According to the researchers the benefits of taking the added vitamin supplements were modest.  “Still it is encouraging and good news for aging Americans who are living longer and want to minimize the risk of dementia or cognitive decline,” declares Jesse Slome, executiove director of the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance, the national trade group charged with creating awareness for long term care related issues.

Today, some 5.4 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease according to the 2011 Long Term Care Almanac published by the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance.  “Two thirds are women,” explains Jesse Slome, the organization’s director, “and most survive an average of four to eight years after diagnosis, though some live as long as 20 years.”  Alzheimer’s is the leading cause for long term care insurance claims.

By 2050, the Alzheimer’s Association predicts as many as 16 million individuals will be diagnosed with the disease.  They note that of Americans age 65 and over, one in eight has Alzheimer’s and that nearly half of all those who reach age 85 have the disease.

Researchers in Australia asked more than 700 people, aged 60 to 74 years, to take a daily dose of folic acid and vitamin B12 or placebos that resembled the vitamins. The study only included people who showed signs of depression, but were not diagnosed with clinical depression.

The vitamin dose included 400 micrograms of folic acid and 100 micrograms of vitamin B12. Scientists reported that after 12 months, there seemed to be no difference in how well participants scored on mental tests, including memory, attention and speed.

The researchers, however, reported that after two years the participants who were taking the real vitamins showed larger improvements in their scores on the memory tasks.    They noted however that for any given individual, there may or may not be an effect.

The scientists postulated that the reason for the changed results is that the vitamins reduce the body’s levels of a molecule called homocysteine, which is linked to cardiovascular disease and poor cognitive function.

Financial planning experts advise that adults in their 50s and young 60s with a family history of cognitive disorders including Alzheimer’s look into long term care insurance.  “Insurance is only available to those who can medically qualify,” Slome explains, “because the long term care insurance industry already pays out over $6 billion a year in claims, so they look for those who aren’t already diagnosed with some risky condition.”

To learn more about long-term care planning and get long term care insurance costs from a designated expert via the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance’s Consumer Information Center.

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According to U.S. researchers middle-aged adults who ate the most red meat were almost one fifth (19%) more likely to be diagnosed with kidney cancer than those who ate the least.   The scientists also noted that the increased intake of chemicals found in barbecued or grilled meats was also linked to increased risk of the disease.

“Cancer is increasingly a critical illness impacting millions of American adults,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  “U.S. guidelines for better health call for limiting high-fat foods including processed meat, and instead eating more lean meat and poultry, seafood and nuts.”

Researchers noted that previous studies examined links between red meat and kidney cancer had arrived at mixed conclusion.  Researchers at the National Cancer Institute in Rockville used data from a study of close to 500,000 U.S. adults age 50 and older, which were surveyed on their dietary habits, including meat consumption.  The researchers followed the study group for an average of nine years to track any new cancer diagnoses.

On average, men in the study ate two or three ounces of red meat per day, compared to one or two ounces among women.

During the study time period some 1,800 of the participants or less than half a percent were diagnosed with kidney cancer.   Those with the highest consumption of red meat were 19 percent more likely to be diagnosed with kidney cancer than those who ate the smallest amount.  The highest consumption was about four ounces per day and the lowest was less than one ounce per day.

People who ate the most well-done grilled and barbecued meat and therefore had the highest exposure to carcinogenic chemicals that come out of the cooking process also had an extra risk of kidney cancer compared to those who didn’t cook much meat that way.

“More Americans are following healthier plans with the desire of living a long life,” Slome explains.  “If you live into your 80s or beyond, the likelihood you will need long term care is vastly increased but you need to start preparing for this in your 50s and early 60s when the most planning options are still available to you.”

For more information on long term care insurance, visit the Association’s Consumer Information Center at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/ .  To read a free online guide about reducing costs for long-term care insurance go to long term care insurance costs.

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The scientists reported that 370,000 cases of fractures in the humerus bone of the upper arm occur each year in both the United States.  While younger individuals between the ages of five and nine accounted for the highest overall number of breaks, they found that arm injuries also spiked among women after age 40 and men after age 60.

