SNS - Next Monday evening at Dodds Park in Champaign, as the sun begins to dip over the trees, the names of two Illinois State Police troopers — Corey Thompsen and Todd Hanneken — will be spoken aloud. Their families will be there. So will fellow officers, union leaders, and members of the community. And for a few solemn minutes, the city will pause to remember not just two men, but two lives of service — and sacrifice.
Photo: PhotoNews/Clark Brooks
Corey, a long distance running specialist at St. Joseph-Ogden High School, runs in the 2014 SJO 5K after graduating months earlier. Thompson, who later became an Illinois State Police Officer, died while on duty during a traffic detail north of Urbana last October. He and another fallen officer will be honored in a ceremony at Dodds Park on Monday.
The Workers Memorial Day ceremony, hosted annually by the AFL-CIO of Champaign County and the East Central Illinois Building and Construction Trades Council, aims to spotlight those who lost their lives on the job. This year, Troopers Thompsen and Hanneken take center focus.
Thompsen, 28, was killed in October 2024 when his motorcycle was struck by a truck near Leverett Road, north of Champaign. He was wrapping up a traffic enforcement detail at the time. A St. Joseph native, Thompsen was known among colleagues for his drive and camaraderie. His loss shook the Illinois State Police to its core.
“This is a sad moment. We are hurting,” said ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly. “Corey’s family is hurting badly today. This is the first, and I hope the last, trooper who I personally administered the oath of an ISP officer to that I’ve lost in a line-of-duty death.”
Trooper Todd Hanneken, 45, died in 2021 when his patrol car left the road and crashed west of Champaign. He was a 20-year veteran of the force and a second-generation state trooper. Colleagues remember him not only for his dedication, but his warmth — the kind of officer who could calm a tense situation with just his presence. In 2018, Hanneken was awarded the ISP Medal of Honor for rescuing a man from a burning car.
He leaves behind a wife, Shelley, and two sons, Ben and Nick. Thompsen is survived by his wife Chelsea, his parents, and brothers.
“Both officers made the ultimate sacrifice while serving and protecting our community,” said Matt Kelly, president of the local AFL-CIO. “We appreciate their bravery and selflessness and are eternally grateful for their service.”
The ceremony, set for 5 p.m. at Dodds Park, is one of hundreds being held nationwide. Workers Memorial Day began in the wake of the 1970 Occupational Safety and Health Act — a landmark law pushed through after years of labor advocacy. Its message was simple: Every worker deserves to come home.
But the fight isn’t over. In 2023 alone, more than 5,200 workers died from job-related injuries across the U.S. Thousands more face daily risks due to unsafe working conditions. Union leaders point to underfunded safety agencies and rollbacks in labor protections as major concerns.
In East Central Illinois, labor groups are reviving the memorial’s importance. The Building and Construction Trades Council recently took over stewardship of the Danville monument, working to ensure it remains a place for remembrance — and resolve.
Because for the people gathering Monday, remembrance is just part of it. The other part is a promise: that men like Corey Thompsen and Todd Hanneken are never forgotten — and that no job should cost a life.
I used to love rain and snowfall as a child, but now, whenever it rains, I fear landslides and unexpected destruction.
by Naman Joshi
India boasts a diverse and picturesque landscape. Uttarakhand, a state nestled within the Himalayan mountain range, is renowned for its rugged terrain and scenic beauty. The World Bank’s report, titled “Assessing Biophysical and Social Vulnerability to Natural Hazards in Uttarakhand State,” acknowledged that Uttarakhand is particularly vulnerable to floods and landslides due to its biophysical risks. These risks are exacerbated by social vulnerabilities, including poverty, inadequate access to healthcare and financial services, and marginalized populations.
I live in a small district of Uttarakhand called Champawat, known for its cultural heritage and breathtaking natural views. Many families in our area have never used fans in their entire lives because the cold climate made them unnecessary. Nainital, a district 208 kilometers away, had the highest rate of tree cover loss from 2001 to 2023, according to data from Global Forest Watch. This loss was primarily due to fires, with an average of 12 hectares lost per year.
During one incident, my parents visited our village, where more than 12 members of my family experienced a natural disaster in the form of a massive landslide. Our ancestral home was damaged in the disaster. At the time, I was in Delhi, India’s capital. My parents called me once to inform me about the heavy rain, but suddenly, their connection was lost. Due to the perilous and anxiety-inducing night and the lost connection, I was unable to get any updates about their safety or that of my other family members.
Many young people around me—both girls and boys—no longer want to marry because of climate change. They suffer from climate anxiety, a relatively new term that many still don’t understand. They fear the kind of life they could provide for their future children. Meanwhile, those with resources are buying air conditioners, worsening the situation in these hilly areas.
People in my district are surprised by the recent heatwaves. They aren’t geography experts, and there are no heavy industries nearby. They see greenery all around but don’t realize that climate connects everything—villages to districts, districts to states, states to nations, and nations to the global level.
I used to love rain and snowfall as a child, but now, whenever it rains, I fear landslides and unexpected destruction. These days, rainfall can occur in any month and in unpredictable quantities. Climate anxiety is a serious issue that must be addressed.
Recently, former President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement, but climate issues can only be tackled through cooperation and collaborative action. I lived in Delhi for almost eight years—one of India’s most polluted cities. While the government has introduced policies to reduce pollution, I’ve seen little real impact. Many still dismiss climate anxiety as a joke and believe climate change is a temporary phenomenon. Some remain unaware of heatwaves, mistakenly blaming the sun alone for rising temperatures.
If we truly want to sleep peacefully, we must act at the grassroots level. Today, I am a victim of this crisis, and unfortunately, no one can predict who will be next.
The fashion industry must adopt recycling in garment production, and social media influencers should raise awareness about climate change and climate anxiety. We must change our daily habits—ditching plastic straws and disposable cups in favor of sustainable alternatives without ignoring their environmental cost.
I dream of a future where everyone can sleep peacefully, without needing air conditioners or living in fear. I long for the days when I could enjoy rain and snow with my family, free from the dread of sudden climate-induced changes. I wish my financially struggling villagers could ease their anxiety about not being able to afford fans for their children, who now suffer from sleep disturbances due to rising temperatures. Their well-being weighs heavily on my mind.
About the author ~
Naman Joshi hails from Uttarakhand, India, and is a Doctor of Philosophy at Kumaun Univeristy Nainital.
ROCKFORD - Every year, about 350,000 people suffer sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) outside of a hospital setting with almost 90% of all cases being fatal.
