Increased Bone Fracture Risk from SSRI Antidepressants
"Evidence from longitudinal, cross-sectional, and prospective cohort studies suggests that the use of antidepressants at therapeutic doses is associated with decreased bone mineral density...
For-Profit Medicine Incentivizes Overmedicating Our Elderly
From NBC: According to human rights investigators, anti-psychotic drugs are often administered to nursing home residents to address behavioral issues. Our nation's lack of funding...
Some Nursing Homes Trying To Move Beyond Antipsychotics
-Some nursing homes are changing their approaches since the US federal government began more closely regulating the use of antipsychotic medications in elderly patients with dementia.
Few Seniors Have Advance Directives, Yet Doctors Don’t Like It When They Do
In MinnPost, Susan Perry discusses a JAMA Internal Medicine study that found that, within 48 hours of being hospitalized, almost half of adults aged...
Veterans with both PTSD and Dementia More Likely to be Prescribed Antipsychotics
Researchers found that veterans with both conditions had higher odds of being prescribed second-generation antipsychotics than those presenting with just PTSD.
Ritalin Used to be âGrandmaâs Little Helperâ
Eugene Raikhel reveals ads from 1966 where Ritalin, now prescribed largely for ADHD, was marketed as a âkind of mind antidepressant for housewives.â Â âI...
Alberta Long-term Care Homes Reduce Antipsychotic Use by 50%
The provincial government health service of Alberta, Canada recently concluded a successful pilot project that reduced the use of antipsychotic medications for patients with...
Minimal Exercise Protects Against Depressive Symptoms in Older Adults
Study of older adults shows those who consistently exercised as little as 15 minutes, 3 times/week are less likely to develop depressive symptoms.
Music Therapy Interventions Reduce Depression Symptoms in Dementia
Therapists can use music to meet the emotional and social needs of individuals with dementia.
Radical Disabled Americans Bringing Direct Action to Your Town
From Pacific Standard: ADAPT, a national direct action disability rights group, recently staged a protest to fight provisions in the GOP's health care plan that will...
Feminist Retirement Home in Paris Celebrates Aging
From Girl Talk HQ: A new feminist retirement home in Paris has been built to celebrate aging and counter the societal narrative that growing old is...
How Many Pills are too Many?
From The New York Times: Overprescription is becoming an increasingly prevalent public health issue, especially for older adults with multiple chronic conditions.
"Though studies have found...
Cognitive Enhancement With Yoga
From Psychiatric Times: A recent study suggests that Kundalini yoga may be at least as effective as memory training in improving cognitive resilience in older adults with...
People Age Better if They Have a Purpose in Life
From TIME: Living purposefully may help people maintain their physical function and independence as they age. According to a new study, older adults with a...
The Never-Ending Misuse of Antipsychotics in Nursing Homes
From Health Affairs: Although the problem of antipsychotic misuse in nursing homes has been raised to policymakers numerous times over the past six decades, the...
Benzodiazepine Use of 50% of Elderly Patients is Not Monitored
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) publication Psychiatric News has released an article about the recent British Medical Journal study finding strong links between long-term...
The Other Big Drug Problem: Older People Taking Too Many Pills
From The Washington Post: In addition to the opioid crisis, America has one other prescription drug epidemic â older Americans are taking far too many unnecessary...
People With Dementia Press for More Rights
From STAT: People with dementia are coming together to fight for the right to make their own decisions, to have a voice in public policy, and to...
Weaning the Elderly off Sleeping Pills
In a follow-up to an earlier commentary on the topic, Paula Span discusses the widespread use and negative effects of sleeping pills among the...
Is “Low Testosterone” Actually a “Disease”?
-Various experts weigh in on whether the boom in diagnosing psychological and physical problems as being caused by "low testosterone" is "disease-mongering."
Sunday FM: Music Therapy Comes to Life in Documentary
A new documentary coming to theatres around the US over the next few months explores Dan Cohen's Music and Memory program and its emotional...
A Quiet Drug Problem Among the Elderly
From The New York Times: Use of benzodiazepines has risen among seniors despite their increased vulnerability to the drugs' adverse effects.
"'Set aside the opioid issue,'...
The Drug Being Pushed on Nursing Home Residents
From Next Avenue: The drug Nuedexta has only been approved for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). However, the maker of...
Benzodiazepines Linked to Increased Risk of Alzheimer’s: Causation or Not?
According to a study in the British Medical Journal, benzodiazepine use is associated with a significantly increased risk of developing Alzheimerâs disease. Some experts...
AHCA Puts Disabled People One Step Closer to Institutions
From Talk Poverty: Last week, the House passed the American Health Care Act, which would cut funding from in-home care programs and community support for seniors...
