Category: Health & Wellness

Nearly 42 million Americans identify as being lonely. More than 40 percent of those age 65 years and older experience loneliness, often reporting that they lack companionship and emotional support as they age. “Research has linked social isolation and loneliness to higher risks for a variety of physical and mental conditions: high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, a weakened immune system, anxiety, depression, cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease, and even death,” according to the National Institute on Aging.

“Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in the United States and is a major cause of serious disability for adults,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). “About 795,000 people in the United States have a stroke each year.” Conditions that increase the risk for stroke include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and common heart disorders including coronary artery disease and atrial fibrillation. The signs of stroke in both men and women include sudden:

Five million cases of elder fraud occur in the United States each year, resulting in $27.4 billion in losses, according to an article published by U.S. News & World Report. “Elder fraud is an act targeting older adults in which attempts are made to deceive with promises of goods, services, or financial benefits that do not exist, were never intended to be provided, or were misrepresented,” according to the StopFraud.gov Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The majority of victims do not report elder fraud due to embarrassment.

Early and ongoing legal and financial planning and review are critical for families impacted by Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. Unfortunately, many families are not prepared to manage the legal and financial impacts of an Alzheimer’s or dementia diagnosis. Medical, legal, and financial experts encourage seniors recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, dementia, or another serious illness that causes decline in mental and physical health to establish, review, and update advance directives as early as possible. The sooner legal and financial plans are put in place, the more likely the person diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or dementia will be able to participate in the planning process. 

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States, as more than 610,000 people die of heart disease in the U.S. every year (1 in every 4 deaths), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The term “heart disease” refers to several types of heart conditions. The most common type of heart disease in the U.S. is coronary artery disease, which affects the blood flow to the heart, according to the CDC. Someone suffers from a heart attack every 40 seconds, and each minute more than one person dies from a heart disease-related event in the U.S., according to the CDC.