Fall is a season of transitions and new beginnings for people of all ages and faiths. One holiday that commemorates this change is Rosh Hashanah, a holy day for people of the Jewish faith. Its literal meaning is “head of the year” or “first of the year.”

This Jewish New Year marks the beginning of the Days of Awe, a 10-day period of introspection and repentance. It ends on Yom Kippur, also known as the Day of Atonement.

Rosh Hashanah celebrates the creation of the world. Together with Yom Kippur, it is one of the two High Holy Days in the Jewish religion. According to tradition, God judges all creatures during the 10 Days of Awe. During this period, he decides whether they will live or die in the coming year.

Jewish teachings say that on Rosh Hashanah, God pens the names of the righteous in the book of life, while sentencing the wicked to death. Those who fall between the categories of life and death have until Yom Kippur to repent. It’s why observant Jews consider the days surrounding Rosh Hashanah to be a time to reflect on past mistakes, make amends and perform good deeds, and pray.

Every year the holiday begins on the first day of the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar, which occurs during September or October. In 2021, Rosh Hashanah starts on the evening of Monday, September 6, and ends on the evening of September 8.

If you will be spending time together with a senior loved one during the 10 Days of Awe, you may notice changes in them or their house that you haven’t before. It can lead families to wonder if an elder is safe living alone. These tips may be helpful if you find yourself in this situation.

Signs a Senior Loved One Needs Assistance

A few red flags that can indicate an older adult might need a helping hand or benefit from senior tech products include:

Their home is showing signs of neglect, such as a lack of cleanliness, overflowing trash, and untended laundry.

Simple household maintenance tasks, like lawn care and changing burned out light bulbs, aren’t being completed.

Stacks of unopened mail are piled on the counter or left in the mailbox.

There are changes in their personal appearance, such as dirty clothing, messy hair, body odor, and unintended weight gain or loss.

They are having difficulty following a medication schedule or forgetting to refill prescriptions.

If your family elder is struggling with any of these issues, it might be time to explore home care agencies or invest in an emergency mobile alert unit. Both can help an older adult stay safe in their own house longer.

Fall is the start of Rosh Hashanah. If you aren’t familiar with this Jewish holy day, this information will be of interest.

We’ve all heard how important exercise is for wellness. In fact, one question a physician asks during an annual physical is how much exercise you are getting. If you are trying to make physical activity a priority as we head into spring, consider taking a daily walk.

It’s a form of exercise you can do on your own, with a friend or neighbor, or even with a furry, four-legged pal. From stronger core strength to improved mental health, here are a few ways walking helps seniors.

Falling is a common concern for seniors. Not only are older adults at increased risk for falls, but they are also more likely to experience a serious injury if they fall.

Walking is proven to help prevent falls among seniors because it improves balance, core strength, and coordination. It also increases flexibility in joints and strengthens overall muscle and bone mass. If the senior does fall, the benefits derived from walking often decrease the severity of injuries.

As we age, many of us develop high blood pressure. While some of it can be linked to genetics, lifestyle can also play a role. A poor diet or sedentary lifestyle can contribute to a rise in blood pressure.

Routine walking has been shown to be as effective as some medications in regulating blood pressure. It helps strengthen the heart, which typically makes it more efficient at pumping blood. That aids in managing blood pressure.

Another health battle older adults often struggle with is maintaining healthy cholesterol levels. Uncontrolled bad cholesterol can cause plaque to build up in the arteries, leading to a heart attack. By increasing the amount of good cholesterol in the blood while simultaneously reducing the amount of bad cholesterol, seniors can avoid or delay health problems. Walking is a great way to naturally control cholesterol. “Understanding Cholesterol Screening Results” will help you learn more about cholesterol and screenings.

Seniors are more likely to experience spikes in blood sugar, especially after eating. Taking a walk after eating has been shown to reduce those spikes, allowing the body to use the blood sugar efficiently.

Exercise releases hormones called endorphins. These hormones reduce your perception of pain while heightening positive feelings. This means that engaging in fitness activities like walking could improve your mood, reduce feelings of depression, lessen anxiety, and lower stress.

Where you walk can further lift the spirit. A botanical garden or park where you are surrounded by nature’s beauty can give you even more of a boost.

It’s an unfortunate reality that as our age increases, our metabolism decreases. This makes seniors more susceptible to weight gain. Walking, combined with a healthy diet, can help seniors maintain their weight by burning more calories than they consume.