Researchers at the University of California, Davis, reported that 38.7 million Americans were 65 or older in 2008, but that by the year 2030, that number will be 71.5 million. They project a significant increase in hospital emergency room visits with much of the increase likely to be among older Americans.

The highest number of proximal humerus breaks was seen in both men and women after age 45, and rates kept rising until about age 84.  Women were more than twice as likely as men to suffer a proximal humerus break, and saw an uptick in the breaks earlier in life, starting after age 40, which the researchers attributed to lost bone density.

“Conditions like osteoporosis will increases a person’s likelihood of sustaining a bone fracture as a result of even a simple fall,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  “Some can be fixed with a cast but other broken bones especially those that occur at older ages will require long periods of care and at could seriously disable a person for long periods of time.”

Indeed, the researchers found that 88 percent of upper-arm breaks were caused by falls, prompting them to call for more rigorous safety measures to reduce falls and better treatments to prevent osteoporosis.

“Prevention is vital, but so is planning for living a long life,” Slome explains.  “If you live into your 80s or beyond, the likelihood you will need long term care is vastly increased but you need to start preparing for this in your 50s and early 60s when the most planning options are still available to you.”

For more information on long term care insurance, visit the Association’s Consumer Information Center at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/ .  To read a free online guide about reducing costs for long-term care insurance go to long term care insurance costs.

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Researchers found that nursing home residents who actively participated in a weekly two-hour clowning session involving music, mime and humorous props showed a significant reduction in both physically and verbally aggressive behavior. 

“The number of U.S. adults aged 65 years and older is projected to nearly double over the next two decades,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, the national trade organization.  “As a result, the incidence of cognitive issues especially Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias is also expected to rise as will the need for costly long term care.”

Scientists found that laughter resulted in a 20-percent plunge in overall agitation.  The benefit lasted for at least 14 weeks beyond the conclusion of the clowning program.  They noted an added bonus, the fact that change was achieved without running any of the risk of serious side effects, including falling and premature death, that have been previously associated with prescription antipsychotic drugs. 

The study authors noted that between 70 percent and 80 percent of dementia patients experience some form of agitation and distress, which can include bouts of wandering, screaming and repetitive behaviors. 

The scientists utilized the services of an elder clown who was trained to engage in humor-based therapy in a medical setting.  Sessions were conducted weekly and involved humorous improvisation skills, similar to those used by clown doctors who perform for sick children. 

While agitation remained lower 26 weeks following therapy launch, the boost in both happiness and positive behaviors seen during the program faded once the program ended. 

Jesse Slome, a national long-term care insurance expert advises adults in their mid-50s to learn more about long-term care planning and get long-term care insurance costs from a designated expert via the Association’s Consumer Information Center at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/free-quote/.  He explains that the best ages to look into this protection is prior to age 65 when health issues including early diagnosis of cognitive issues can make it harder or more costly to medically qualify for coverage.

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“The number of U.S. adults aged 65 years and older is projected to nearly double over the next two decades,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, the national trade organization.  “As a result, the incidence of cognitive issues especially Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias is also expected to rise as will the need for costly long term care.”

According to Chicago researchers foods rich in vitamin B12 include those derived from animals and include, eggs, milk, liver, meat, and fish.  Vitamin B12 plays a key role in normal nervous system functioning and brain development. It is also involved in the formation of red blood cells.

Scientists undertook a study of individuals aged at least 65 years. They underwent blood tests to check for B12 and B12-related metabolites levels. They were also assessed for memory and other cognitive skills. Some five years later magnetic resonance imaging scans of their brains were taken to measure comparative brain size and to identify other signs of brain damage.

Those with four of five markers for vitamin B12 deficiency were found to have a higher risk of getting lower cognitive test scores and smaller total brain volumes.  The National Institute of Aging funded the study.

Vitamin B12 plays a key role in normal nervous system functioning and brain development. It is also involved in the formation of red blood cells. 

