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Jack Hanna, the famed celebrity zoologist who made a name for himself bringing cute & exotic animals onto TV shows like the Tonight Show, has been forced to retire from public life due to dementia.

“In the letter, Jack’s daughters Kathaleen, Suzanne and Julie Hanna stated their dad was diagnosed with dementia, now believed to be Alzheimer’s disease, and his condition progressed much faster than expected in the last few months.

“Sadly, Dad is no longer able to participate in public life as he used to, where people all over the world watched, learned and laughed alongside him,” his daughters wrote.

His daughters said that while their father’s health has deteriorated quickly, his great sense of humor continues to shine through.”

Hanna came to prominence as the director of the Columbus Zoo & Aquarium, where he was the go-to “animal guy” for generations of TV watchers. He is one of nearly 6M Americans who currently suffer from Alzheimer’s.

Brought to you bysmpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

A new film about the late comedic legend Robin Williams shows the toll the undiagnosed Lewy Body Dementia may have taken on him before his tragic death in 2014.

“SPARK: Robin Williams and his Battle with Lewy Body Dementia (LBD),” tracks the final years of his life and his battle with undiagnosed Lewy Body Dementia.

Susan Schneider Williams, the widow of the late comic, has called LBD, “the terrorist inside my husband’s mind.”

A progressive dementia, LBD is the second most common form of progressive dementia after Alzheimer’s. The disease occurs when excess deposits of the protein alpha-synuclein, known as Lewy bodies, clump up inside neurons, causing damage to certain parts of the brain, and, as a result, a decline in cognition and movement.“

A trailer for the documentary can be seen here, with a broad release set for later this year.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

We’re approaching the warm weather holidays of Mother’s Day & Father’s Day, so now is as good a time as any to start planning what to get the seniors in your life.

• Digital Picture Frame. A great way to keep up with the grandkids. You can put thousands of family photos on a single memory card, and the device will automatically rotate through them. You can get models with wi-fi that let you upload images remotely, or ones without if they don’t have wi-fi in the home. The wi-fi model will require them or a caregiver to input their wi-fi password to set it up, so think of that before you purchase.
• Music Player. Another device you can have shipped to you, set it up, and send over to a loved one without any need for contact. Add all of their favorite songs & radio stations, and let them control the music with just one touch.
• Indoor Herb Growing Kit. With many of us cut off from the outdoors, it’s the best time to bring some of the outdoors, indoors. Flowers would be nice, but an herb garden has the added benefit of providing a pop of freshness to food. You can go with the fancy hydroponic rigs where everything is managed for them, or the simpler – but more elegant – traditional setup where they can get their hands dirty.
• Lawn Games for Groups. The past few years has seen an explosion of fun & simple outdoor games which can be played even by people with moderate physical disabilities. Cornhole, Yardzhee, Backyard Bowling, Bean-Basketball and more can encourage seniors to get outside, get some exercise and socialize with their peers.

Even in these difficult times, there are plenty of gifs out there to make everyone happy in these trying times.

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‘Trouble sleeping’ is one of the most common medical complaints among adults. Among seniors, over 72% report regular sleep issues. There are pharmaceutical solutions, but many come with side effects or lose efficacy after a few months, so clinicians are constantly looking for alternative methods to help people get a better night’s sleep. A new study shows that Bright White Light  (BWL) may be a solution to the problems for some people.

“How does bright white light work?

Every day we are exposed to environmental cues, or “zeitgebers” that help us reset our circadian timing. The most potent one is sunlight. Sunlight (especially light in the blue light range) enters the eyes and stimulates receptors on the retina. This signal travels up the optic pathway to the brain ultimately shuts down melatonin production, which has a strong arousing effect. Light boxes, which are commercially available devices for administering bright light (and screen out harmful UV light), are just a substitute for sunlight, and have the same effect. Morning light, in particular, helps to reset our circadian rhythms if they have drifted to a later clock time (e.g. adolescents tend to go to bed later and later, and wake up later and later, developing what is called a delayed sleep/circadian phase in relationship to sunrise/sunset).

Why might someone need an artificial intervention, as opposed to going by the natural patterns of sunrise/sunset?

