Bridging the gap between research and real life
When you imagine an older person, what sort of picture pops into your head? Do you see someone walking stooped over a cane? Do you imagine them in a long-term care facility sitting in a wheelchair? Or do you imagine someone competing in a track meet, like the athletes who participated in last month’s National Senior Games track and field competition? [Read more…]
Scrolling through a social media feed, you might expect to see photos of friends’ travels, political opinions, and images of the latest fashions. You’ll also find a tremendous variety of health information.
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for reliable health information is central to our lives; social media outlets have played an even larger role in spreading both information and disinformation. As a result, a new body of research is exploring the impact of social media on public health, and how we can best use online tools to improve our well-being. [Read more…]
This week’s horrific school shooting in Uvalde, Texas prompted renewed calls for laws that promote gun safety in the U.S.
The standard script after mass shootings goes like this: Democrats make the case for passing more stringent policies about what types of firearms are available and who can own them; Republicans make the argument for Second Amendment rights because “guns don’t kill people; people kill people.”
[Read more…]
Many people seek a silver bullet that will help them age gracefully and maintain wellness in their later years. A growing body of research suggests there is an overlooked element that helps determine health status later in life: the health and wellness of one’s long-term partner. Researchers are finding that as long-term couples age together, they develop biological similarities that affect their health in the long run. [Read more…]
If you’ve ever tried to lose weight, you’ve noticed the myriad of diet options out there: keto, paleo, WW (formerly Weight Watchers), the Mediterranean diet, and many more.
Is there a way to tell which one works the best? Public health officials have been asking this question for decades. The answer emerging from the most recent data is unexpected: They all work, and what works best for you depends on a variety of biological and lifestyle factors. [Read more…]
After a holiday season full of good cheer—and extra cocktails for many—more Americans than ever participated this year in “Dry January,” a month-long sobriety challenge that began as a public-health campaign in England. Surveys found that between 13 and 15 percent of Americans decided to forgo alcohol that month, an increase from last year.
That’s likely a good thing for their health. [Read more…]
An estimated 3 percent of Americans follow a vegan diet, not consuming any animal products at all; an additional 5 percent follow a vegetarian diet, eating eggs and dairy, but not meat. At the same time, Americans are eating more meat than ever. In 2020, we consumed an average of 265 pounds of meat per person, up from 97 pounds per person in 1999. [Read more…]
Currently, 62 percent of Americans age 5 and up are fully vaccinated for COVID-19, with 34 percent having received a booster dose. That leaves more than 100 million Americans who have made the choice to skip the COVID-19 vaccine despite clear evidence that the jabs help prevent serious illness.
Vaccine hesitancy is a serious public health challenge—one that researchers are learning more about. What’s going on here? [Read more…]
You probably know from personal experience that the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on sleep for many people. If your own sleep hasn’t been affected, chances are you know someone who has experienced sleep problems in the past year and a half. [Read more…]
When a doctor prescribes medicine, he gives a precise dose calculated to maximize the health benefits while minimizing any side effects. Similar to medicine, we know that exercise is good for our health; it reduces the risk of developing chronic disease and prolongs our life. In fact, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control estimates that more than 8 percent of people in the U.S. over age 40 die as a result of too little exercise. [Read more…]
Talk to people who are middle-aged or older about body weight, and you’ll likely hear them complain about how their metabolism has slowed down. But our commonly held beliefs about metabolism – primarily, that it slows for older people and women – are likely completely wrong, according to a new groundbreaking study published in the journal Science this month. [Read more…]
Nearly 15 percent of people age 70 and older experience some form of dementia; that number jumps to nearly 35 percent for people over age 90. And yet other people live more than 100 years with sharp minds.
What helps some people protect their brain health well into the later years of life? That’s the question researchers from the Netherlands asked in a new, longitudinal study published in JAMA Network Open that examines mentally sharp 100-year-olds. [Read more…]
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