Demographics

The statistics are grim: Currently, over 6 million Americans have Alzheimer’s or mild cognitive impairment, and those numbers are expected to double in the coming years unless an effective treatment is found. Few of us escape the devastation that Alzheimer’s can cause, as almost all of us know someone stricken…

They say that money can’t buy you love- but what about a longer life? Those with significant financial resources may be able to obtain the health care and supports needed to increase life expectancy, and thus create the latest arena of inequality. According to Bloomberg, longevity inequality is the successor to…

We’ve all experienced the sensations: not feeling as energetic as usual, forgetting some common thoughts, feeling more susceptible to aches and pains. And we ask ourselves: Is this normal aging? Or is something wrong? Well, in a recent piece in Kaiser Health News, writer Bruce Horovitz lays out some general…

Around the world, burgeoning older populations are testing the limits of formal and informal caregiving systems in place. In the US, for example, few realize the connection between our national debate over immigration and our potentially shrinking pool of paid caregivers for our growing senior population. In Japan, given the…

What are the limits of the natural human life span? No one knows for sure, but the oldest person on record died when she was 122. And now, researchers in Israel think we have the science available to push past that number. Publishing their findings in The Journals of Gerontology, scientists…

The United States is not the only country dealing with a burgeoning senior population. In fact, the world as a whole is aging, with different continents facing the same phenomena- take a look at the demographic juggernaut the global community faces Here. And in the US, we can’t be too…