As is true of all forms of exercise, talk with your primary care physician about walking if you haven’t been active lately. The general guideline for seniors is to exercise 150 minutes a week. While that number may seem overwhelming, breaking it into sessions helps.

Many people just starting out begin with two 15-minute walks five days a week. As you become stronger and stamina improves, you might want to walk once a day for a longer period. The most important thing is to set a goal and stick with it.

Aging well requires staying on top of the latest research and trends on healthy eating, exercise, preventative medical screenings, and more. One way to do that is by bookmarking the Life Protect blog and stopping back each week. We update this blog regularly to make it easier for seniors and their loved ones to stay informed.

Walking offers a variety of health benefits for both physical and mental well-being. Learn why it’s a form of fitness worth trying, especially for seniors.

Family caregivers are known for making their own health and wellness a lower priority when they are busy caring for a spouse or aging parent. Since caregivers are often middle-aged females, the health consequences of skipping yearly physicals or putting off essential health screenings can be significant. Small issues that may have been treatable with early intervention might become bigger problems before they are detected.

Routine visits to your primary care physician keep you on schedule with vital mid-life preventative screenings. They also allow you and the doctor to build a relationship. Having a comfort level with your health care professional makes it easier if medical problems—such as diabetes, depression, cancer, or heart disease—arise.

If you are a woman caring for a loved one and you haven’t seen a doctor in a while, the best first step is to schedule a physical. This will give the physician a chance to conduct a routine exam to check blood pressure, screen for depression (quite common among caregivers), evaluate cognitive health, talk about body mass index, and check reflexes.

They will likely order blood work to identify any vitamin deficiencies, check cholesterol and thyroid health, and screen for diabetes. Based on your personal health and family medical history, there may be other follow-up testing.

During your physical exam, the doctor will also recommend other screenings and health care appointments:

Yearly well-woman visit: Time passes quickly when you are caring for a loved one. If it’s been a while since you’ve seen the gynecologist, it’s important to get back on track. They’ll perform an exam to detect any abnormalities and screen for HPV and cervical cancer. The gynecologist might also order your yearly mammogram and a bone density screening if your primary care doctor doesn’t.

Colon cancer screening: Depending on your personal and family history, you might also be due for a colon cancer screening. Newer colon cancer screening guidelines say people should begin these at 45 years of age instead of the previous recommendation of 50. While a colonoscopy is considered the best option, there are other types of screenings, such as Cologuard and the fecal immunochemical test (FIT). Read “Colorectal Cancer Awareness Tips” for more information on colon cancer awareness.

Self-Care Can Include Preventative Vaccines

Many people associate vaccines with younger children, but older adults need them, too. They offer a strong defense against some serious health conditions. If you are a caregiver, they are vital for more than just your own well-being. Should you become infected, you can unknowingly pass an illness on to your loved one, who might already have a weakened immune system.

In addition to talking with your primary care doctor about COVID-19 vaccines and others that are best for your personal health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests adults over the age of 50 speak with their physician about these four vaccines:

Influenza vaccine: Also known as a flu shot, this yearly vaccine helps lower the odds of catching the virus. In a typical flu season, older adults account for as much as 80% of flu-related deaths. So, caregivers should consider this vaccine as a method of protecting themselves and the senior they are caring for.

Tdap vaccine: This guards against three different deadly illnesses: tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis. Once you have it, your doctor may recommend a booster every 10 years.

Shingles vaccine: The newer shingles vaccine, called Shingrix, is highly effective at preventing both shingles and a painful complication of shingles known as postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). This two-shot vaccine is important to receive as one in three adults will develop shingles in their lifetime.

Pneumococcal vaccine: Finally, ask your primary care physician about the pneumococcal vaccine. This vaccine helps protect you from pneumonia and other infections in the lungs and bloodstream. It is generally recommended for adults 65 and older, as well as for caregivers and younger people with compromised immune systems.

Emergency Call Alert System Gives Peace of Mind

An important part of healthy self-care is managing stress. That can be tough when you are a caregiver. You worry about everything from your loved one’s nutrition to in-home hazards that might cause them to fall.

One way to get peace of mind is investing in a mobile monitoring unit for the senior you are a caregiver for. If they experience an emergency when you aren’t by their side, they can summon help with the push of a button. Call 1-844-203-5617 to learn more today!

