Every May, the Administration on Aging, part of the Administration for Community Living, leads our nation’s observance of Older American’s Month. The 2018 theme, Engage at Every Age, emphasizes that you are never too old (or young) to take part in activities that can enrich your physical, mental, and emotional well-being. It also celebrates the many ways in which older adults make a difference in our communities.

Participating in activities that promote mental and physical wellness, offering your wisdom and experience to the next generation, seeking the mentorship of someone with more life experience than you—those are just a few examples of what being engaged can mean. No matter where you are in your life, there is no better time than now to start. We hope you will join in and Engage at Every Age!

Help celebrate by taking an older American (like Breeze Publisher Brown) to lunch!

The Ventura County Elderly Fall Prevention Coalition will be hosting a bilingual Fall Prevention Forum that will focus on life-saving strategies and offer a variety of other services, including health assessments, pneumonia and flu vaccinations. The event will be held at Oxnard Family Circle on Saturday, April 28th, from 8 a.m.- 2 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.

With the tagline, “Stronger Together,” the bilingual forum will provide a variety of methods and informational sessions in both English and Spanish that are designed to arm adults and caregivers with the tools necessary to prevent falls and increase mobility. Nationally recognized research shows that one in four adults over the age of 65, and half of the population over the age of 75, fall each year. Of those individuals, half will die within a year from complications and injuries sustained from the fall.

The forum will feature health assessments, free pneumonia and flu vaccinations, as well as glucose, blood pressure, and vision screenings. Individuals will also have the opportunity to take part in exercise demonstrations for Zumba, Tai Chi: Moving for Better Balance, Stepping On, and A Matter of Balance. Lunch and refreshments will be provided to those in attendance.

Speakers will include Vladimir Serrano, MD, Family Physician with Magnolia West Clinic, and Dr. Thomas Duncan DO, Trauma Medical Director, Ventura County Medical Center and Santa Paula Hospital.

Oxnard Family Circle is located at 2100 Outlet Center Drive in Oxnard. To register for the event, or for more information, please contact the Ventura County Area Agency on Aging’s Fall Prevention Program at 477-7343.

Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Association supports the total well-being of our community. As part of their services, they host free monthly education classes throughout the county, which include the following in Ventura:

Diabetes Class-Tuesday, May 1st from 1-2:30pm. These meetings are held on the 1st Tuesday of each month. General information is provided about Type 2 Diabetes including prediabetes, with emphasis on meal planning, medication, exercise, blood sugar monitoring, and new developments in diabetes.

642-0239 for more information.

Joint Replacement Classes-Monday, May 14th for both English and Spanish speaking. English 4:00-5:00 pm and Spanish 5:30-6:30 pm. You will learn what to expect before, during and after knee or hip replacement surgery and how to be an active participant in your care.

For information or to RSVP call Dinah Davis at 642-0239 ext. 739.

Ventura Adult Bereavement Support Group: Wednesdays, May 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30 from 6:30-8:00 pm. These groups are open to individuals who have experienced loss and are free of charge. Call 642-0239 for more information or email [email protected].

Newly Bereaved Support Group in Ventura: Thursday, May 10th from 6-7:30 pm. This monthly group is designed for adults who have recently experienced the loss of a loved one and is free. Call 642-0239 for more information or email [email protected]. These groups meet every 2nd Thursday of each month.

All at Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Association, 1996 Eastman Ave, Suite 109.

by The My Medicare Matters Team

Beginning in April the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will be sending new Medicare cards to beneficiaries. The new cards are being sent to decrease Medicare beneficiaries’ vulnerability to identity theft by removing the Social Security-based number from their Medicare identification cards and replacing it with a new unique Medicare Number.

Here’s what you need to know before they arrive.

Medicare cards will be sent between April 2018 and April 2019. Make sure your address is up to date because Medicare will be sending it to the location associated with your Social Security account. To update your address information contact Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 or go online.

Start using your new Medicare card once you receive it. Destroy the old one immediately, since it contains your Social Security number. If you happen to lose or misplace your card you can get a replacement, but you can also can access your new Medicare number on a Medicare Summary Notice or through Medicare.

Keep your Medicare Advantage, Part D prescription, and/or Medigap. Continue using your health or drug plan’s card when you get health care or fill a prescription, but know you will also get the new Original Medicare card.

These are just a few quick tips to keep in mind as new Medicare cards are issued. You can find additional information on the release of Medicare’s new card on Medicare.gov.

