Blaze a Trail

In closing out May, we would like to recognize older adults as May is also Older Americans Month (OAM). This year, OAM’s theme is to blaze a trail. Let’s think about how exciting this theme is as older adults are living longer and healthier today.¹

According to the Administration for Community Living, “When Older Americans Month was established in 1963, only 17 million living Americans had reached their 65th birthday.” ² The research now shows that older adults over 85 years old are increasing faster than other age groups.

According to data compiled by the Social Security Administration:³

• A man reaching age 65 today can expect to live, on average, until age 84.3.
• A woman turning age 65 today can expect to live, on average, until age 86.6.

We would like to bring awareness to issues facing adults as they age.  Such as an increased possibility of arthritis, diabetes, osteoporosis, heart disease and hypertension.  According to the American Psychological Association, some age-related physical changes also include hearing impairment, declining vision, and the rate in which information is encoded stored and received can decrease as individuals age.  Older adults may also experience memory loss.⁴

Yet, many older adults are active in their communities, volunteer and remain spiritually and socially connected.  Age related chronic conditions can be proactively managed. It is important for this age group to stay active through exercise to maintain strength, balance and flexibility to prevent falls and remain independent. For information on senior exercise classes go to Live Your Life SENIORCISING.

There are also community resources available to seniors through the Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging, offering a wide range of services to help older adults age well and remain independent.  For more information on resources available to seniors go to Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging.

At Live Your Life^TM, we are here to help you take charge of your age by staying active, healthy, independent and safe in your home.  We offer physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, personal training, acupuncture, massage therapy, health coaching and dietary services.

Live Your Life WELL today!

Dr. Eva Norman
President & Founder
Doctor of Physical Therapy
Live Your Life ^TM

References

¹ Older Americans Month 2016. http://oam.acl.gov/ Accessed May 26, 2016

² May is Older Americans Month. http://www.acl.gov/newsroom/observances/oam/Index.aspx Accessed May 26, 2016

³ Calculators: Life Expectancy. https://www.ssa.gov/planners/lifeexpectancy.html Accessed May 26, 2016

⁴ Older Adult’s Health and Age-Related Changed. http://www.apa.org/pi/aging/resources/guides/older.aspx Accessed May 26, 2016