Researchers at Harvard University's John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have invented pop-up shoe grips, inspired by snake skin, that boost friction between the shoe and the ground to reduce the risk of falling among older adults, reports News-Medical . A study in Nature Biomedical Engineering details the shoe grips' development, which tapped the Japanese art of paper cutting known as kirigami to emulate the snake scales. The team fabricated the gripper from a thin, flexible steel sheet with dozens of scale-like cuts. The cuts pop out into spikes when the sheet stretches, digging into the ground and creating friction. The spikes fold back in when the foot flattens, and MIT's Sahab Babaee said "we designed these assistive grippers to pop out when weight shifts from the heel to the toe and the shoe bends and stretches along the soles." SEAS' Ahmad Rafsanjani added that the cuts were made at precise points to ensure stiffness and pop-out "at the best possible angle of attack to maximize the grip of the kirigami with the contacting surface."

The Vitality Society online platform offers activities for people 60 and older, including fitness/wellness classes, in order to widen participants' social circle, reports WPVI-TV . "We focus on fostering camaraderie, providing community, and offering coaching," said Vitality Society founder Meredith Oppenheim. The platform is guided by eight principles, one of which is Be, according to Oppenheim. "We want our members to 'be' the best versions of themselves," she explained. The platform offers 13 weekly classes hosted on Zoom, with dance classes the most popular. Oppenheim moderates classes, holding group chats before and after sessions. "My passion is for helping people live longer, healthier lives," she said. "I'm excited to ignite this movement and be a leader in supporting people 60 and older who are young at heart that want to remain that way."

A study published in the Journals of Gerontology found older men may be at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 because they worry less about catching or dying from it than their female peers or than younger people of both sexes, reports ScienceDaily . Georgia State University researchers administered a questionnaire rating COVID-19 perceptions and behavior changes. Unsurprisingly, most participants were at least moderately concerned about COVID-19, and only one individual, an older man, had "absolutely no worry at all." More than 80 percent of participants also said they were washing their hands more often, taking more care about cleanliness, no longer shaking hands, and avoiding public places. More than 60 percent also reported no longer socializing with others, and those who were most concerned about COVID-19 were the most likely to have made these changes. Yet compared to all other participants, older men were less worried about the virus and had made the fewest number of behavior changes — and were relatively less likely to have worn a mask, to report having stopped touching their faces, or to have bought extra food. "For older men, accurate perception of risk worked as well as worry to predict preventive behaviors," Georgia State's Sarah Barber concluded.

Scientists suggest that the loss of the ability to sense smells, which has come to be associated with COVID-19, also could signal early dementia, reports the Mirror . "Our sense of smell is directly connected to the parts of our brain ­associated with memory and emotion," said Professor Nancy Rawson at the Monell Chemical Senses Center. "Odors activate receptors in the ­olfactory bulb, a structure near the bridge of the nose, which is only two connections away from the hippocampus and the amygdala — the learning and memory parts of the brain." In a study of 3,000 adults 57 to 80 years old, 80 percent of those who could not identify at least two of five distinct smells — peppermint, fish, orange, rose, and leather — received a dementia diagnosis within five years. "Loss of the sense of smell is a strong signal that something has gone wrong and significant damage has been done to the brain," warned University of Chicago Professor Jayant Pinto. "A simple smell test could provide a quick and inexpensive way to identify those who are at high risk."

Argentum CEO James Balda participated in Yahoo Finance's On The Move panel discussion to address the future of senior living communities, noting that they are still significantly short of personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing for the coronavirus. Balda said Argentum is seeking $20 billion in federal funding for these communities, to offset the costs of PPE and testing. "COVID-19 has really forced providers to limit access to their buildings and restrict new move-ins," leading to "escalating increases in costs related to staffing and supplies," he noted. Concurrently, the communities' revenue is decreasing from the lack of new residents. Among the long-term post-pandemic changes Balda suggested may happen in the senior living industry are alterations in the physical structure of community buildings in terms of new development, which he expects will carry more benefits than in nursing communities. "You'll also see enhanced infection control protocols," he predicted.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says keeping active offers a wide range of benefits for older adults, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution . "Older adults can obtain significant health benefits with a moderate amount of physical activity, preferably daily," according to the agency. However, those engaging in exercise for the first time should do so gradually, while some exercises may be more appropriate for older adults than others. Barbara Bergin with Texas Orthopedics, Sports & Rehabilitation Associates recommends that older adults focus on workouts for building strength and improving balance rather than high-impact exercises such as running. Swimming is highly recommended, as it offers a good cardiovascular workout and is low impact for joints and bones. Meanwhile, the National Institute of Health endorses yoga as beneficial for strength, balance, and building muscle — as well as for stress relief and sleep. Walking is both easy and well-suited for current social distancing practices, while cycling, like swimming, is a low-impact exercise that benefits cardiovascular health. A fifth recommended workout is bodyweight exercises like chair squats, wall pushups, or stair climbing, which can maintain muscle health and prevent weight gain as one ages.