Planning experts advise those seeking to learn more about long-term care planning and get long-term care insurance cost contact a designated expert via the Association’s Consumer Information Center at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/free-quote/.  They point out that the best ages to look into this protection is prior to age 65 when health issues can make it harder or more costly to medically qualify for coverage.

The post Low Vitamin B12 Linked To Cognitive Decline In Elderly appeared first on American Association for Long Term Care Insurance.

According to Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, while arthritis is strongly connected with age, few investigations have studied how the oldest individuals (those aged 85+ years) are affected by the disease.

The study looked at over 1,000 individuals aged 85 years old and revealed that for any arthritis the lifetime prevalence was high, with 65.4% of the participants having arthritis. According to Slome, the researchers discovered that the disease was more common in women than men: 69.1% vs 58.8%.

Osteoarthritis the researchers found was most prevalent in the knee joint followed by the hip and hand. A percentage of those participating in the study identified the knee as the most painful joint, even though the foot, ankle and lower back received the highest pain score.

With the exception of the shoulder and foot, for all joints women reported a higher average pain score.

The study was published today in the journal Age and Ageing. According to AALTCI, arthritis is the fourth leading cause of long term care insurance claims for nursing home care, following Alzheimer’s, nervous system conditions and stroke.

“With more Americans living into their 80s and beyond, having a long term care plan in place is more important than ever,” declares Slome. “Most people wait too long to consider their options because the right time to plan is prior to turning age 65.”

For more information on long term care insurance, visit the Association’s Consumer Information center that can be accessed at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/.

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The open season period, which ran from April 4 to June 24, allowed these individuals to sign up for the long term care insurance coverage with abbreviated underwriting, which means they had to answer fewer health questions during the enrollment process.

The Office of Personnel Management, which runs the program, said today that the 20 percent increase in enrollment brought the program to 270,000 total enrollees.  “The Federal program is the nation’s largest group plan,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance http://www.aaltci.org.  “In addition to those enrolling in the plan, we estimate some 10,000 or more individuals purchased private coverage as a result of all the promotion.”

“We’ve seen strong support for the program in federal agencies, and ultimately in the number of people who applied and were accepted into the program,” OPM Director John Berry said in a statement. “OPM is proud of the success of the FLTCIP — one of the most flexible, inclusive and affordable long term care insurance programs, designed to help employees plan for their needs as they age.” 

The open enrollment was the first major open season since OPM initiated the program and the first time eligibility was extended to same-sex domestic partners. OPM said it received more than 300 applications from same-sex domestic partners. 

“We were receiving as many as 30 calls a day from consumers during the open enrollment period,” Slome adds.  “As a result, we expect overall industry sales for 2011 will be higher than 2010 a most welcome occurrence.”

The post Over 45,000 Sign Up For Federal Long-Term Care Insurance Program appeared first on American Association for Long Term Care Insurance.

A new study published in the current issue of Neurology reaffirms previous research connecting the two illnesses.  According to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance some 5.4 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease and as many as 16 million will have the disease by mid-century. 

The study of more than 1,000 Japanese adults found that 27 percent of those with diabetes developed dementia, compared to 20 percent of people with normal blood sugar levels.  The study also revealed that pre-diabetes, reported as higher than normal blood sugar levels. also raised the risk of dementia. 

The study, conducted from 1988 to 2003, followed over 1,000 men and women, age 60 and older, who took a glucose test to find out if they were diabetic or pre-diabetic. These adults were then tracked over an average of 11 years each. In all, 232 developed dementia, either Alzheimer’s, vascular dementia, all-cause dementia or another form. 

Of the 150 who had diabetes, 41 developed dementia, compared to 115 of the 559 people without diabetes. Among the 308 people with pre-diabetes, 76, or 25 percent, developed dementia. 

Diabetes affects close to 26 million children and adults in the United States, with 7 million of them undiagnosed, according to the American Diabetes Association.   “Another 79 million have pre-diabetes,” explains Jesse Slome, a leading long term care insurance expert.  “Obesity increases the risk of diabetes, and as Americans become heavier, more are developing diabetes and thus will be at greater risk of needing costly long term care.” 