Photo provided
Nancy Dagefoerde OSF Cardiovascular Institute
While there is an underlying belief that heart problems such as SCA tend to be more of a concern for men, that’s not the case. In fact, women make up almost 40% of SCA episodes. Just as women may experience different symptoms of heart disease than men, their risk of SCA is somewhat different too.
According to Nancy Dagefoerde, an advanced practice registered nurse with OSF Cardiovascular Institute, SCA can happen to any adult 30 and older, depending on risk factors, family history and other issues such as a heart birth defect.
Dagefoerde says SCA is different than a heart attack, which occurs when there is a blockage in a coronary artery on the outside of the heart. Many times, a heart attack is the cause for the sudden cardiac arrest.
“Sudden cardiac arrest occurs when there's an irregular heartbeat," she says. "We call it an arrhythmia that causes the heart not to beat or have electrical activity anymore. So in general, there'll be no breathing and no pulse when you come upon a person that's having a sudden cardiac arrest.”
“The thing that may be different with women is oftentimes their symptoms are portrayed differently and they often can get missed," says Dagefoerde. "A woman may come to an emergency room or a health care provider and say ‘I'm more tired’ or ‘I'm more short of breath.’ It's not the typical elephant on my chest type of chest pain that a man may have. And so working them up for their symptoms, although they're more vague, is important to be preventive to catch these things early before there's damage.”
Another reason why women are at a higher risk for SCA is because they are more likely to delay seeking care for their symptoms since women tend to prioritize the health of other family members first.
“As all of us get older, the risk is higher for any of these conditions as far as heart disease, diabetes, blood pressure, so we need to be aware that maybe our numbers were okay, or we were doing pretty good when we were in our 20s and 30s," says Dagefoerde. "But as we age, we need those regular checkups and do that good preventive care, because things do change. And women are caring for husbands and parents, even children and grandchildren and they don't often take the time to care for themselves.”
Symptoms of SCA include:
Fainting
Dizziness
Racing or irregular heartbeat
Chest pain
Shortness of breath
Nausea
Risk factors for SCA include a previous heart attack, coronary artery disease, a prior episode of SCA, family history and personal or family history of abnormal heart rhythms, among others.
Dagefoerde has a simple message for any patient who is experiencing any potential cardiac symptom.
“This is another area that your health prevention will benefit you. So seeing your physician on a regular basis, having regular checkups, checking your labs, knowing your family history, knowing your own history, and doing all those things on a regular basis and don't ignore any symptoms that you may be having.”
If you see someone drop to the ground and think it could be SCA, call 911 immediately. The faster CPR is started and defibrillation is administered, the better the chances of survival.
Some Illinois state lawmakers plan to introduce a bill to legalize prostitution in the Land of Lincoln. This proposal would expunge past criminal arrests and conviction records.
Taking advantage of the super-majority in both chambers, these Democrats want "private choices" about the use of one's body to be a civil right protected by law. This flawed thinking will only increase incidents of rape, assault and murder.
Prostitution is inherently immoral. It objectifies and exploits those involved as consumable products, instead of human beings made in the image of God. Moreover, it empowers the criminal underworld, fueling the demand for sex trafficked victims - including children.
At a time when sexually transmitted infections (STIs) like syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia are increasing, state lawmakers are foolish to promote an industry dedicated to sexual promiscuity. For two years in a row now, public health officials have issued warnings about the sexually transmitted virus, monkeypox, predominantly spread among gay and bisexual men. Is HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis B, and HPV no longer a concern? Prostitution exacerbates these diseases.
A chief task of our legislators is to promote the public health. Legalizing prostitution would undermine this priority by spreading disease and fostering a culture that objectifies human beings as merely sexual outlets to be purchased. Sadly, it will contribute to rising rates of family dysfunction and breakdown.
David E. Smith, Executive Director
Illinois Family Institute
Pay close attention to nonverbal cues when a patient appears agitated. Keep family gatherings small. Large groups can produce fear and confusion in those suffering from Alzheimer's Disease.
CHICAGO - The excitement of the holiday season is celebrated with family get-togethers. But for Alzheimer's patients, large groups can produce fear and confusion. The disease causes brain cell deterioration and the ability to rapidly process information diminishes daily.
Macie P. Smith, a licensed social worker and gerontologist, advised paying attention to nonverbal cues when a patient appears agitated.
"If you're going to have a small, intimate gathering, I also recommend doing name tags," Smith suggested. "Go ahead and put the person's name and the relationship to the person on the shirt, so that way they won't have to guess and wonder and try to figure out who this person is. It just helps with the ease of engagement."
Reminiscing over the family photo album is a traditional holiday favorite. Despite the best intentions, Smith explained, asking an Alzheimer's patient to identify a relative can be frustrating. The questions cause them to use brain cells that are severely impacted and could produce combativeness and aggression. She recommended singing or playing music as better choices.
The Alzheimer's Association Illinois chapter reported 311,000 caregivers cook meals, assist with basic hygiene and monitor medication intake. The needs of patients are unpredictable, leaving them with sporadic break times.
Additional stress from gift shopping and work obligations underlines the importance for a caregiver to routinely nurture their physical and mental well-being. Smith advised using a calendar for scheduling enjoyable activities.
"I've asked caregivers, 'So, what do you like to do?' They don't know, or they don't remember, because they have been so engulfed with caring for someone else and depleting everything that they've had, they've lost a sense of self," Smith observed.
For unmanageable situations, Smith recommends contacting a professional respite care service through your local department on aging. The agencies offer vouchers to pay a certified person to sit with your loved one. Another choice is asking for help from a church member, trusted neighbor or a Medicare or Medicaid-funded adult day service.
Do you miss the old telephone days? They weren’t that long ago. Back in the old days, all we had were landlines. You may still only have a landline but it’s becoming rare as more people depend solely on cell phones.
When you traveled in the past you had to find a pay phone to make a call. Pay phones were not that easy to locate and they were expensive. Today, pay phones are rare.
Hotel telephone calls were terrible. It cost a fortune to make calls from a hotel room. If you made several, you had a big bill to pay when you checked out.
Long distance calls used to be the pits. We have all had family and friends who lived in other counties or other states. You couldn’t talk to them very much because it could easily add $20 - $30 to your bill. Thirty years ago, that was a lot of extra money for a phone bill.
Today is the golden era of mass communication. We pay a price for our cell phone and we talk on it all month. I realize it depends on the plan you have. Overall, people use their phones and call wherever they want to call and talk as long as they want to talk. For just a very small monthly fee, I can talk to someone in most in any country at any time of the day, most of the time.