The Ventura County Library Adult Literacy READ tutoring site at the Hill Road Library is now open and accepting new students!

The READ program provides free help with reading and writing for English speaking adults. Tutors are available for free one-to-one tutoring, and new students are always welcome.

The READ program is also looking for adult volunteers who would like to help other adults improve their reading and writing skills. No teaching experience is required and the training is free. At the conclusion of training, tutors will meet one-to-one with an English speaking adult learner for a few hours each week.

This Hill Road Library READ tutoring site had been relocated from its former location at Buena High School. The Hill Road Library is located at 1070 S. Hill Rd. For additional information, contact Nancy Schram, Ventura County Library Director at 256-8535, or Carol Chapman, READ Program Manager, 677-7160.

by Essie L. Landry Social Security Public Affairs Specialist in West Los Angeles

Keeping your address up to date with a my Social Security account helps us mail your important documents to the correct place. If you receive benefits, you can use my Social Security to update your address. If you’ve moved recently, updating your information sooner rather than later will help us deliver important documents to you, including:

Your Social Security Benefit Statement (SSA-1099);

Important notices; and

Your Medicare card when you first enroll or if you need a replacement.

Even if you get your benefits by direct deposit, Social Security must have your correct address so we can send letters and other important information to you.

Another important reason to make sure your address is up to date is because new Medicare cards are coming. Medicare is mailing new cards starting April 2018. Your new card will have a new Medicare Number that’s unique to you, instead of your Social Security number. This will help protect your identity.  For more information about the new Medicare card, visit go.medicare.gov/newcard.

If you don’t have a my Social Security account already, you can open one at www.socialsecurity.gov/myaccount. This is the easiest way for you to keep your information up to date. Within minutes you’ll have access to your personal information as well as control over important documents like your Benefit Statement (SSA-1099), which can be replaced if you lose it.

While you’re there, you can also check to see if your earnings record is correct. Social Security keeps a record of how much you’ve made so that you get the benefits you deserve. We can only pay you your correct benefit if your records are correct.

Putting you in control of your future is a key part of securing today and tomorrow, and having your correct mailing address helps us get important documents and payments to you. With my Social Security, we help you receive the information you need, when you need it. Open or access your safe and secure account today at www.socialsecurity.gov/myaccount.

To understand the link between aging and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, scientists from the National Institutes of Health compared the genetic clocks that tick during the lives of normal and mutant flies. They found that altering the activity of a gene called Cdk5 appeared to make the clocks run faster than normal, and the flies older than their chronological age. This caused the flies to have problems walking or flying later in life, to show signs of neurodegeneration, and to die earlier.

“We tried to untangle the large role aging appears to play in some of the most devastating neurological disorders,” said Edward Giniger, Ph.D., senior investigator at the NIH’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and the senior author of the study published in Disease Models & Mechanisms. “Our results suggest that neurodegenerative disorders may accelerate the aging process.”

On average, the normal flies in this study lived for 47 days. To create a genetic clock, Dr. Giniger’s team measured the levels of every gene encoded in messenger RNA molecules from cells from the heads and bodies of flies at 3, 10, 30, and 45 days after birth. This allowed the researchers to use advanced analysis techniques to search for the genes that seemed to be sensitive to aging, and create a standard curve, or timeline, that described the way they changed.

When they performed the same experiments on 10-day-old mutant flies and compared the results with the standard curve, they found that the flies were “older” than their chronological age. Altering Cdk5 activity made the brains of the flies appear genetically to be about 15 days old and their bodies to be about 20 days old.

Preclinical studies suggest that Cdk5 is a gene that is important for the normal wiring of the brain during early development and may be involved in some neurodegenerative disorders, including ALS, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. In this study, Dr. Giniger’s team found that eliminating or increasing Cdk5 activity beyond normal levels shortened the lives of the flies to about 30 days. After 10 days of age, the manipulations reduced the distance flies could climb up tubes and the alterations caused older flies to have signs of neurodegeneration, including higher than normal levels of brain cell death and degradation.

More analysis showed that altering Cdk5 activity changed the level of several groups of genes that were also affected by aging, including those that control immunity, energy, and antioxidant activity.

His team plans to continue investigating the role of aging in the process of neurodegeneration.

Don’t derail your exercise progress with a preventable injury! Here are some things you can do to make sure you are exercising safely:

Start slowly, especially if you haven’t been active for a long time. Little by little, build up your activities and how hard you work at them.

Don’t hold your breath during strength exercises. That could cause changes in your blood pressure.

