Fifty Plus Advocate

By Micha Shalev Dementia is a mental state used to denote severe cognitive impairment which impacts daily activities and life. Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most common forms of dementia and  vascular dementia is the other. Contrary to common belief, the mental decline seen in Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias is beyond memory failure but encompasses a range of...

By Marianne Delorey The younger generation has a distinct advantage over the rest of us – they are growing up in a world in which all they have to do is go online to learn any new skill. YouTube and Google are game changers. Never again will someone have to ask a family member how to get stains out of...

By Dr. Keith Darrow, PhD, Hearing & Balance Centers of New England Humans have always longed for the fountain of youth. We always try to live another day. But how is it that some of us do it better, i.e. live longer than others? This question has puzzled scientists forever. There have been numerous longitudinal “aging studies” that have given...

By Mike Festa, State Director, AARP Massachusetts As we enter a new legislative session, AARP Massachusetts is hard at work fighting for our 800,000 members in the Bay State. This session, AARP has submitted new bills to the Legislature to help workers to save for retirement and to support family caregivers through a tax credit. House Docket #1405/Senate Docket #786 -...

By Bonnie Adams, Managing Editor As owner of the Moody Street Circus in Waltham with his wife Melinda Pavlata, Alexandre “Sacha” Pavlata is continuing a long tradition of teaching circus arts to a new generation. As a fifth-generation Czech circus artist, aerialist and world-renowned circus arts teacher, he certainly has the credentials to do so. But there is something else that...

By Mike Festa, State Director, AARP Massachusetts    The New Year is a great time to think about improving your driving skills! For more than 30 years, AARP has helped to keep millions of drivers safe, educated and confident while on the road with the AARP Smart Driver course, the nation’s largest classroom and online driver safety course. Based on the...

By Marianne Delorey Perhaps it is the nature of elder housing. Perhaps people who have no one else seek community in their later years. In any case, I have met my share of people who do not have family or friends to speak of.  Some have always been loners. Some have distanced themselves from family, or had family walk away...

By Micha Shalev   Delusional, paranoid and hallucinatory behaviors may be a response to internal or external factors. They most often occur as a result of brain changes in the person with Alzheimer's disease. They may cause the patient great distress or may be little more than mildly stimulating and even comforting. Some examples of when these behaviors may cause a problem: ...

By Alain Valles, CRMP, CSA, MS, MBA Nonprofit Charitable Managing Director Stock market uncertainty and rising interest rates Ouch!  Stock market gains can be wiped out in a day, the Federal Reserve continues to increase interest rates, the US-China trade war is impacting companies, and even Apple has warned of a downturn.  And then there’s the government.  Hopefully it’s reopened by the...

  By Ed Karvoski Jr., Culture Editor Marlborough – Five decades of competitive successes has led Det Klein of Marlborough to become an inductee into the International Candlepin Bowling Association Hall of Fame. The achievement was recognized this past October during an awards banquet at DiBurro's Function Facility in Haverhill. His interest in bowling started as a child growing up in Maynard....