We’ve grown very reliant on our cell phones. We have to know where they are every minute of every day. Life becomes a dilemma when we can’t find our cell phones.
I have hundreds if not thousands of treasured family pictures on my cell phone. I contact all my family and friends on my cell phone. I don’t know their phones numbers. I punch in their name and their phone rings. All my work associates are contacted via my cell phone. I stay in touch with them by simply sending them a text or sometimes calling them. I would not know how to contact them if I lost my phone.
I do most of my work each day on my cell phone. I can gain access to my websites and other business support sites to do a lot of the work that pertains to my vocation. I send and respond to emails on my phone. My wife, children and I stay in contact through my cell phone.
The navigation feature tells me how to get to places I haven’t been before. Occasionally, if I get lazy, I pull an app up on my phone and about 40 minutes later I have food at my door. I check my airplane travel on my phone. I make sure my flight is on time and verify my seat assignment. The list goes on and on.
When my cell phone dies or is lost, it becomes a big problem. It becomes a problem not only for me but for other people who count on me to fulfill various work commitments and assignments. Of course, we all doodle on Social Media. Without our cell phones or tablets we would miss out on all the “junk” that we constantly see on Facebook, X, Instagram, and etc. Without your cell phone, you might not know what everybody else is doing. Back in the old days, the only way we knew what everyone else was doing was to listen in on our eight family party lines. If you don’t know what this is just ask an older person.
Often, the cell phone becomes a hassle. Multiple text messages from unknown people, politicians, scammers and others can become wearisome. We delete, block, unsubscribe and we still receive them. However, we can turn our phones off. We should definitely do this more than we do.
Please consider turning it off during your Thanksgiving dinner. Also, why not consider turning it off when you are having a dinner with your spouse or friend or family. Give it a break. We’ve all seen couples sitting in restaurants with each one of them starring at a cell phone. Give it a rest! Talk to people and make some personal connection with a real person.
We can all “live” life for an hour or two without looking at our phones in order to have some real conversations with real people. However, you’ll be comforted knowing it’s in your pocket or purse for your full attention at any given time.
Glen Mollett is the author of 13 books including Uncommom Sense, the Spiritual Chocolate series, Grandpa's Store, Minister's Guidebook insights from a fellow minister. His column is published weekly in over 600 publications in all 50 states. The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily representative of any other group or organization. We welcome comments and views from our readers. Submit your letters to the editor or commentary on a current event 24/7 to editor@oursentinel.com.
December 18, 2023 .::. Some really cool hosting hacks for your holiday party Family Features - Entertaining friends and loved ones during the holidays offers an opportunity to slow down from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and make lasting memories. The key is getting ahead of hosting duties so you can be present with family and friends.
Make this season's holiday hosting effortless and enjoyable with these tips:
October 29, 2024 .::. Stress-free Thanksgiving tips for those short on time this holiday season
StatePoint - While gathering for Thanksgiving is intended to be a joyous occasion, everyone who has hosted the feast knows it can also come with a lot of stress, and expenses.
The good news is that whether you’re a Gen Z-er hosting your first Friendsgiving on a budget or you’re a busy family preparing for guests, there is a lot to be thankful for this year.
November 17, 2024 .::. Holidays are no time to talk turkey, avoiding stress and tension around the table
The holidays are fast approaching. Families across the country will soon gather to break bread, exchange gifts and partake in each other’s company.
But the holiday season can also be a time that heightens unwanted stress.
December 18, 2022 .::. 5 ways to celebrate with the holidays and keep your family pet safe NAPSI - Most pet parents agree: their animals are part of what makes the holiday season so magical. While it’s an excellent opportunity to integrate furry family members into all the special holiday traditions and make memories together, there are a few things you should keep in mind to keep your pet safe ...
November 20, 2023 .::. Holiday celebrations are filled with triggers and temptations for those in recovery CHAMPAIGN - It’s that time of the year when gift-giving, family gatherings, and cheers for the new year bring people together. Though it is perfectly normal to enjoy celebrations that are common around this time of year, the holidays can also be challenging for those in or new to recovery.
The holiday season is usually packed with social events, but this can cause people in recovery to feel lonely or anxious about the possibility of relapsing. For those who may have those concerns, it’s important they know that they are not alone - millions of Americans who are in recovery are also spending their holidays sober.
November 10, 2024 .::. Don't get snowed by holiday scams BRANDPOINT MEDIA - Scams are unfortunately a fact of life these days. If it's not identity or data theft, it's credit breaches and scam phone calls. Many of us are getting scam texts, too. As the holidays roll in, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) wants you to know we are on the job, working to protect you and your mail and packages.
December 24, 2022 .::. Taking care of yourself during the holidays, steps you can take StatePoint Media - With seasonal stressors like end-of-year work deadlines, gift shopping and hosting potentially weighing on you, plus all those extra sweets and indulgent foods to nibble on, the holiday season may be the happiest time of year, but it’s not always the healthiest. Here’s how to take better care of yourself to feel your best this holiday season.
December 14, 2022 .::. Grab a smaller plate this holiday season to help keep those cheerful pounds off
SAVOY - December and January bring bountiful holiday meals.
While it’s tempting to chow down, experts are cautioning about how overindulgence can make you feel mentally and physically crummy in the moment, plus open the door to long-term unhealthy eating habits.
BRANDPOINT MEDIA - Welcoming a baby to the family can be an exciting time, but it also impacts the existing family dynamic and lifestyle. First-time siblings may be overwhelmed and confused by these sudden changes that come with a new baby.
However, parents can help soon-to-be siblings get ready for the changes ahead. Check out these five tips that can help children prepare for becoming first-time siblings.
1. Set expectations
Communication is key to setting first-time siblings at ease. Begin by explaining the care newborns need. Make sure to emphasize that just because the baby needs more time and attention doesn't mean that an older child is being replaced.
Also, discuss what it means to be an older sibling and how they can help take care of the baby. By setting these expectations, your older child will be better prepared for the adjustments and responsibilities that come with the arrival of a younger sibling.
2. Practice gentle touch
It's important to teach young children how fragile newborns are, especially if your older child is around a year old. Practice gentle touch with your child so they know how to handle their sibling with care.
A great way to practice gentle touch is with interactive play with a baby doll like BABY born My First Baby. For over 30 years, parents and grandparents have relied on these toys that foster compassion and nurturing play and teach developmental skills to young children.