University of Pittsburgh Professor Bistra Iordanova will use a $2,581,762 grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health to study how sex differences contribute to cognitive impairment and dementia, reports News-Medical . "The vascular system affects cognitive impairment and dementia of both men and women with Alzheimer's disease; however, research shows that the pathways, severity, and presentation seem to be different," she says. Iordanova intends to more deeply examine the brain to see how sex differences shape the linkage between neural activity and alterations in cerebral blood flow. She also will investigate the channeling of energy within the brain in real time, and how aging-related hormonal shifts may affect the brain's energy consumption. "Our approach will examine the gene expression of individual cells and use brain imaging to determine the specific cell types that contribute to neurovascular resilience," explains Iordanova. "We hope that our data will uncover personalized molecular targets for therapy and improve treatment of dementia."

A hybrid human-artificial intelligence (AI) workforce can help the U.S. seniors manage their health and get through the COVID-19 pandemic, reports MedCity News . Key to realizing this are applications inside the AI Asset Ecosystem, which include conversational computing, robotic process automation, and machine learning. Conversational AI can now assist the public in identifying potential risk indicators for the virus, providing an interactive solution that screens for symptoms, guided by details recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Each interaction also needs to be multilingual, as well as culturally and linguistically relevant to non-university-based educational levels in order to reference prior dialogues intelligently. Conversational virtual assistants can deliver always-on support patients need, supplying access to personalized data to inform self-care from home, under the remote guidance of a doctor or caregiver. A conversational AI workforce can greatly supplement the current ambulatory healthcare delivery team attempting to assist older adults in following their care plans and gradually eliminating adverse behavioral patterns.

A study published in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences found a possible association between the increased risk among people with dementia and high rates of new coronavirus infections in nursing communities, reports WebMD . The APOE e4e4 gene variant is known to boost the risk of Alzheimer's disease as well as heart disease, and an analysis of roughly 382,000 people of European ancestry found the variant in about 2.4 percent. Meanwhile, 5.1 percent of participants who tested positive for COVID-19 had the variant as well, which suggests that carriers are at twice the risk of coronavirus infection. "This is an exciting result because we might now be able to pinpoint how this faulty gene causes vulnerability to COVID-19," said University of Connecticut Professor Chia-Ling Kuo. "This could lead to new ideas for treatments." Moreover, people with dementia are three times more likely to get severe COVID-19, but they are not within the populations advised to protect against infection or shelter in place. "This study suggests that this high risk may not simply be due to the effects of dementia, advancing age or frailty, or exposure to the virus in care homes," said University of Exeter Professor David Melzer. "The effect could be partly due to this underlying genetic change, which puts them at risk for both COVID-19 and dementia."

The Community Services Department of Independence, Ohio, has initiated an "Indy Pen Pals" program to connect seniors and younger residents during the quarantine, reports Cleveland.com . The city is encouraging residents of all ages to write a card or letter to a senior, which may be store-bought or handmade. Residents can write to specific seniors in the community, as well as author a generic letter that could be sent to any program participant. The Community Services Department explained that the letter should be placed in an unsealed, stamped envelope with the writer's name and return address. These letters can be deposited into the mailbox outside of the Civic Center, after which Community Services staff will match the letters with seniors and mail them out. According to Independence Mayor Greg Kurtz, the program aims to nurture intergenerational friendships and communication channels that are "beneficial to everyone who participates, particularly now when many people are staying home and practicing social distancing."