Here is a fun fact for the new year, according to a recent article by Elisa Cinelli, the grandparent-grandchild bond has never been stronger. She reported that new research indicates about half of children say they would feel more comfortable going to a grandparent for advice than a parent. In a Preply survey children were asked a series of questions and the results paint an overall positive picture of today’s grandparent-grandchild relationship.

In their survey 68% of the children said they would rather spend time with Nana and Papa (the most widely used grandparent names in the U.S.) than their own parents. Why is this the case, well in part it is because today’s seniors do not think of themselves as “old,” and they are more active, healthy, and living longer. Also as Sylvia Johnson, head of methodology at Preply noted, “A lot of times, grandparents are able to provide more of a mentorship role for children without the day-to-day stress and responsibility of parenting.”

Cinelli highlighted recent research that confirmed children feel more secure and have an easier time dealing with adverse life events when a grandparent is regularly involved in their care. In fact, one of the researchers pointed out that children, with more adults in their lives who show them unconditional love, tend to feel more secure and valued. The research noted that parents are wired to guide, correct, and reprimand their children, while grandparents tend to be less judgmental and critical of their grandchildren’s actions, so children may be more likely to drop their guard.

Whatever the reason, it is a wonderful trend and if you are lucky enough to have grandchildren do not be surprised if they confide in you or ask you for advice. Also, go ahead and spoil that grandchild. If your own offspring give you a dirty look you can confidently state, “Science says it is important” and walk away knowing that you have research to back it up. Happy New Year!

It is official. We have entered the Holiday Party time. This should be a fun time, but we also need to keep an eye on our intake. It is a fact that millions of people enter later life carrying an extra 10 to 15 pounds.

For years, experts have debated what advice to share with older adults. Of course, it depends on how heavy someone is now. For seniors who are considered obese, extra pounds are a greater risk than for those who weigh less. As a result, experts are most concerned about inactivity in older adults who are overweight or mildly obese (a body mass index, or BMI, in the low 30s). As we grow older, our body composition changes. We lose muscle mass, a process that starts in our thirties and accelerates in our sixties and beyond, and we gain fat. This is all true – even when our weight remains constant.

There is some good news, though. Research suggests that the ideal BMI might be higher for seniors than younger adults. Indeed, an optimal BMI for older adults may be in the range of 24 to 29, suggested Carl Lavie, a well-known obesity researcher and author of “The Obesity Paradox,” a book that explores weight issues in older adults.

Here is a summary of many recommendations:

• Maintaining fitness and muscle mass is more important than losing weight.
• Ensuring diet quality is essential – the risk for vitamin deficiencies and other nutritional deficits are higher if you are not consuming enough protein.
• Losing weight is more important for seniors who have fat around their middle (an apple shape), than it is for people who are heavier lower down (a pear shape).

This is all good advice, but it needs to be balanced against that fact that so much is going on in December and much of the activities revolve around meals. So, here is hoping you enjoy this season, get in a little extra exercise, pair that party food with a nutritious diet, and try to look more like a pear than an apple. Happy Holidays!

This month we are updating the post from last year that many enjoyed.

It is likely that you are familiar with the question of whether a glass is half full or half empty.  Your opinion often reflects your state of mind. The last few years have been challenging for everyone and health, political, economic, environmental, and social concerns remain. So, it is easy to justify looking at your glass as half empty.  However, as we approach Thanksgiving let us take a clear-eyed look and see if we can find some gratitude.

As we noted before, learning to live with a more positive outlook helps people have healthier relationships and do better academically, professionally, and personally.  Given the challenges noted above, how do we have a positive outlook?

Most experts agree that it is a matter of perspective. That is one of the advantages of working with seniors.  Our elders are great at seeing the bigger picture because they have lived through so much. They point out that political leaders and movements change and are often cyclical.  They have lived through other periods of market turbulence and world wars.  They note that pandemics have been a part of our collective history and that human beings are incredibly resilient.  They have been concerned about our impact on the planet as well as surprised and delighted with our ingenuity in addressing those challenges.

Research has shown that gratitude can boost both mental and physical health.  That by focusing on an uplifting moment from a recent event, a book, or even just imagining a place that brings you joy, can help you have a much more positive perspective.  It has been found that engaging in volunteer work, helping others, also helps us feel good about ourselves.  That caring and sharing is a way each of us can cultivate gratitude and it does not cost a dime.

