to be effective and is not burdened by the cold storage requirements, which slowed the distribution of the two previously approved vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer. This vaccine can be mass-produced and widely distributed to help get more shots in more arms as fast as possible.

Like the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, the Jansen vaccine does not contain a live virus. One cannot catch Covid-19 from these vaccines.

The Janssen vaccine uses much older technology by altering a common adenovirus to be used as a delivery system. Adenoviruses are the group of viruses causing the common cold. These viruses can be genetically altered to maintain their efficient ability to get into our bodies but remove their ability to make us sick. This combination makes them excellent vectors to create vaccines.

The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies proprietary vaccine technology platform, called AdVac, successfully created the Ebola vaccine currently used in the Congo and Rwanda. The AdVac system is being used to develop vaccine candidates against HIV, RSV, and Zika.

The Janssen vaccine uses Adenovirus 26 (AD26) as the vector to deliver DNA material into our cells to provoke an immune response. Scientists modify the adenovirus by removing its nucleus. They replace the nucleus with genetic instructions to recreate the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.

Our bodies then produce the spike protein triggering our immune system to produce protective antibodies without causing us to get sick. Forty-four thousand people participated in Janssen’s safety and efficacy clinical trials in the United States, South Africa, and Latin America. The data shows the Janssen vaccine is 72% effective and offered 86% protection against severe disease. Some may be alarmed by the lower efficacy rate of 72% compared to the 95% efficacy offered by Pfizer and Moderna. It is important to remember these numbers are not direct head-to-head comparisons. Scientists performed the clinical trials for each vaccine in different parts of the world at various pandemic stages.

To date, Dallas County has issued 282,330 doses of the Covid-19 vaccines. Twenty-nine thousand seventy-three have gone to residents over 75 years old. People 85 and older are at the highest risk for severe illness and death from COVID-19.

This joint effort by the Dallas public service departments will help save the lives of our city’s senior and most vulnerable population.

The post Dallas Offering Homebound Residents At-Home Johnson and Johnson Covid-19 Vaccine appeared first on Medika Life.

Frontline healthcare workers and those categorized as 1A started receiving vaccines on December 14th. 

In Texas, category 1B candidates are eligible for vaccination starting today. Public confidence in vaccination is growing. The problem is no one seems to know where to get them. 

Texas category 1B candidates include:

• People 65 years of age and older
• People 16 years of age and older with at least one chronic medical condition that puts them at increased risk for severe illness from the virus that causes COVID-19, such as but not limited to:
• Cancer
• Chronic kidney disease
• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
• Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
• Solid-organ transplantation
• Obesity and severe obesity (body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or higher)
• Pregnancy
• Sickle cell disease
• Type 2 diabetes mellitus

The vaccine rollout program is confusing and difficult to navigate. The Texas Department of Health released an interactive tool today to help. Check it out here. 

The map allows users to type in their zip code to identify locations offering Covid vaccinations.

We tested the accuracy of the locations by calling several of the listed entities on the map. While each of the listed providers was aware that the health department listed their service site, none of them had any available vaccines for category 1B users.

Senior citizens need to know you qualify for vaccination now. Unfortunately, you are going to have to take a proactive stance until distribution improves. Call various locations and get your name on the lists.

Remember, a safe and effective Covid-19 vaccine will not help us get through this winter. Each Pfizer and Moderna vaccine requires two doses with full immunity effective about three weeks after the second dose..

The faster you get your first dose, the closer you are to hugging your grandkids. 

Everyone in the world must continue to fight the virus. While we wait, we must continue to do what works to slow the spread. Public health entities must continue to identify exposures, isolate those at risk, test, and treat.

Each American must follow the mitigation strategies to protect themself and others. Stay at home. Wash your hands. Practice social distancing. And remember wearing a mask is the easiest thing we can do to slow the spread of coronavirus and save others’ lives.

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