A new study conducted by researchers at the Henry Ford Hospital looked at diabetic patients to determine a possible connection between the disease and hearing loss. They divided the diabetic patients of the research study into two groups – those with well controlled diabetes and those with poorly managed diabetes. The patients in the study were also separated according to age.

The group of seniors that had their diabetes well controlled, particularly the females, was found to have less incidence of hearing loss. Poorly controlled diabetes seemed to be more influential on the hearing loss of older women involved in the study.

A three judge court of appeals panel has found that the individual mandate for Americans to buy their own insurance, a part of the Affordable Health Care Act, is unconstitutional. The American Cancer Society, The American Diabetes Association and The American Heart Association have appealed the decision and have filed a brief with the Supreme Court.

The Court believes that the rest of the Act can remain in force but the National Patient Care Associations feels the repeal of the individual mandate hurts the patient needing care for chronic conditions.

Researchers from St. Georges University of London studied over 100,000 patients with no history of heart disease and found that aspirin prevented non-fatal heart attacks by a significant margin. Despite this fact regular doses of aspirin did not seem to prevent other cardiovascular events including fatal heart attacks.

Dr. Rao Sashashi stated that the positive effects of aspirin for those who have suffered cardiovascular events is “indisputable’ but for those with no heart disease history it may be unwarranted. The group studied had a 10% less incidence of cardiovascular problems but 30% of those studied developed serious internal bleeding. The risks are seen as outweighing the benefits in these cases.

As a secondary investigation the study found no evidence that aspirin intake prevented the development of all cancers as some studies have stated was possible. Anyone providing at home care for a senior should check with their physician regarding daily aspirin use. There have been studies that show some seniors over medicate themselves with these medications.

Meeting with a professional at Special Care Services to discuss medication management and daily activities can provide great relief for someone giving at home assistance to a family member. One of our professional senior care service providers can examine all medications taken by the senior in your care to reduce the chances of dangerous interactions and improve quality of life.

The research group Prevent Blindness in America has joined with other eye health organizations to promote education about Glaucoma. Age related Macular Degeneration may cause more blindness but Glaucoma is the number one preventable cause of the affliction. Half the people who have the disease do not know it because it doesn’t strike central vision until it’s too late.

Glaucoma is really the name for a number of diseases that attack the optic nerve. It can be found by taking a dilated eye test.  The National Eye Institute

A study reported in the British Medical Journal shows cognitive decline in groups beginning at the age of 45. The cognitive decline for those over sixty-five was more pronounced but the 45 to 49 age group, the youngest tested,  showed a 3.6 %  drop in reasoning scores over a ten year period. Researchers feel the findings are important because therapies for cognitive problems tend to be more effective when started as early as possible.

Improving cognitive function is a good goal for any age. The National Institute of Health has been encouraging seniors to get more exercise to increase blood flow to the brain to combat the onset of cognitive problems.  Many doctors already advise a stricter diet more exercise for patients

The Department of Health and Human Services has cited Trustmark Life Insurance for taking too large an increase in Health insurance premiums for five different states. The Health Care Act has a segment that says any unreasonable increases must be justified. Most other cases so far have been about rate increases of 10% or more, this particular one is an average of 13%.

The cost of medical care has been increasing slightly over the last two to three years.  Many companies have been instituting rate increases as a way to combat

An article from the Health Day News has reported on a study in Europe showing that the development of late stage “wet” age related macular degeneration may be linked to the daily use of aspirin. Since aspirin has long been used to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in seniors these developments are being looked at very closely.

Over 4,700 people were studied for three years and about one third that have wet AMD took aspirin on a daily basis.  The pill may also be responsible for another cause of blindness in seniors, “dry” AMD, but fewer people were found to have this type of the disease.

The scientists quoted in the article were clear that in most cases no one should be ending aspirin

The health care reform that was undertaken in 2010 has many interesting segments that are starting to become a reality. One of the more interesting to those who have insurance is the initiative for Medical Loss Ratio or MLR. There is a formula that health insurance carriers must abide by concerning premiums collected and services rendered.

The companies are required to spend at least 80% of premiums collected on actual health care for individual policy holders and 85% on members

The United States Preventative Services Task Force has concluded that the Prostate-Specific Antigen test may not increase survival rate more than routine medical check-ups or testing when symptoms occur. A study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute shows the testing did not save additional lives and that it may have led to more aggressive therapies that left men impotent or incontinent.

The presence of cancer was identified in 12% more of the men who were given the PSA test compared to those who were not tested. The analysis of the data concentrated on this group’s survival rate versus that of those not screened and it was virtually the same. The study did indicate that men younger than fifty who have a family history of the cancer were warned by the test

A recent article in the Huffington Post has looked at the last few years of research on the possible health benefits of drinking coffee. The drink has been avoided by many health conscious seniors due to a high caffeine content but it appears as though it may have some benefits when consumed in moderation.

Despite concerns about the consumption of caffeine recent research has suggested that many health risks are reduced with regular coffee consumption.  One study found coffee causes a release of mood altering hormones in the brain and may prevent depression.  Another benefit seniors may enjoy from coffee