In his later years Mark Desvaux said, “Some people see the glass half full, others see the glass half empty, the enlightened are simply grateful to have a glass.”  We think he must have had a great deal of life experience by that point. So, here is hoping you have a very happy Thanksgiving season and wish that, rather than looking at what you want, you can celebrate all you already possess and find a way to care and share with others. Cheers to you. Here is a toast to you and whatever you have in your glass and however full it might be!

It is October and it will soon be time to turn your clocks back—and there may be a way to do that to your biological clock as well.  The results of recent studies challenge a long-held belief that biological aging only goes in one direction.  According to co-senior study author James White of Duke University School of Medicine, biological age was thought to steadily increase over the life course, but it is now clear that biological age is not indelibly linked to chronological age.  “The extent to which biological age undergoes reversible changes throughout life, and the events that trigger such changes, remain unknown,” says co-senior study author Vadim Gladyshev of Harvard Medical School.

To address this knowledge gap, researchers measured changes in biological age of humans and mice in response to various stressful stimuli.  The results revealed that biological age may increase over relatively short time periods in response to stress, but this increase is transient and trends back toward baseline following recovery.  Gladyshev said, “This notion immediately suggests that mortality may be decreased by reducing biological age and that the ability to recover from stress may be an important determinant of successful aging and longevity.”

While their study highlights a previously unappreciated aspect of the nature of biological aging, the researchers acknowledge some important limitations. Although they characterized the parabiosis model at multiple levels, they relied mainly on DNA methylation clocks to infer biological age because these tools are the most powerful aging biomarkers currently available. In addition, the findings are limited in their ability to probe the connections between short-term fluctuations in biological age and lifelong biological aging trajectories.

Further studies will be conducted, and results may be years away.  However, it seems clear that stress reduction (in whatever form works for you) is good for your body and may help you live a long and better life.  So, this October you may want to find ways to identify and reduce stress in your life and turn your biological clock back as well!

POSTED BY: SARA MOSELEY – MARIN IJ – SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

  In 1971, while pursuing a master’s degree in history from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Laura Bock suddenly went blind. At that point, she had completed nearly all the requirements for her degree but software for blind students was nonexistent and Bock’s dream to become a history professor seemed unattainable.

  More than 50 years later, Bock, a resident of The Redwoods senior living community for the past 10 years, became motivated by the stories of women historians who took unconventional paths to obtain advanced degrees.

  Bock contacted the University of Massachusetts in 2022 with a proposal requesting that she be awarded her master’s based on her classwork, five decades of work, classes, presentations, preserving archival collections and keeping her “hand in history.”

  This past March — Women’s History Month — she was notified that her proposal for her master’s degree was approved. At the age of 77, Bock is officially a historian and recently received her diploma.

  “I am convinced that I would not have had the courage to reach back five decades and start a discussion about completing my master’s degree if I had not lived at The Redwoods,” Bock said.

  Bock had the encouragement of a community that helped her enhance her public speaking skills and develop newfound confidence. She is working on her memoir.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the first thing to know about people who shun retirement is that they are probably busier, and cooler, than you.

One such person said that an interview would have to wait because he was traveling to France for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Another said he would be free after hitting a research deadline and organizing his Harvard Business School class’s 65th reunion. A third, who was available on shorter notice, emailed a physical description before meeting: “In the spirit of YOLO, I have blue hair and tattoos.”

Whether for financial reasons, boredom or a host of other reasons, a growing number of older adults are not leaving and/or rejoining the workforce.  Most are deciding that if their days are finite, they are better spent on the job than in retirement.  In fact,millions of seniors have joined the “unretirement” movement.  Since 2021 alone, more than 1.5 million seniors have reentered the workforce.  So, what is going on?

Amy Halter, a licensed professional counselor who has worked with senior citizens for decades, notes many unretirement benefits.  “Studies found working to an older age has a positive impact on mental health. Those impacts include social participation and a sense of purpose.”  Halter added, “You can only clean so much, organize so much, and then it’s, ‘Now what?’”  Working also helps stave off loneliness and boredom.

Several well-known seniors are leading the way.  Harrison Ford, 80, is releasing his latest “Indiana Jones” movie. Jane Goodall, 89, is still protecting chimps. Smokey Robinson, 83, is still touring.  Eighty-year-old Joe Biden is still governing and seeking re-election.

