Baby boomers and senior adults are increasingly moving to dedicated 55-plus communities in Central Massachusetts, reports the Worcester Business Journal . There are more than 2,000 such units either underway or just completed in the region. Most have common spaces and amenities designed to foster a sense of community, along with a dearth of big yards requiring much upkeep. Regency at Glen Ellen in Millis features a part-time lifestyle coordinator who plans activities and sets a calendar of events. The community has a clubhouse with a gym and yoga room, an outdoor fire pit, and bocce and tennis courts. "The socialization aspect of it is really important," said Beth Mace with the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care. "People want to be with other people instead of being lonely at home alone." The expansion of active-adult communities is driven by a population bubble, with the U.S. Census Bureau estimating that 29 percent of Massachusetts residents in 2017 were 55 or older versus 25 percent in 2007.

The state of Colorado is a perfect embodiment of how to adjust workforce policy to reflect the changing demographics of the older adult population and labor pool, reports the Strategic Action Planning Group on Aging's (SAPGA) Workforce Development Committee Co-Chair Tony Tapia in The Hill . He cites the state legislature's 2015 approval of the establishment of the SAPGA to formulate a state policy blueprint to address the population of burgeoning older adults that will be increasing through 2030 and after. "One of our first recommendations . . . was the creation of a Senior Advisor on Aging," Tapia writes. From this originated the Lifelong Colorado Initiative, which made Colorado the third state in the nation to participate in the AARP Network of the Age-Friendly States and Communities. "In Colorado, the policy advances are being paralleled with an effort called Changing Narrative Colorado," Tapia adds. "This initiative is based on national research by the FrameWorks Institute, a nonprofit that works to shift perceptions and increase public understanding around social issues."

The Administration for Community Living reports that new materials are now available on the Older Americans Month (OAM) website to help users "make their mark" for #OAM2020 this May. Now available for download are the official English and Spanish versions of the OAM 2020 logo. The logos can be downloaded in various formats for digital and print use. Also available are a series of four "Make Your Mark" posters, each one available in English and Spanish. The posters may be reproduced freely, electronically, and in print. The "Make Your Mark" theme was chosen to encourage and celebrate the many contributions older adults make to their communities with their time, experience, and talents.

An AARP study contradicted conventional wisdom by finding that Americans 50 and older are adopting consumer technology at rates close to those 18 to 49, reports Becker's Hospital Review . Polls of more than 2,600 Americans 50 and up found older Americans eventually see similar tech adoption rates to those of Generation X, millennials, and Generation Z and report using their devices on a almost-daily basis. Moreover, many 50-and-older Americans are receptive to using technology in healthcare, with 53 percent of respondents saying they would prefer their medical needs managed by a combination of healthcare professionals and technology. In addition, 28 percent of baby boomers reported using their smartphone to manage or receive healthcare in the three months before the survey. Twenty-five percent used their phones to access health and fitness information, and an equal number tracked their health and fitness using apps or websites with their devices. Meanwhile, nearly one-fifth of Americans 50 and older own a health-tracking wearable device — almost as many as Americans 18 to 49 — and even more said they were interested in purchasing more devices to manage their health and fitness. About 40 percent said they are interested in devices that remind users which drugs to take and when to take them and that automatically submit medication adherence reports and vital sign readings to care providers.

A study from Alzheimer's Research UK detailed the British public's views toward early detection and diagnosis of Alzheimer's, reports Medical Xpress . The report urges action to improve communication about dementia, support research efforts into earlier diagnosis, and ready the National Health Service (NHS) for future treatments. The research estimated that 74 percent of U.K. adults would want to know they had Alzheimer's prior to symptom onset, while 33 percent said they would want to know two years ahead of time and 38 percent would want to know 15 years beforehand. Moreover, at least 75 percent of Britons said they would be willing to undertake cognitive tests, brain imaging, blood tests, and eye tests if they could help determine their risk of Alzheimer's. Despite this, 51 percent of U.K. adults did not know or disagreed with the statement that "Alzheimer's begins decades before symptoms emerge." "It's vital that we begin discussions with the public about why and how we can start to make an earlier diagnosis of Alzheimer's," said Alzheimer's Research UK Chief Medical Officer and Professor Jonathan Schott. "This report suggests that the public is ready for this discussion — and that clinicians have a vital role to play."