Natural sunlight is the best source of light for our circadian health. In fact, it is so good, that the amount of blue light contained in sunlight is actually highest in the mornings, when the effect of blue light on our circadian timing is strongest, and is lowest in the evening when we are gearing down to go to sleep. In contrast, the amount of blue light in artificial light is constant, so can be damaging to our sleep with evening exposure.

Morning BWL can be used as a proxy for morning sunlight during the winter or on cloudy/rainy days when our exposure to sunlight is limited. It can also be helpful if a person is unable to get outside to experience sunlight, such as if they are infirm or chronically fatigued, or have work/school obligations that limit their time for going outside in the mornings. When given a choice, however, sunlight is always best.”

BWL therapy was developed primarily for dark winters or areas with extensive cloudy days, but this study shows it may be helpful in more environmental conditions.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

Even as parts of the US start to relax stay-at-home orders, our senior loved ones will still be under very restrictive rules for their own safety. We may not be able to visit with them right now, but that doesn’t mean we can’t send along some things to help keep their minds sharp during these trying times.

Puzzles & Games. In this you want activities which are familiar or simple to pick up. Jigsaw puzzles, old school board games, even chess or checkers sets.

Music. Many of us take music for granted. But for our senior loved ones, it can be very difficult to get their music nowadays. Something like the smpl Music Player & Radio could be a great way to let them have their music again without needing someone else to put it on for them. You can put their music on a USB drive and it will play with the touch of a button.

Hobbies. Anything that can keep them occupied and engaged safely. Knitting. Crocheting. Painting. Photography. Model building. Film study. All of these – and more – can be done in residential facilities using products you can readily have shipped to them.

Keeping the mind active is incredibly important for seniors, and we will all have to learn to encourage that activity remotely.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

From NBC Montana, a look at how broad some places define “mentally ill.”

“Montana Rep. Danny Tenenbaum (D-Missoula), also works as a public defender. About a year ago, a case came across his desk that caught his eye.

“For me, it was a problem I didn’t know existed until a year ago when a case came through our office,” he said. “A person was committed involuntarily to the state mental hospital, and they weren’t mentally ill. They just had Alzheimer’s.”

According to Tenenbaum, about ⅓ of the people currently in the state mental hospital are there for Alzheimer’s or other dementia related conditions. Under the terms of the bill he is proposing, those patients would instead be placed in residential care facilities rather than the state mental hospital. However, the bill still needs sponsors, and will likely not be voted on until the 2023 legislative session.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

Birds are chirping, flowers are budding and the days are longer than the nights. Spring is finally here, and that means it’s time to make sure the senior loved ones in your life are ready for the season. Continuing Covid lockdowns make this particularly difficult for loved ones in residential care facilities, but it’s still important to do as much as possible remotely.

• Make sure they have good quality outdoor clothing & shoes. Seniors are sometimes as bad as children when it comes to over-wearing specific articles of clothing. It’s up to you to make sure those threadbare, worn or even dangerous bits of gear get repaired or replaced.
• Medicine cabinet check. Make sure their prescription drugs are in good supply. Go through their over the counter drugs, supplements and personal care products checking expiration dates. You’d be surprised how quickly those dates sneak up on you.
• Fridge check. The same for their fridge, freezer & pantry; get rid of those old lentils & freezer burned chicken cutlets now.
• Activity time. Make sure they have something new to do during the season. It could be a new game to play, a new show to binge, a new park to walk in. Anything to inject a little newness and variety into their lives.

As always, handle these matters with delicacy & respect. These are your elders, not your children and treating them as such will only turn this into an argument.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

As Covid-19 vaccination rates continue to rise, it’s time to start asking what people who have been vaccinated can do that the rest of us can’t yet. First off, “fully vaccinated” means it’s been 2 weeks since the final dose of the vaccine you’ve received (the Moderna, Pfizer & AstraZeneca vaccines are 2 doses, the Johnson & Johnson one is 1 dose). The following are guidelines from the CDC:

What’s Changed if you’ve been fully vaccinated:

• You can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask.
• You can gather indoors with unvaccinated people from one other household (for example, visiting with relatives who all live together) without masks, unless any of those people or anyone they live with has an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
• If you’ve been around someone who has COVID-19, you do not need to stay away from others or get tested unless you have symptoms.
• However, if you live in a group setting (like a correctional or detention facility or group home) and are around someone who has COVID-19, you should still stay away from others for 14 days and get tested, even if you don’t have symptoms.