We live in a great area with many retirees, but if you are interested in some “fun money,” a chance to socialize and/or give back, there are plenty of opportunities in Mill Valley.  Virtually every employer is looking, whether that be the business community, schools, shops, social service providers or even the city itself.  Most offer flexible schedules and some nice benefits too!  So, if you are bored this Labor Day, consider getting back into the work force.  It can be fun, rewarding and may even make you cool!

Hearing loss is a common issue, and stereotype, for us as we age.  However, there may be good news on the horizon.  A team of Harvard Medical School scientists say they have come up with a new drug that can successfully regenerate the hair cells of your inner ear.  Those hairs have been compared to miniature microphones, and they are responsible for passing sound signals to the brain.

The results of the study were presented in a recent edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.  According to the article, scientists have been able to regrow hair cells in mice by reprograming genetic pathways. This is the first step in a process they hope will lead to clinical trials of treatments for people with mild to severe hearing loss.

Research team leader, Zheng-Yi Chen said, “These findings are extremely exciting because throughout the history of the hearing loss, the ability to regenerate hair cells in an inner ear has been the holy grail.”  He noted that certain fish, birds, and reptiles can regenerate hair cells, but that people cannot. The study, however, provides hope that researchers may soon find a way to re-grow certain hairs.

The research relied on activating pathways by using newly developed chemicals, specifically, “small interfering RNA” (siRNAs). In this way, they were able to remove genes that suppressed mice’s ability to grow inner ear hair cells. Chen puts it this way, “We found a siRNA that could remove the brake in the genetic pathway” that was stopping hair growth.

While the scientists have only had success with mice, the team plans to try the procedures in larger animals before testing it on humans.  So, unfortunately for those with hearing loss, there is no place you can go to participate in the studies yet – which Chen said is a frequent request. Their goal, however, is to combine a surgical procedure with a gene therapy delivery method that can be brought into local clinics. While that may be years away, it is exciting news and certainly good to hear!

July 4 is right around the corner, a time for celebrating our nation’s independence. The desire to be free to do whatever we want is deeply ingrained in our American history and no state exemplifies this more than California.  When we think of elders, independence is not the first word that comes to mind.  That is changing though, particularly here in Mill Valley.

The advent of personal computers and cell phones made it possible to shop for virtually anything from home and is a boon for all, particularly for seniors.  The 800 pound gorilla is Amazon, but many large stores now offer free or low cost delivery and all the major grocery stores do as well.  So even if you cannot get out, you are free to shop independently.

Let’s say you do want to go out.  Transportation is another area that has seen dramatic changes.  Taxis still exist, but now ride share services, like Uber and Lift, as well as several other specialty providers, including Marin Access and ride services through Vivalon and Mill Valley Village, offer low cost options to get you almost anywhere.

California administers programs through Area Agencies on Aging, Medi-Cal Community Based Adult Services (CBAS) centers and other agencies.  These help elders access food, nutrition and exercise classes, housing options, home care, legal services, volunteer opportunities, transportation and more, all designed to help seniors live independently.  Locally most of these services are available from the Marin County Aging Division.

Two local groups (Mill Valley Village and Marin CIL’s) are also designed to help people remain independent.  If you want more support, independent living apartments (such as those at The Redwoods), provide a soft safety net, programs and services.  Assisted Living options start by offering housing, meals, housekeeping, linen service, along with programs and events.  Both The Redwoods and Marin Terrace offer this housing option in Mill Valley.  For those that need more help, there are PACE Programs that offer medical, dental, eye care, rehabilitation care, home care, nutrition and transportation services on a drop-in basis.

In short, today’s Mill Valley elders have a lot of programs and services to help they stay independent.  We’ll be celebrating the 4th of July at The Redwoods, and here’s hoping you celebrate and maintain your independence every day!

Last month, The Redwoods celebrated with donors, friends, families and residents the re-opening of our revitalized skilled nursing Health Care Center. The Center includes both the Grove Wing, the north Bay’s first and only in-patient hospice center, and the Meadows Wing for skilled nursing and rehabilitation.  

The opening for the Grove was originally planned for late March of 2020.  The pandemic put that off, but it afforded The Redwoods the opportunity to revitalize the Meadows, which included complete renovations of each suite, including their individual bathrooms, all the hallways, dining and program areas, nurses station, rehabilitation services areas as well as gardens, patios and connected walkways.  

At the opening ceremony, we had the pleasure of hearing from the daughter of a former resident, Mary Alice Kirincic, and Marin County Board Chair, Stephanie Moulton-Peters, as well as The Redwoods Chief Executive Officer, Hunter Moore (all pictured above).