In type 2 diabetics, the more common form of the disorder, people don’t have enough of the hormone insulin to convert glucose in food into energy, or they don’t process insulin properly. 

Planning experts advise those seeking to learn more about long-term care planning and get long-term care insurance cost contact a designated expert via the Association’s Consumer Information Center at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/free-quote/.

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Included in the new health care law is a new long-term care insurance program called the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act.

Documents obtained and included in the report reveal that the Obama Administration’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) was acutely aware that the program was unsustainable and suppressed this information from Congressional leaders and the American people prior to the passage of the law, all in the effort to achieve phony savings to offset the bill’s massive spending and taxpayer-funded price tag.

The report was issued by the Repeal CLASS Working Group that is comprised of Republican leadership in both the House and Senate charged with overseeing implementation of the new health care law.

“The President and the Democrats are in an impossible situation,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, the national trade group.  “If Democrats throw CLASS under the bus, it opens the door for attacks on other aspects of healthcare law.  If they defend what they know is an unsustainable program, they are open to political attack as the party who never met an unsustainable entitlement program they didn’t like.”

According to the Working Group’s key findings, senior Health and Human Services officials publicly pronounced the CLASS program solvent in the fall of 2009, even as their own employees were calling CLASS “a recipe for disaster” in internal emails.

“This report is further confirmation that the Obama Administration willfully chose to ignore the fiscal insolvency of the CLASS program in order to achieve a political victory by pushing the president’s health care bill through Congress,” said Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), co-chair of the Working Group. “The CLASS Act is a ticking time bomb that will place taxpayers’ money at risk due to fatal flaws in the entitlement program’s design and structure. The American people had a right to know the information revealed in our report before they were put on the hook to pay for this massive new entitlement program.”

“The CLASS Act is billed as an insurance program for long-term care, but really it’s just a huge and very costly government accounting trick,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). “Remember Enron accounting? Well, I believe even Enron executives would be embarrassed by the accounting gimmicks created by the CLASS Act.” 

Slome adds that the eventual repeal or transformation of the CLASS Act will not eliminate the emerging national problem.  “Our aging population will require more long term care than ever,” Slome explains.  “Most people have no plan in place and will become increasingly dependent on already strapped and limited taxpayer supported programs like Medicare and Medicaid.  Our hope is that a solution that works for all is found and sooner rather than later.”

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According to researchers at the Mayo Clinic, aerobic exercise which is defined as any physical activity that raises heart rate and increases the body’s need for oxygen is good for preserving cognitive abilities and should be regarded as an important therapy against dementia.   Aerobic exercise includes walking, doing chores like shovelling snow and raking leaves. 

Cognitive decline and dementia including Alzheimer’s disease is a leading reason that aging women ultimately require costly long term care, according to Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance.  “Long term care insurance can pay for qualifying care at home or in a skilled nursing home but you must apply well before a decline in mental ability or physical health takes place,” he notes. 
Reserachers reviewed more than 1,600 scientific papers on the topic, 130 of which dealt directly with the issue.  They concluded that one can make a very compelling argument for exercise as a disease-modifying strategy to prevent dementia and mild cognitive impairment.

They point out that studies involving brain scans consistently show objective evidence of the benefits of exercise on preserving the integrity of the human brain.   Animal studies found that exercise produces trophic factors that improve the functioning of the brain, and it also increases connections between brain cells.

Patients with dementia or MCI had better scores after 6 to 12 months of exercise compared to sedentary controls.  Healthy adults who did aerobic exercise also showed significantly improved cognitive scores.

In one large trial of seniors, one year of exercise was linked to significantly larger hippocampal volumes and better spatial memory (cross-sectional studies comparing physically fit with unfit seniors appear to confirm this evidence).

The findings were published in this month’s issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

Planning experts advise those seeking to learn more about long-term care planning and get long-term care insurance cost contact a designated expert via the Association’s Consumer Information Center at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/free-quote/.

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