This baby doll is the perfect first companion for your little one, with her soft body that is ideal for cuddles. Using this doll, you can safely teach your older child how to nurture and care for their future sibling.
3. Include them in the baby's routine
A great way to help first-time siblings feel included is to involve them in the baby's daily routine. How involved they can be will depend on their age, but even small tasks like singing a lullaby or picking out the baby's clothes can create a bond between siblings.
Children around age 3 and older can practice with a BABY born My Real Baby. This lifelike doll is just like a real baby - she makes baby sounds, sucks on her bottle or pacifier with an actual moving mouth, goes potty, goes to sleep and even cries real tears.
Once the baby arrives, encourage your older child to take care of their doll while you take care of the baby. When your newborn needs a diaper change, your older child can change their baby doll's diaper. By including them in these activities and routines, you can foster a sense of responsibility and love between siblings.
4. Encourage siblings to participate in the baby's milestones
First smiles, first words and first steps are memories families cherish forever. As your younger child grows, encourage your older child to help their sibling reach important milestones.
For example, before the baby arrives and while they're small, your older child can practice helping a baby learn to walk with the BABY born Learn To Walk doll. This doll really crawls on her own and walks with the help of your child! To crawl, simply set the doll down in a crawling position, and she'll start moving across the floor, complete with adorable crawling sounds and motions. Sometimes, the doll will fall and cry, but she gets right back up to try again - just like a real baby. The doll can take her first steps when your child holds her hands, making it an interactive and delightful experience as they help her learn to walk. Make sure to tell them about the first time they achieved these milestones, too! It's a fun and touching way to connect their experiences with their siblings.
5. Nurture sibling play
Sibling playtime is an important part of child development for older and younger siblings. By playing with their younger siblings, older children can help them develop social skills, communication abilities and emotional intelligence, as well as gain more of these skills, too.
Of course, some activities will be too advanced for newborns. Your child can practice playing with their siblings by including their baby doll in their solo playtime. The BABY born Tricycle accessory allows your older child to take any of their BABY born dolls out for a stroll. There's even a handle for kids to push their doll around while they sit safely on the trike.
With some love, patience and forethought, you can easily prepare first-time siblings to welcome the newest addition to the family. To learn more about the power of nurture play, visit BABYborn.MGAE.com.
Our culture is worth celebrating. But amid the immense suffering in Gaza, it’s hard to feel celebratory. by Farrah Hassen
I’ve always known my Arab culture is worth celebrating.
I heard it in Syrian tenor Sabah Fakhri’s powerful voice reverberating in my mom’s car on the way to piano lessons and soccer practice during my youth. I smelled it in the za’atar, Aleppo pepper, allspice, and cumin permeating the air in the family kitchen.
Artwork: Kalhh/Pixabay
I saw it in the intricate embroidery on my grandma’s silk robe. And in the determination etched in the faces of my immigrant parents, who raised seven children in Southern California without relinquishing our rich Syrian traditions.
April is National Arab American Heritage Month. It should be a time to celebrate the contributions of the over 3.5 million Arab Americans who strengthen our proud nation.
... right now, it’s impossible to feel celebratory. My community is reeling from the immense pain and horror of an unfolding genocide ...
We have Ralph Nader to thank for consumer protections like automobile safety. We have the late Senator James Abourezk (D-SD) — the first Arab American elected to the U.S. Senate — to credit for landmark legislation championing Indigenous rights. Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, a pediatrician, first exposed the Flint, Michigan water crisis.
There are countless others. But right now, it’s impossible to feel celebratory. My community is reeling from the immense pain and horror of an unfolding genocide against the 2.3 million Palestinians of Gaza.
Palestinian Americans have lost family members in Gaza from Israel’s unrelenting bombardment and mass starvation of civilians. Adding insult to injury, Israel is using U.S.-supplied weapons to commit these atrocities.
Palestinian Americans — along with other Arabs — have also been on the receiving end of increased hate crimes, harassment, racist rhetoric, and discrimination, belying the message that they, too, are an integral part of this nation. The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee received 2,500 reports of anti-Arab hate from October to March.
In his proclamation marking this year’s heritage month, President Biden was forced to reckon with Gaza. Instead of announcing a long overdue, permanent ceasefire and an end to U.S. military support for Israel, he offered empty words.
How can Arab American life and culture be celebrated when fellow Arabs are facing erasure in Gaza? Nearly 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza so far, including nearly 14,000 children. Thousands more remain missing. And at least 576,000 Palestinians are on the brink of famine.
Homes filled with family heirlooms and memories have been systematically destroyed. The ancient olive trees that symbolize Palestinians’ deep-rooted connection to their land haven’t been spared.
Arab Americans have emerged as a new and powerful voting bloc
It’s easy to feel despair. But what brings me hope is the new generation of Arab Americans organizing, marching, and working with other communities to demand a permanent ceasefire. We are reminded that dissent is the highest form of “patriotism.”
Despite attempts to smear and silence them for supporting Palestinian human rights, their efforts are having an impact. A March 27 Gallup poll showed a significant drop in American public support for Israel’s conduct of the war, from 50 percent in November 2023 to 36 percent now.
Meanwhile, Arab Americans have emerged as a new and powerful voting bloc. Spearheaded by Arab Americans in Michigan, hundreds of thousands of Americans voted “uncommitted” in recent primary elections in Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Massachusetts, and elsewhere to protest U.S. policy in Gaza.
This represents a real shift from the days after 9/11, when Arab Americans faced blanket demonization without any pushback. This is progress, although much more must be done.
We know we belong in America even if we’re not always treated that way. We need enduring collaboration between Arab Americans and policymakers, educators, and community members to defend our rights, create a more equal America, and promote more just U.S. policies abroad — starting with a ceasefire in Gaza.
Farrah Hassen, J.D., is a writer, policy analyst, and adjunct professor in the Department of Political Science at Cal Poly Pomona. This op-ed was distributed by OtherWords.org.
... my first and only experience with motherhood was marred by stress and trauma.
I had a baby in 2021 and quickly learned how parenting and child care expenses add up.
My husband and I had saved up for months to afford my unpaid maternity leave — I kept working even after my water broke because we needed every penny. It was a dream come true to have a career that I was proud of and finally be welcoming a child into our lives.
But I had no idea how hard it would really be.
Bringing a bundles of joy like this cute little one into the world shouldn't be a financial burden.