Women who are caregiving for a loved one often set their own health care needs aside. This self-care guide will help you get back on track.

Mother’s Day is celebrated every year on the second Sunday in May. It’s a day we pause to celebrate the mothers and grandmothers in our lives. If you are trying to come up with a unique idea to honor your family elders this Mother’s Day, consider hosting an intergenerational tea. It can provide you with an opportunity to gather several generations together for a few hours of fun.

Here are some suggestions for organizing a Mother’s Day tea for your loved ones.

Planning an Intergenerational Mother’s Day Tea

Think about your guest list: Before you can choose a location, think about who you want to invite. Will you limit it to family members or ask close friends to join the celebration, too? Once you have an idea about how many people will likely attend, you can begin the real planning.

Explore possible locations: Having a tea party can be as simple or as elaborate as you’d like. If you have the space to accommodate the event, hosting it in your own backyard could be fun. Or you can investigate tea houses in your area and book time for your party at one of them. Cafes or coffee houses that have a private room are another possibility.

Choose a party theme: Tea parties are often organized around a theme of some kind. Depending on the ages of your guests, you could go with a Disney theme. Other ideas are Downton Abbey, Somewhere in Time, or a Victorian tea party. In 2022, Mother’s Day is the same weekend as the Kentucky Derby. That’s another fun theme to use.

Plan a tasty menu: If you select a theme, the menu will likely be much easier to plan. But if you opt for a traditional tea party, you might want to serve a combination of savories and sweets. Miniature toasts, cucumber sandwiches, and tiny chicken salad puff pastries are tea party staples. As are treats like petit fours, coconut cherry macaroons, and small lemon poppyseed cakes.

Select a few teas: Don’t forget to devote a little time to taste-testing for the star of the party—the tea. You’ll have many options to choose from. You’ll likely want your menu to include two to four different types of tea. Sites like Destination Tea and Whole Foods Market have online guides to help you choose a few teas that match your food menu and learn more about serving them.

Order party favors: If you’d like to send each family member home with a memento of this occasion, personal is probably best. It could be a small pot of fancy jam with a custom label. Or maybe you ask loved ones to email you photos ahead of time and use them to create a family ornament or calendar.

Finally, don’t forget to inform guests about your theme ahead of time so they know how to dress. Otherwise, fancy hats and twirly dresses for women and bow ties and jackets for men are traditional tea party attire.

If your aging parent or family elder lives alone, it’s natural to worry about their safety. Being able to quickly call for help if they fall or have a medical emergency is vital. That’s why a mobile medical unit is a solution to consider. In the event of a crisis, the user can press a button and quickly be connected with an emergency operator 24/7. Call 1-844-203-5617 to talk with an expert today!

Trying to find a new way to celebrate the women in your family on Mother’s Day? Consider hosting a tea party. Here are a few tips to help you plan.

Hosting a Mother’s Day Tea to Honor Family Elders

From more frequent, severe storms to rising sea levels, climate change is upon us. While experts say it’s too late to reverse the damage, there are steps we can all take to mitigate the situation. Earth Day, celebrated every year on April 22, is a great time to learn more about climate change and what you can do about it.

Earth Day dates back to 1970, when people first began voicing concerns about the climate. Back then, the primary concern was smog over urban areas. Now, over 50 years later, it’s still a great day to learn more about climate change and take steps to reduce your carbon footprint.

Here’s what you should know about Earth Day and how you can adapt your daily behavior to help protect our planet.

In the spring of 1970, Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson and activist John McConnell called on Americans to participate in grassroots efforts to learn more about issues impacting the planet. That April, people around the country joined forces to shine the spotlight on smog and how it could be prevented. There was growing evidence that linked increasing air pollution to developmental delays in children, and families were concerned.

Today, debates over climate change and global warming rage on. While politicians argue, scientists say the situation has become dire.

To help seniors find ways to make a positive difference to the health of the planet, we’ve assembled a list of easy steps you can take.

How Seniors Can Help Create a Healthier Planet

Recycle: If you don’t already do so, start recycling. Some communities offer comprehensive recycling programs in conjunction with trash pickup. If yours doesn’t, this beginner’s guide to recycling will help you get started. Recycling reduces the amount of trash in landfills, saves energy, and conserves natural resources.

