Tablet Helps Seniors Go Digital, Research Says

We get it. Computers could be intimidating and tiny phones might be . . . well, just too tiny. Why not consider a tablet? Those smaller, lighter, easy-to-use computers that sometimes replace laptops appear to be a way to help seniors make the transition to digital communication.

In fact, new Michigan State University research has found that the use of tablets does make it easier, breaking down some of the barriers that keep seniors from getting connected.

In addition, tablets allow people to maneuver online without having to move and click a mouse. “The dexterity required to control a mouse is really hard for some older adults,” said Shelia Cotten, an MSU professor of media and information who led the research. “A certain level of muscle control is needed. And some older adults have shaking issues, in addition to muscle-control issues in their hands and arms.”

Cotten also said that in most cases, tablets are just easier to use, especially for people who don't have a lot of computer experience. “You don't have to click on 12 different things to do what you want to do. It helps to ease their tech anxiety.”

To learn more about this study, visit http://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2015/tablets-can-help-elderly-cross-the-digital-divide/. 

 

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Trouble Distinguishing Odors Tied to Shorter Life Span

A study of 1,169 Medicare beneficiaries found that older people who have trouble distinguishing between odors appear to have a short life span.Results of the four-year study found that the mortality rate was 45 percent in participants with the lowest scores on a 40-item smell test compared with 18 percent of participants with the highest scores.

 

“The increased risk of death increased progressively with worse performance in the smell identification test and was highest in those with the worst smelling ability, even after adjusting for medical burden and dementia,” said Dr. Davangere Devanand, lead author of the Annals of Neurology study.

For more information about the study, visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ana.24447/abstract?campaign=wolacceptedarticle.  
 

Each Home Instead Senior Care^® franchise office is independently owned and operated.

Video Series Could Help Seniors Strengthen Balance

Falls are certainly a legitimate concern. Despite increased cautions to seniors about these dangers the number of people age 65 and older who are falling is increasing.

Study results show that among all adults 65 years or older, the prevalence of self-reported falls increased from 28.2 percent in 1998 to 36.3 percent in 2010, according to a recent research letter published online by JAMA Internal Medicine.

“Contrary to our hypothesis, we observed an increase in fall prevalence among older adults that exceeds what would be expected owing to the increasing age of the population,” said lead author Christine Cigolle, M.D., M.P.H. from the University of Michigan, who is a research scientist at the Ann Arbor Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Centers (GRECC), a VA Medical Center.

But there is good news and some indication that all of the warnings extended to seniors may be helping them to reap some rewards despite these falls. The researchers did not find an increase in injuries from falling.

A new video series offered by the Home Instead Senior Care^® network, Prevent Senior Falls: Balance and Assessment Exercises, could help you assess your older loved one’s potential risk of falls. The series also offers balancing and strengthening exercises that could help your older loved one to decrease this potential risk.

Most experts agree that falls should be avoided since they typically put seniors in the hospital. To check out these videos and learn more suggestions for keeping seniors safe, go to PreventSeniorHospitalizations.com.

 
For more information about the research, visit http://media.jamanetwork.com/news-item/prevalence-of-self-reported-falls-increases-since-1998-in-adults-over-65/