Photo: Kaushal Mishra/Unsplash
While I was on unpaid maternity leave that cost us our health benefits, my husband was let go from his job. Already reliant on WIC — the federal food aid program for women, infants, and children — we were forced to go to food pantries, apply for Medicaid, and referred to a diaper bank. We were in survival mode: exhausted, stressed out, and worried.
Despite a litany of postpartum complications that continue to plague me more than two years later, I ended up only taking seven weeks of leave before I returned to work out of desperation.
I wondered: Why doesn’t the U.S. have a paid parental leave policy?
Instead, my first and only experience with motherhood was marred by stress and trauma. Again and again, I had to choose between my health and a paycheck, which can feel like a punishment. I’d proudly served my country on a one-year assignment overseas working on foreign aid, and it didn’t matter.
We found child care at a loving, quality child care center, but the tuition kept increasing. Now the monthly cost is almost twice our mortgage. In fact, child care costs exceed college tuition where we live in North Carolina, as well as in at least 27 other states. My stomach gets in a knot every six months when I know the tuition will increase again.
I wondered: Why don’t we invest more in early care and education?
Meanwhile, the crises causing outsized harm to families throughout the pandemic compounded: a diaper shortage, a formula shortage, inflation, and wages that wouldn’t keep up. So many people are struggling to get back on their feet and desperately need balance and some peace of mind. The stress took its toll, and my husband and I separated in spring 2023.
I wondered: If only we’d had more support, would we have made it?
I have an advanced degree and work as a communications director at a nonprofit while also freelancing. After paying for necessities, we have nothing left, so I get food and supplies from neighbors and friends. I work so hard as a single mom to try to achieve the dreams I have for myself and my baby boy — the dreams that all mothers have. I don’t want my child to deal with the stress and constant refrain of “we don’t have the money for that,” like I did growing up.
Families desperately need, want, and deserve better. Welcoming a child should never be the reason a family plunges into poverty, especially in one of the wealthiest countries in the world. We shouldn’t be sacrificing health, quality early learning, or stability in exchange for a roof over our heads and food. Instead, we should be building strong foundations and generational wealth for our kids.
We need federally mandated paid parental and medical leave. We need additional dedicated funding for programs like WIC that support over 6 million families.
And we need to continue expanding the Child Tax Credit. In North Carolina alone, the monthly Child Tax Credits received in 2021 helped the families of 140,000 children lift themselves out of poverty. Nationally, the credit cut child poverty by over 40 percent before Congress let the pandemic expansion expire at the end of 2021.
Congress must put our tax dollars and policies toward strong support for families. Let’s ensure no parent experiences welcoming a child a child as a financial catastrophe and make this country a place where families prosper.
About the author: Lindsay K. Saunders is a North Carolina mother and dedicated advocate for RESULTS Educational Fund, a national anti-poverty organization. This op-ed was distributed by OtherWords.org.
The financial and emotional toll of providing and paying for long-term care is wreaking havoc on the lives of millions of Americans.
by Reed Abelson, The New York Times Jordan Rau, KFF Health New
Kaiser Health News - Margaret Newcomb, 69, a retired French teacher, is desperately trying to protect her retirement savings by caring for her 82-year-old husband, who has severe dementia, at home in Seattle. She used to fear his disease-induced paranoia, but now he’s so frail and confused that he wanders away with no idea of how to find his way home. He gets lost so often that she attaches a tag to his shoelace with her phone number.
The financial and emotional toll of providing and paying for long-term care is wreaking havoc on the lives of millions of Americans. Read about how a few families are navigating the challenges, in their own words. (Read More)
Feylyn Lewis, 35, sacrificed a promising career as a research director in England to return home to Nashville after her mother had a debilitating stroke. They ran up $15,000 in medical and credit card debt while she took on the role of caretaker.
Sheila Littleton, 30, brought her grandfather with dementia to her family home in Houston, then spent months fruitlessly trying to place him in a nursing home with Medicaid coverage. She eventually abandoned him at a psychiatric hospital to force the system to act.
“That was terrible,” she said. “I had to do it.”
Millions of families are facing such daunting life choices — and potential financial ruin — as the escalating costs of in-home care, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes devour the savings and incomes of older Americans and their relatives.
“People are exposed to the possibility of depleting almost all their wealth,” said Richard Johnson, director of the program on retirement policy at the Urban Institute.
The prospect of dying broke looms as an imminent threat for the boomer generation, which vastly expanded the middle class and looked hopefully toward a comfortable retirement on the backbone of 401(k)s and pensions. Roughly 10,000 of them will turn 65 every day until 2030, expecting to live into their 80s and 90s as the price tag for long-term care explodes, outpacing inflation and reaching a half-trillion dollars a year, according to federal researchers.
By 2050, there will be more than 86 million Americans over the age of 65. The U.S. does not dedicate enough funds for long-term care of the aging population. For the most, the financial burden is left on the shoulders of the senior and their financial resources or that of the family.
Photo: Spolyakov/PEXELS
The challenges will only grow. By 2050, the population of Americans 65 and older is projected to increase by more than 50%, to 86 million, according to census estimates. The number of people 85 or older will nearly triple to 19 million.
The United States has no coherent system of long-term care, mostly a patchwork. The private market, where a minuscule portion of families buy long-term care insurance, has shriveled, reduced over years of giant rate hikes by insurers that had underestimated how much care people would actually use. Labor shortages have left families searching for workers willing to care for their elders in the home. And the cost of a spot in an assisted living facility has soared to an unaffordable level for most middle-class Americans. They have to run out of money to qualify for nursing home care paid for by the government.
For an examination of the crisis in long-term care, The New York Times and KFF Health News interviewed families across the nation as they struggled to obtain care; examined companies that provide it; and analyzed data from the federally funded Health and Retirement Study, the most authoritative national survey of older people about their long-term care needs and financial resources.
About 8 million people 65 and older reported that they had dementia or difficulty with basic daily tasks like bathing and feeding themselves — and nearly 3 million of them had no assistance at all, according to an analysis of the survey data. Most people relied on spouses, children, grandchildren, or friends.
The United States devotes a smaller share of its gross domestic product to long-term care than do most other wealthy countries, including Britain, France, Canada, Germany, Sweden, and Japan, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The United States lags its international peers in another way: It dedicates far less of its overall health spending toward long-term care.
“We just don’t value elders the way that other countries and other cultures do,” said Rachel Werner, executive director of the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the University of Pennsylvania. “We don’t have a financing and insurance system for long-term care,” she said. “There isn’t the political will to spend that much money.”
