Showing posts with label elderly. Show all posts
Showing posts with label elderly. Show all posts
Is High Blood Pressure In The Elderly Not As Risky
Thursday, April 3, 2014
The risks associated with hypertension, high blood pressure (BP) as its commonly called, may be different for very old compared to younger adults. Paula Span, who writes the New Old Age Blog at the New York Times discussed this in her post:For the Very Old, a Surprise in Blood Pressure Readings, New York Times, 8 August 2012
Span writes:
"I was startled to learn that in the very elderly - those over 85, say - high blood pressure may indicate better health while lower numbers could mean trouble ahead."Span had been reading a study and an accompanying editorial published in the Archives of Internal Medicine last year:
Rethinking the Association of High Blood Pressure With Mortality in Elderly Adults, JAMA Internal Medicine, August 2012
Comment on “Rethinking the Association of High Blood Pressure With Mortality in Elderly Adults," Goodwin JS, JAMA Internal Medicine, August 2012
In his editorial, Goodwin offered some background:
"In 1988, Matilla et al reported that, among the very old, elevated systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP) were associated with longer survival. The differences were not subtle. The 5-year survival of those with systolic BPs greater than 200 mm Hg were almost twice as high as those with levels of 120 to 140 mm Hg. Over the ensuing 25 years, a substantial number of population-based studies have reported the same findings: in those older than 85 years (or older than 80 years in some studies), high BP is an excellent prognostic sign.Why does high BP appear to be a good sign in an older population? Goodwin explains that the old are a mixture of frail and more robust individuals. High BP does not connote the same level of health in both groups. Referring to Diehr et al. he said:
Perhaps the most rigorous assessment came from the Framingham Study, which reported that the strong positive association of BP with cardiovascular mortality was reversed between the ages of 75 and 85. Importantly, no population-based study has found the opposite, that high BP is a marker for bad outcomes in octogenarians. Conversely, “normal” BP is bad. Perhaps the worst sign is falling BP."
"[The very old] showed a steady decrease in BP in the 3 years before death. ... High BP is only a good sign in very old age because many of those with “normal” BP have it for bad reasons."When is it advantageous to treat high blood pressure in an older person? Goodwin says:
"Many robust, very old individuals have hypertension. Antihypertensive treatment in those individuals is beneficial. Frail older individuals are less likely to have hypertension, and treating those who do may produce bad outcomes."How do you measure robustness? One good test is walking speed.
In the study at the top of this post, those with hypertension who could walk a 20-foot corridor at an average pace of 1.8 mph or better had about the same risk of dying as younger adults. Those with high BP who walked slower did not have an increased risk. And those with high BP who couldnt complete the walk had a 60% lower risk of death:
"Higher systolic BP was associated with an increased risk of mortality only among elderly adults who had a medium to fast walking pace. In contrast, among slower-walking older adults, there was not an association between elevated systolic or diastolic BP and mortality. Strikingly, we found elevated systolic and diastolic BP was strongly and independently associated with a lower mortality risk in participants who did not complete the walk test."The lead author of the study, Dr. Michelle Odden, said:
"The paradigm in medicine is, high blood pressure is bad, treating it is good. We’re saying, maybe we need to look more closely at the guidelines and tailor them more to older adults."
Omega 3 Fat Supplementation Can Prevent Depression in the Elderly
Monday, February 24, 2014
Results published in The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging demonstrate that daily supplementation with Omega-3 fats may significantly suppress the symptoms of depression among elderly women.
Omega-3 Supplementation from Fish Oil Lowers Depression Symptoms in Seniors
One of the most common medications prescribed to adults, and especially the elderly is in the anti-depressant classification. Anti-depressants cause a long list of side effects including blurred vision, weight gain, headache, anxiety and sleep disruption. Many of these effects lead to a lowered quality of life and actually worsen the condition being treated. Multiple studies have determined that Omega-3 supplementation cuts depression ratings by 50%, without the devastating side effects of prescription drugs.
Omega-3 to Omega-6 Balance is behind the Dramatic Increase in Depression Cases
The low fat diet so often prescribed by medical professionals and nutrition experts has caused a critical deficiency of healthy fats necessary for the development of the human brain from infancy to adulthood. In addition to the extensive library of research showing the effectiveness of Omega-3 fats in cardiovascular health and cognition, new evidence documents the need for this essential nutrient through all stages of life to improve self-esteem and prevent depression. Health-minded people will want to supplement with 2.5 grams of combined EPA/DHA to naturally protect against behavior disorders and depression.