Politico Pro reports that President Trump's recent outburst over not getting enough credit for tackling drug costs has left Health Secretary Alex Azar scrambling to get the plan the White House initially floated in 2018 finished ahead of Trump's upcoming State of the Union address. Most concur that Trump has one big option to make good on his promise to slash drug prices: tie the cost of U.S. drugs to the lower prices paid abroad. There had been some internal disagreement among Azar and such other key health officials as White House Domestic Policy Council Director Joe Grogan over whether to release the rule on international benchmarking, as Azar wanted, or keep it for leverage as Capitol Hill lawmakers continue debating drug pricing, as Grogan has championed. Some observers say Trump's insistence on an imminent win helped bring the dueling parties around issuing the rule. Linking the cost of some Medicare drugs to what's paid abroad would almost certainly trigger immediate legal challenges from the drug industry. It also remains uncertain whether any businesses would want to take on the risk of negotiating with drug companies to get their prices closer to international levels, as Trump's plan proposes.

A new AARP study found more adults 50 years and older are embracing technology, with smartphone usage rising from 70 percent in 2017 to 77 percent in 2019, reports PR Newswire . Moreover, adults 50 and older are adopting consumer technology, like smartphones, wearables, home assistants/smart speakers, and smart home technology, at nearly the same rate as people 18 to 49. The results indicate that most owners use whatever technology they adopt on a daily basis. "The results reflect what we all are seeing in our daily lives, with our parents, relatives, friends, and neighbors using technology on a regular basis to stay connected and be entertained and informed," said AARP's Alison Bryant. "When adults see the need for and benefits of tech, they are using it in increasingly similar patterns as those in younger generations." The study also found that although people younger than 50 are losing interest in tablets, those over 50 continue to purchase them, with 52 percent owning one. Meanwhile, adults 50 and older are using smartphones and tablets to preserve social connections, find information, and for entertainment — although smaller numbers use them for financial transactions or home automation.

Neurotrope announced that its latest trial of Bryostatin-1, a treatment for Alzheimer's, showed positive results and that the company received a $2.7 million grant from the U.S. National Institute of Health to support another study, reports Fox Business . "I am encouraged by the NIH funding," said Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health Director Marwan Sabbagh. "The data suggests that Bryostatin may still be considered a new approach to Alzheimer's treatment." Neurotrope noted it also is studying Bryostatin for Fragile X syndrome, multiple sclerosis, stroke, traumatic brain injury, and other maladies.

A study in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease suggests a connection between exposure to aluminum and Alzheimer's disease (AD), reports SciTechDaily . Scientists discovered significant amounts of aluminum in brain tissue from donors with familial AD, as well as a high level of co-location with the amyloid-beta protein, which leads to early onset of AD. "This . . . is the first study to demonstrate an unequivocal association between the location of aluminum and amyloid-beta in the disease," said Keele University's Christopher Exley. "It shows that aluminum and amyloid-beta are intimately woven in the neuropathology." Aluminum levels were measured in the brain tissue of Colombians with familial AD who shared a mutation that leads to elevated amyloid-beta, early disease onset, and aggressive disease etiology. The levels were compared with a control set of tissues from donors with no diagnosis of neuropathological disease, while aluminum-specific fluorescence microscopy imaging probed the relationship between aluminum and amyloid-beta in familial AD. The aluminum content of tissue from donors with the mutation was universally high, with 42 percent of samples exhibiting a pathologically significant level, while levels were significantly higher than those in the controls. All brain tissues had aluminum deposits, predominantly co-located with amyloid-beta in senile plaques and occasionally in the brain vasculature.

A roundtable at the recent U.S. Conference of Mayors offered approaches to deal with the growth of older metropolitan populations, reports Axios . Participants cited affordable housing and access to transportation as critical issues affecting seniors. Mayor Bryan Barnett of Rochester Hills, Mich., said some older adults may think driverless vehicles are "'Jetsons'-type stuff." But when so many seniors are likely to live at least a decade or more beyond driving age, self-driving autos could improve their quality of life. Meanwhile, Mayor Quinton Lucas of Kansas City, Mo., noted his city offers some public bus rides for free, and most riders are seniors. Fort Worth, Texas, Mayor Betsy Price said the implementation of new technologies like cashless parking meters is underway, and her city hosts classes at local libraries to help seniors acclimate. In the meantime, CityLab says cities in the Midwest and Appalachia are graying faster as younger people relocate to the coasts. As a result, managing aging populations will be even more challenging in those areas.