Most countries spend more than the United States on care, but middle-class and affluent people still bear a substantial portion of the costs. (Read More)
Despite medical advances that have added years to the average life span and allowed people to survive decades more after getting cancer or suffering from heart disease or strokes, federal long-term care for older people has not fundamentally changed in the decades since President Lyndon Johnson signed Medicare and Medicaid into law in 1965. From 1960 to 2021, the number of Americans age 85 and older increased at more than six times the rate of the general population, according to census records.
Medicare, the federal health insurance program for Americans 65 and older, covers the costs of medical care, but generally pays for a home aide or a stay in a nursing home only for a limited time during a recovery from a surgery or a fall or for short-term rehabilitation.
Medicaid, the federal-state program, covers long-term care, usually in a nursing home, but only for the poor. Middle-class people must exhaust their assets to qualify, forcing them to sell much of their property and to empty their bank accounts. If they go into a nursing home, they are permitted to keep a pittance of their retirement income: $50 or less a month in a majority of states. And spouses can hold onto only a modest amount of income and assets, often leaving their children and grandchildren to shoulder some of the financial burden.
At any given time, skilled nursing homes house roughly 630,000 older residents whose average age is about 77.
“You basically want people to destitute themselves and then you take everything else that they have,” said Gay Glenn, whose mother lived in a nursing home in Kansas until she died in October at age 96.
Her mother, Betty Mae Glenn, had to spend down her savings, paying the home more than $10,000 a month, until she qualified for Medicaid. Glenn, 61, relocated from Chicago to Topeka more than four years ago, moving into one of her mother’s two rental properties and overseeing her care and finances.
Under the state Medicaid program’s byzantine rules, she had to pay rent to her mother, and that income went toward her mother’s care. Glenn sold the family’s house just before her mother’s death in October. Her lawyer told her the estate had to pay Medicaid back about $20,000 from the proceeds.
A play she wrote about her relationship with her mother, titled “If You See Panic in My Eyes,” was read this year at a theater festival.
At any given time, skilled nursing homes house roughly 630,000 older residents whose average age is about 77, according to recent estimates. A long-term resident’s care can easily cost more than $100,000 a year without Medicaid coverage at these institutions, which are supposed to provide round-the-clock nursing coverage.
Nine in 10 people said it would be impossible or very difficult to pay that much, according to a KFF public opinion poll conducted during the pandemic.
Efforts to create a national long-term care system have repeatedly collapsed. Democrats have argued that the federal government needs to take a much stronger hand in subsidizing care. The Biden administration sought to improve wages and working conditions for paid caregivers. But a $150 billion proposal in the Build Back Better Act for in-home and community-based services under Medicaid was dropped to lower the price tag of the final legislation.
“This is an issue that’s coming to the front door of members of Congress,” said Sen. Bob Casey, a Pennsylvania Democrat and chair of the Senate Special Committee on Aging. “No matter where you’re representing — if you’re representing a blue state or red state — families are not going to settle for just having one option,” he said, referring to nursing homes funded under Medicaid. “The federal government has got to do its part, which it hasn’t.”
But leading Republicans in Congress say the federal government cannot be expected to step in more than it already does. Americans need to save for when they will inevitably need care, said Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana, the ranking Republican on the aging committee.
“So often people just think it’s just going to work out,” he said. “Too many people get to the point where they’re 65 and then say, ‘I don’t have that much there.’”
Private Companies’ Prices Have Skyrocketed
The boomer generation is jogging and cycling into retirement, equipped with hip and knee replacements that have slowed their aging. And they are loath to enter the institutional setting of a nursing home.
But they face major expenses for the in-between years: falling along a spectrum between good health and needing round-the-clock care in a nursing home.
That has led them to assisted living centers run by for-profit companies and private equity funds enjoying robust profits in this growing market. Some 850,000 people age 65 or older now live in these facilities that are largely ineligible for federal funds and run the gamut, with some providing only basics like help getting dressed and taking medication and others offering luxury amenities like day trips, gourmet meals, yoga, and spas.
The bills can be staggering.
As Americans live longer, the number who develop dementia, a condition of aging, has soared, as have their needs.
Half of the nation’s assisted living facilities cost at least $54,000 a year, according to Genworth, a long-term care insurer. That rises substantially in many metropolitan areas with lofty real estate prices. Specialized settings, like locked memory care units for those with dementia, can cost twice as much.
Home care is costly, too. Agencies charge about $27 an hour for a home health aide, according to Genworth. Hiring someone who spends six or seven hours a day cleaning and helping an older person get out of bed or take medications can add up to $60,000 a year.
As Americans live longer, the number who develop dementia, a condition of aging, has soared, as have their needs. Five million to 7 million Americans age 65 and up have dementia, and their ranks are projected to grow to nearly 12 million by 2040. The condition robs people of their memories, mars the ability to speak and understand, and can alter their personalities.
In Seattle, Margaret and Tim Newcomb sleep on separate floors of their two-story cottage, with Margaret ever mindful that her husband, who has dementia, can hallucinate and become aggressive if medication fails to tame his symptoms.
“The anger has diminished from the early days,” she said last year.
But earlier on, she had resorted to calling the police when he acted erratically.
“He was hating me and angry, and I didn’t feel safe,” she said.
She considered memory care units, but the least expensive option cost around $8,000 a month and some could reach nearly twice that amount. The couple’s monthly income, with his pension from Seattle City Light, the utility company, and their combined Social Security, is $6,000.
Placing her husband in such a place would have gutted the $500,000 they had saved before she retired from 35 years teaching art and French at a parochial school.
“I’ll let go of everything if I have to, but it’s a very unfair system,” she said. “If you didn’t see ahead or didn’t have the right type of job that provides for you, it’s tough luck.”
In the last year, medication has quelled Tim’s anger, but his health has declined so much that he no longer poses a physical threat. Margaret said she’s reconciled to caring for him as long as she can.
“When I see him sitting out on the porch and appreciating the sun coming on his face, it’s really sweet,” she said.
The financial threat posed by dementia also weighs heavily on adult children who have become guardians of aged parents and have watched their slow, expensive declines.
Claudia Morrell, 64, of Parkville, Maryland, estimated her mother, Regine Hayes, spent more than $1 million during the eight years she needed residential care for dementia. That was possible only because her mother had two pensions, one from her husband’s military service and another from his job at an insurance company, plus savings and Social Security.
Morrell paid legal fees required as her mother’s guardian, as well as $6,000 on a special bed so her mother wouldn’t fall out and on private aides after she suffered repeated small strokes. Her mother died last December at age 87.