Use safety equipment. For example, wear a helmet for bike riding or the right shoes for walking or jogging. Maybe even consider a heavy punching bag, can’t go wrong with the BOB XL dummy. Some people decided to use roman chairs as well which they learn about from somewhere similar to here.

Unless your doctor has asked you to limit fluids, be sure to drink plenty of fluids when you are doing activities. Many older adults don’t feel thirsty even if their body needs fluids.

Always bend forward from the hips, not the waist. If you keep your back straight, you’re probably bending the right way. If your back “humps,” that’s probably not proper form.

Warm up your muscles before you stretch. Try walking and light arm pumping first.

Visit Go4Life to learn more about exercising safely.

Measuring Your Fitness Progress

If you’ve been exercising regularly, you’ll soon be able to tell when it’s time to move ahead in your activities.

These simple monthly tests are good ways to see if you are continuing to progress and need to update your goals. Each month, you will likely see an improvement.

Endurance. Pick a fixed course and see how long it takes to walk that distance. As your endurance improves, it should take less time.

Upper-body Strength. Count the number of arm curls you can do safely in 2 minutes.

Lower-body Strength. Count the number of chair stands you can do safely in 2 minutes.

Balance. Time yourself as you stand on one foot, without support, for as long as possible. Stand near something sturdy to hold on to, in case you lose your balance. Repeat on the other foot.

Flexibility. For this test, sit toward the front of a sturdy chair, and stretch one leg straight out in front of you with your heel on the floor and your toes pointing up. Bend the other leg and place your foot flat on the floor. Slowly bend from your hips and reach as far as you can toward the toes of your outstretched foot. How far can you reach before you feel a stretch?

If you have a choice of where to get your groceries, pick a store that is clean and well supplied. If it is also busy, the stock is probably more likely to turn over quickly and items won’t be near their sell-by or use-by date. But don’t depend on that—always check the dates.

Many people say a successful trip to the grocery store starts with a shopping list. Throughout the week, try to keep a list of food and supplies you need. Keeping to a list helps you follow a budget because you will be less likely to buy on impulse. A prepared grocery list will help you choose healthy types of foods.

When making your shopping list, check your staples. Staples are nice to have around if you can’t go grocery shopping. These include items like the following:

• Cereal
• Flour
• Sugar
• Cans of low-sodium soup, fruit, and tuna fish
• Bags of frozen vegetables or fruit

A trip to the grocery store can be a chore for anyone, but as you get older, you might have some new reasons for not going. For example, getting around a big food store might be difficult. What can you do?

• Some stores have motorized carts, which you can use.
• Ask if there is an employee who can help you reach things or push your cart.
• If your store has a pharmacy department, you might find a seat there if you get tired.
• Plan to shop at a time of day when you are rested.
• Check with your local Area Agency on Aging to see if there are volunteers in your area who can help.

Shopping for healthy foods, especially fresh fruits and vegetables, might be hard where you live. People who live in rural areas or some city neighborhoods often have trouble finding larger supermarkets. Instead, they have to shop at convenience stores and small neighborhood markets. Sometimes smaller stores have limited selections of fresh foods.

You might also be able to get some help from the federal government to pay for vegetables and fruits from farmers’ markets through the Seniors Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program. They provide coupons you can use at farmers’ markets and roadside stands.

For More Information on Shopping for Healthy Foods

• Local Harvest www.localharvest.org
• Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics 1-800-877-1600 www.eatright.org
• National Association of Area Agencies on Aging 1-202-872-0888 [email protected] www.n4a.org
• National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs 1-202-682-6899 www.nanasp.org
• Eldercare Locator 1-800-677-1116 www.eldercare.gov

In recognition of mothers being the primary caregivers in our lives and the community, Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Association will honor Carolyn Daily Menne and remember Helen Kimball Pidduck at a Mother’s Day Luncheon, Friday, April 27 at the Las Posas Country Club in Camarillo.

Proceeds from the event support Livingston’s home healthcare programs and services throughout Ventura County. Livingston is the County’s only non-profit provider of comprehensive home health, hospice, and respite care.

For ticket and sponsorship information, please contact Stephanie Montenegro at 642-0239 x793, [email protected], or visit www.lmvna.org.

Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Association provides healthcare in the home for the sick, handicapped, elderly and homebound. Livingston is a community-supported non-profit agency, which provides professional, licensed home health and hospice care. Livingston is sensitive to the financial circumstances of its patients and provides needed services, including those at reduced or no charge to indigent patients.