Berry Consumption Lowers Risk of Cognitive Decline and Dementia in the Elderly
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Incidence of cognitive decline leading to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is rising at unprecedented levels among those aged 65 and older. Many people fear the myriad of memory-robbing forms of dementia more than a diagnosis of cancer. Blueberries and strawberries, which are high in flavonoids that easily cross the blood-brain barrier, have been shown to to reduce cognitive decline in older adults in prior bodies of research.
A new study recently published in the Annals of Neurology suggests that cognitive aging could be delayed by up to 2.5 years in elderly individuals who consume greater amounts of flavonoid-rich berries. In the past, studies have hinted at the positive effects of flavonoids from berry consumption, but have been limited to animal studies or very small sample groups. This is the first research to demonstrate the critical preventive and healing nature of anthocyanins in a very large cohort of more than 100,000 senior aged adults.
Blueberries and Strawberries Improve Cognitive Skills in Aging Adults
Flavonoids are bioactive structures found in plants that are known to have powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Nutrition researchers theorize that stress and inflammation contribute to cognitive impairment and that increasing consumption of flavonoids could thwart the harmful effects. Many forms of dementia, especially Alzheimer’s disease, are rapidly emerging as illnesses caused largely by poor lifestyle (environmental pollution, household chemicals and electromagnetic forces) and a highly processed diet consisting of sugar, glucose-stimulating carbohydrates and hydrogenated fats.
To conduct the study, researchers examined datafrom a cohort of 121,700 female registered nurses between the ages of 30 and 55 who completed health and lifestyle questionnaires beginning in 1976. Participants provided details about frequency of food consumption every four years, and cognitive function was measured in 16,010 subjects over the age of 70 years, at 2-year intervals.
Eat Three to five Servings of Fresh Berries Each Week to Lower Risk of Cognitive Decline
Researchers found that increased consumption of blueberries and strawberries slows cognitive decline by up to 2.5 years in older women. A greater intake of anthocyanidins and total flavonoids was also associated with a reduction in cognitive degeneration leading to Alzheimer’s disease. Lead study author, Dr. Elizabeth Devore concluded“Our study examined whether greater intake of berries could slow rates of cognitive decline. We provide the first epidemiologic evidence that berries may slow progression of cognitive decline in elderly women. Our findings have significant public health implications as increasing berry intake is a fairly simple dietary modification for older adults.”
As aging adults fall prey to the processes of cognitive decline, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease at an unprecedented pace, it is comforting to know that there are a number of lifestyle and dietary steps that can be followed to improve brain health and memory loss. Include one to two daily servings from a wide variety of berries, especially blueberries and strawberries to improve cognition and normal brain function.
Adhering to lifestyle guidelines reduced mortality in elderly female cancer survivors
Friday, February 7, 2014
Achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight, staying physically active and maintaining a healthy diet improved survival after cancer diagnosis in an elderly female cancer survivor population, according to data presented at the 11th Annual AACR International Conference on Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research, held here Oct. 16-19, 2012.
Researchers examined cancer survivors adherence to the 2007 World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research (WCRF/AICR) guidelines for body weight, physical activity and diet.
"Elderly female cancer survivors who achieve and maintain an ideal body weight, stay physically active and eat a healthy diet have an almost 40 percent lower risk for death compared with women who do not follow these recommendations," said Maki Inoue-Choi, Ph.D., R.D., research associate in the Division of Epidemiology and Community Health in the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota.
Study participants included 2,080 women from the Iowa Womens Health Study who had a confirmed cancer diagnosis between 1986 and 2002 and who completed a follow-up questionnaire in 2004. Women provided information on body weight, physical activity level, dietary intake and other demographic and lifestyle factors.
Through annual linkage with the State of Health Registry of Iowa and the National Death Index, researchers identified 495 deaths from 2004 to 2009, including 197 from cancer and 153 from cardiovascular disease. Researchers adjusted for age, number of comorbid conditions, general health, smoking, type and stage of cancer, current cancer treatment and subsequent cancer diagnosis. They found all-cause mortality was 37 percent lower for women with the highest (6 to 8) versus the lowest (0 to 4) adherence scores.
Reaching the WCRF/AICR physical activity recommendation was also associated with lower risk for death from any cause, from cardiovascular disease or from cancer after the researchers adjusted for dietary and body weight recommendation adherence scores and other covariates.
However, reaching the dietary recommendations was not associated with mortality following adjustment for body weight and physical activity recommendation adherence scores.
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