“I will never have those kinds of resources,” Morrell, an education consultant, said. “My children will never have those kinds of resources. We didn’t inherit enough or aren’t going to earn enough to have the quality of care she got. You certainly can’t live that way on Social Security.”
Women Bear the Burden of Care
For seven years, Annie Reid abandoned her life in Colorado to sleep in her childhood bedroom in Maryland, living out of her suitcase and caring for her mother, Frances Sampogna, who had dementia. “No one else in my family was able to do this,” she said.
“It just dawned on me, I have to actually unpack and live here,” Reid, 61, remembered thinking. “And how long? There’s no timeline on it.”
After Sampogna died at the end of September 2022, her daughter returned to Colorado and started a furniture redesign business, a craft she taught herself in her mother’s basement. Reid recently had her knee replaced, something she could not do in Maryland because her insurance didn’t cover doctors there.
“It’s amazing how much time went by,” she said. “I’m so grateful to be back in my life again.”
Studies are now calculating the toll of caregiving on children, especially women. The median lost wages for women providing intensive care for their mothers is $24,500 over two years, according to a study led by Norma Coe, an associate professor at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Lewis moved back from England to Nashville to care for her mother, a former nurse who had a stroke that put her in a wheelchair.
“I was thrust back into a caregiving role full time,” she said. She gave up a post as a research director for a nonprofit organization. She is also tending to her 87-year-old grandfather, ill with prostate cancer and kidney disease.
Making up for lost income seems daunting while she continues to support her mother.
But she is regaining hope: She was promoted to assistant dean for student affairs at Vanderbilt School of Nursing and was recently married. She and her husband plan to stay in the same apartment with her mother until they can save enough to move into a larger place.
Government Solutions Are Elusive
Over the years, lawmakers in Congress and government officials have sought to ease the financial burdens on individuals, but little has been achieved.
The CLASS Act, part of the Obamacare legislation of 2010, was supposed to give people the option of paying into a long-term insurance program. It was repealed two years later amid compelling evidence that it would never be economically viable.
Two years ago, another proposal, called the WISH Act, outlined a long-term care trust fund, but it never gained traction.
On the home care front, the scarcity of workers has led to a flurry of attempts to improve wages and working conditions for paid caregivers. A provision in the Build Back Better Act to provide more funding for home care under Medicaid was not included in the final Inflation Reduction Act, a less costly version of the original bill that Democrats sought to pass last year.
The labor shortages are largely attributed to low wages for difficult work. In the Medicaid program, demand has clearly outstripped supply, according to a recent analysis. While the number of home aides in the Medicaid program has increased to 1.4 million in 2019 from 840,000 in 2008, the number of aides per 100 people who qualify for home or community care has declined nearly 12%.
In April, President Joe Biden signed an executive order calling for changes to government programs that would improve conditions for workers and encourage initiatives that would relieve some of the burdens on families providing care.
Turning to Medicaid, a Shredded Safety Net
The only true safety net for many Americans is Medicaid, which represents, by far, the largest single source of funding for long-term care.
More than 4 in 5 middle-class people 65 or older who need long-term care for five years or more will eventually enroll, according to an analysis for the federal government by the Urban Institute. Almost half of upper-middle-class couples with lifetime earnings of more than $4.75 million will also end up on Medicaid.
But gaps in Medicaid coverage leave many people without care. Under federal law, the program is obliged to offer nursing home care in every state. In-home care, which is not guaranteed, is provided under state waivers, and the number of participants is limited. Many states have long waiting lists, and it can be extremely difficult to find aides willing to work at the low-paying Medicaid rate.
Qualifying for a slot in a nursing home paid by Medicaid can be formidable, with many families spending thousands of dollars on lawyers and consultants to navigate state rules. Homes may be sold or couples may contemplate divorce to become eligible.
And recipients and their spouses may still have to contribute significant sums. After Stan Markowitz, a former history professor in Baltimore with Parkinson’s disease, and his wife, Dottye Burt, 78, exhausted their savings on his two-year stay in an assisted living facility, he qualified for Medicaid and moved into a nursing home.
He was required to contribute $2,700 a month, which ate up 45% of the couple’s retirement income. Burt, who was a racial justice consultant for nonprofits, rented a modest apartment near the home, all she could afford on what was left of their income.
Markowitz died in September at age 86, easing the financial pressure on her. “I won’t be having to pay the nursing home,” she said.
Even finding a place willing to take someone can be a struggle. Harold Murray, Sheila Littleton’s grandfather, could no longer live safely in rural North Carolina because his worsening dementia led him to wander. She brought him to Houston in November 2020, then spent months trying to enroll him in the state’s Medicaid program so he could be in a locked unit at a nursing home.
She felt she was getting the runaround. Nursing home after nursing home told her there were no beds, or quibbled over when and how he would be eligible for a bed under Medicaid. In desperation, she left him at a psychiatric hospital so it would find him a spot.
“I had to refuse to take him back home,” she said. “They had no choice but to place him.”
He was finally approved for coverage in early 2022, at age 83.
A few months later, he died.
Reed Abelson is a health care reporter for The New York Times. The New York Times' Kirsten Noyes and graphics editor Albert Sun, KFF Health News data editor Holly K. Hacker, and JoNel Aleccia, formerly of KFF Health News, contributed to this report originally published .
US Health and Retirement Study Analysis
The New York Times-KFF Health News data analysis was based on the Health and Retirement Study, a nationally representative longitudinal survey of about 20,000 people age 50 and older. The analysis defined people age 65 and above as likely to need long-term care if they were assessed to have dementia, or if they reported having difficulty with two or more of six specified activities of daily living: bathing, dressing, eating, getting in and out of bed, walking across a room, and using the toilet. The Langa-Weir classification of cognitive function, a related data set, was used to identify respondents with dementia. The analysis’s definition of needing long-term care assistance is conservative and in line with the criteria most long-term care insurers use in determining whether they will pay for services.
People were described as recipients of long-term care help if they reported receiving assistance in the month before the interview for the study or if they lived in a nursing home. The analysis was developed in consultation with Norma Coe, an associate professor of medical ethics and health policy at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
The financial toll on middle-class and upper-income people needing long-term care was examined by reviewing data that the HRS collected from 2000 to 2021 on wealthy Americans, those whose net worth at age 65 was in the 50th to 95th percentile, totaling anywhere from $171,365 to $1,827,765 in inflation-adjusted 2020 dollars. This group excludes the super-wealthy. Each individual’s wealth at age 65 was compared with their wealth just before they died to calculate the percentage of affluent people who exhausted their financial resources and the likelihood that would occur among different groups.