Monitor utility usage: How hot or cold you keep your house impacts your carbon footprint. By turning the thermostat down by just 2 degrees in the winter and up 2 degrees in the summer, you can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2,000 pounds per year. You can also reduce utility usage by turning the lights off as you leave a room, unplugging unused appliances, and changing your furnace filter on a timely basis.

Avoid single-use plastics: From plastic water bottles to disposable grocery bags, plastics are clogging up our rivers, oceans, and parklands. It’s pollution that is making our climate challenges worse. To learn other ways you can become less dependent on plastics, read How to Decrease Your Reliance on Single-Use Plastics.

Carpool and cluster errands: For every mile you don’t drive, you prevent one pound of carbon being released into the environment. That’s why it’s important to try to plan errands and trips carefully. Carpool with friends when you can. If you have clean, safe public transportation in your city, consider using it.

If you enjoyed this article, we invite you to bookmark the Life Protect Blog and stop back often. Throughout the month we share updates on topics ranging from healthy aging to caregiving. It’s helpful information for both seniors and their adult children.

Earth Day is a good time to commit to changing behaviors that might be contributing to the climate crisis. Learn more here.

There’s been a lot of buzz around gluten-free diets in recent years. For people who have been diagnosed with celiac disease, osteoarthritis, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), or some autoimmune conditions, adopting a gluten-free lifestyle is a necessity. Because gluten can cause inflammation in the body, especially in the digestive tract, people with these diseases may experience pain and cramping after consuming even small amounts of gluten.

A question that often comes up is whether there are health benefits to going gluten-free if you don’t have one of these conditions. Is a gluten-free diet right for everyone? While some who’ve made the transition say they’ve lost weight and feel more energetic, health care professionals say you need to do a little research before giving up gluten.

As you consider adopting a gluten-free diet, it might help to learn what gluten is and where you typically find it. In the simplest of terms, gluten is the name used for a family of proteins that is found in wheat and other grains. It is the substance that holds foods together and allows them to maintain their shape.

According to the Celiac Disease Foundation, wheat-berries, durum, emmer, semolina, spelt, farina, farro, and graham are all forms of wheat that contain gluten. Rye, barley, and triticale also contain gluten. These grains are usually found in cereals, pastries, cookies, breads, pasta, soups, oatmeal, and even beer.

So, what are the pros and cons associated with giving up gluten? Let’s take a closer look.

First, going gluten-free may force you to cut down on the amount of carbs you consume. If your current diet is filled with sugary baked goods, pasta, and bread, you may find yourself losing a few pounds when you avoid gluten. People with some forms of dermatitis also say their skin problems improve when they eliminate or restrict gluten. Others say they feel more energetic.

But there are some definite drawbacks to skipping gluten. Because many find it a tough diet to follow, they fill up on gluten-free processed foods, such as cookies, breads, and crackers. It makes them less likely to eat healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, and lean protein. That can lead to deficiencies in key vitamins, iron, or other nutrients.

Then there is the fiber factor. People who go gluten-free might not get enough fiber from their diet. That can result in health challenges such as fatigue, constipation, and digestive issues.

The bottom line? If you don’t have a medical condition that requires giving up gluten, discuss the pros and cons with your primary care physician. They can help you evaluate whether it is a good decision for your overall well-being.

If you decide a gluten-free lifestyle isn’t right for you, one diet that receives overwhelmingly positive reviews from medical professionals is the Mediterranean Diet. It’s derived from the lifestyle of those who live in countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. People there eat a diet consisting of fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and lean protein, and they tend to have lower incidences of heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and more.

If you are looking for additional steps you can take to prevent heart disease, 8 Ways to Live a Heart-Smart Lifestyle is a good read. It has suggestions ranging from managing stress to getting quality sleep.

Should you consider a gluten-free diet if you don’t have a health condition that requires it? We weigh the pros and cons here.

Is Going Gluten-Free Good for Your Health?

What Is Rosh Hashanah?

Fall is a season of transitions and new beginnings for people of all ages and faiths. One holiday that commemorates this change is Rosh Hashanah, a holy day for people of the Jewish faith. Its literal meaning is “head of the year” or “first of the year.”

This Jewish New Year marks the beginning of the Days of Awe, a 10-day period of introspection and repentance. It ends on Yom Kippur, also known as the Day of Atonement.

Learn More About Rosh Hashanah This Fall

Signs a Senior Loved One Needs Assistance

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