What Hasn’t Changed, for now, if you’ve been fully vaccinated:

• You should still take steps to protect yourself and others in many situations, like wearing a mask, staying at least 6 feet apart from others, and avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces. Take these precautions whenever you are:
• In public
• Gathering with unvaccinated people from more than one other household
• Visiting with an unvaccinated person who is at increased risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19 or who lives with a person at increased risk
• You should still avoid medium or large-sized gatherings.
• You should still delay domestic and international travel. If you do travel, you’ll still need to follow CDC requirements and recommendations.
• You should still watch out for symptoms of COVID-19, especially if you’ve been around someone who is sick. If you have symptoms of COVID-19, you should get tested and stay home and away from others.
• You will still need to follow guidance at your workplace.

Remember that while vaccination rates are increasing, most of the population – the publication time – are still unvaccinated. But that doesn’t mean those who have been cannot enjoy things a bit more. Have a small party or get together. Go out more (while still masking up). But still be responsible when needed. If we all work together we will get thru this.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

An interesting study in Medline showing a link between clinical depression and lack of improvement in patients with psoriatic arthritis.

“Our study demonstrated that the presence of symptoms or a diagnosis of depression/anxiety significantly reduced the probability of achieving sustained minimal disease activity in psoriatic arthritis patients, and this was independent of disease severity as measured by number of damaged joints or medications used,” the researchers wrote.

Potential reasons for the consistent association of depression/anxiety and inability to attain low disease activity including a heightened sensitivity to pain, which may “lead to avoidance, inactivity, deconditioning, and social isolation,” Chandran and co-authors continued, adding that the association with fibromyalgia “may be due to persistent pain that contributes to both the tender joint count and the patient-reported pain and disease activity scores.”

Depression is such a difficult disease to live with for so many reasons, and now you can add “it makes it tougher to treat another chronic, debilitating disease” to the list.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.

When caring for an elder loved one, some conversations are unpleasant but necessary. One of those conversations is often about alcohol consumption.

To be clear right off the bat: this isn’t about alcoholism or addiction. Those are distinct conditions, which have to be addressed on their own.

What we’re talking about here is ‘casual’ or ‘social’ drinking. A beer in the afternoon. A couple of glasses of wine at dinner. A cocktail with their friends. The sorts of activities an older person may have engaged in regularly for most of their lives. But the body of a 70-year-old is not the body of a 25-year-old or a 40-year-old. Metabolisms change, organs and systems don’t heal up as quickly as they used to, and ‘minor’ impairments are more likely to lead to significant injuries. But this doesn’t mean your senior loved one needs to become a teetotaler.

This is one of the core messages you should convey: no one is taking away all of your drinks. Simply telling an elder loved one “you can’t drink anymore” is a fast way to ensure they drink more often and more irresponsibly, going forward.

Try to schedule alcohol consumption in advance. Much the same way, dieting goes better when you have regular “cheat days” to look forward to, and a moderated alcohol intake regimen also works better when there are clear and frequent breaks. Bloody Marys at Mother’s Day brunch? A bit of the bubbly at their daughter’s birthday party? Those are great, so long as it’s not an everyday occurrence.

Family members should also try – whenever possible – to make sure alcohol consumption is done in conjunction with meals and nonalcoholic beverages. Mix in some juice or iced tea in between drinks. One of the biggest dangers of alcohol consumption comes from dehydration, and the elderly are more susceptible than most to that complication. Slowing the absorption of alcohol by eating while you drink, and consuming nonalcoholic drinks will help stave off dehydration.

Some studies show that moderate, regular alcohol consumption can have medical benefits, including improved bone density and better overall cardiovascular health. But those benefits are obliterated once the drinking moves to “excessive” levels. As a caregiver, part of your role is to find ways to allow your elder loved one to have the occasional drink while preventing overconsumption. It’s not an easy task, but a necessary one.

Brought to you by smpltec.com, Technology for Seniors News.