To calculate how many people were likely to need long-term care, how many people needing long-term care services were receiving them, and who was providing care to people receiving help, we looked at people age 65 and older of all wealth levels in the 2020-21 survey, the most recent.
The U.S. Health and Retirement Study is conducted by the University of Michigan and funded by the National Institute on Aging and the Social Security Administration.
KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF.
Subscribe to KFF Health News' free Morning Briefing.
StatePoint - If you have a big idea, goal or dream about helping others, writing down your vision can help. Studies show you’re 42% more likely to achieve your goals if you write them down.
Take it from Marcy Bursac. After reviewing thousands of handwritten entries, Pilot Pen selected her as the newest winner of the G2 Overachievers Grant, which rewards an exceptional individual who goes beyond their everyday job and responsibilities to make a difference in the lives of others.
A technical analyst at a cybersecurity firm by day, Bursac is also an author, podcaster, wife and mother. She has used her technological expertise to develop an app for “The Forgotten Adoption Option,” her book and platform that helps facilitate adoptions for children in foster care. As an adoptive parent herself, she made it her mission to make it easier for other families to adopt children from foster care, helping to place as many as possible in loving homes.
“Some types of adoption are cost-prohibitive for many families and can take years,” says Bursac. “The reality is that there are thousands of children who need a forever family today, and foster care adoption is an option that can make this dream more financially affordable for more families.”
Marcy has already helped more than 12,000 families through the foster care adoption process. She plans to use the grant money to fund her continued efforts to unite children in foster care with their forever families.
Inspired? Write down your own goals and aspirations and include all the little details required to bring them to life. Be sure to reach for a high-quality writing instrument like G2, the longest lasting gel ink pen. To learn more about the G2 Overachievers Grant competition or to enter or nominate someone you know, visit G2Overachievers.com.
“We know firsthand that we are so much more likely to achieve our goals when we put pen to paper,” says Ariann Langsam, vice president of marketing for Pilot Pen. “That’s why we pride ourselves on both providing the tools that people can use to make a difference in the lives of others, and recognizing and amplifying the work of individuals who are making those efforts.”
StatePoint Media - 2023 was a landmark year for Alzheimer’s disease research, including advancements in treatment, risk factors and diagnosis. Here are five significant discoveries made this year:
There are three new approved treatments for Alzheimer’s, with a fourth on the way
In July, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted traditional approval for Leqembi for mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer’s and mild Alzheimer’s dementia. This treatment slows cognitive decline and can help people with early Alzheimer’s maintain their independence.
In June 2021, the FDA granted accelerated approval to Aduhelm for the same purpose. At the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) in July 2023, Lilly reported positive results for a third similar treatment: donanemab. The company expects FDA action in early 2024.
In May, the FDA approved the first treatment for agitation in people with Alzheimer’s — brexpiprazole.
Hearing aids could slow cognitive decline for at-risk older adults
In the largest clinical trial to investigate whether a hearing loss treatment can reduce risk of cognitive decline, researchers found that older adults with hearing loss cut their cognitive decline in half by using hearing aids for three years.
The intervention included hearing aids, a hearing “toolkit,” and ongoing instruction and counseling. Though the positive results were in a subgroup of the total study population, they are encouraging and merit further investigation.
Blood tests for Alzheimer’s are coming soon.
Blood tests show promise for improving how Alzheimer’s is diagnosed. Advancements reported for the first time at AAIC 2023 demonstrate the simplicity and value to doctors of blood-based markers for Alzheimer’s.
Blood tests are already being implemented in Alzheimer’s drug trials. And they are incorporated into proposed new diagnostic criteria for the disease. Blood tests — once verified and approved by the FDA — would offer a noninvasive and cost-effective option for identifying the disease.
First-ever U.S. county-level Alzheimer’s prevalence estimates
The first-ever county-level estimates of the prevalence of Alzheimer’s dementia — in all 3,142 U.S. counties — were reported at AAIC 2023. For counties with a population of more than 10,000 people age 65 and older, the highest Alzheimer’s prevalence rates are in:
• Miami-Dade County, Fla. (16.6%)
• Baltimore City, Md. (16.6%)
• Bronx County, N.Y. (16.6%)
• Prince George’s County, Md. (16.1%)
• Hinds County, Miss. (15.5%)
Certain characteristics of these counties may explain the higher prevalence, including older age and a higher percentage of Black and Hispanic residents, which are communities disproportionately impacted by Alzheimer’s disease. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, these statistics can help officials determine the burden on the health care system, and pinpoint areas for culturally-sensitive caregiver training.
Chronic constipation is associated with poor cognitive function
Approximately 16% of the world’s population struggles with constipation. This year, researchers reported that less frequent bowel movements were associated with significantly worse cognitive function.
People in the study with bowel movements every three days or more had worse memory and thinking equal to three years of cognitive aging. These results stress the importance of clinicians discussing gut health with their older patients.
To learn more about Alzheimer’s and dementia research, plus available care and support — and to join the cause or make a donation — visit the Alzheimer’s Association at www.alz.org.
While there is still much to learn about Alzheimer’s, 2023 was a year of discovery, giving researchers and families impacted by the disease hope for the year ahead.
Holidays can be a wonderful time of year when families get together and catch up on each other’s busy lives. All too often is also the time that you may find that things aren’t quite the same with our aging family members.
Those twenty-minute calls once or twice a month made everything seem a okay with the parents or grandparents. But now, you have noticed the signs and symptoms of dementia are starting to show.
Although the COVID-19 pandemic turned the world upside down, the rapid development of multiple vaccines has spurred hope that treatments – or even potential cures – may be found for other devastating conditions. One such candidate is Alzheimer’s Disease.
PONTIAC - People everywhere are conquering their cabin fever and are enjoying the great outdoors after a long, bitter winter. But before you head out for that hike, health care experts remind you to take precautions to avoid tick bites. Read more . . .
CHICAGO - An Illinois law professor is weighing in on what she called a "very public and open test of due process" for immigrants being deported from the United States without court hearings. Read more . . .
CHAMPAIGN - In a show of solidarity against President Donald Trump's trade and immigration policies, which critics say are harming families and retirement savings, more than a thousand protesters gathered Saturday at West Park near downtown Champaign for the Hands-Off! Mobilization rally. Read more . . .
Photo Galleries
A couple of runners found themselves in the wrong race at this year's Illinois Marathon. Over 60 photos from the race that you should see.
