The Waxahachie Daily Light reports that Molina Healthcare of Texas has launched a virtual art class series for seniors in partnership with the Dallas Museum of Art. "The Artist Within" program is geared toward seniors who may be feeling isolated in their nursing communities during the pandemic. More than 40 seniors in the Dallas-Fort Worth area participated in the first virtual class on April 26. Participating communities included Landmark of Plano, Midlothian Healthcare Center, Founders Plaza Nursing and Rehabilitation, and Willow Bend Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, while the museum provided art supply kits for each resident. "Studies show that engaging in creative pursuits helps reduce depression and anxiety in seniors and encourages enhanced cognitive function," said Molina Director of Community Engagement Sheila Shelton. "'The Artist Within' program supports Molina's mission to improve the health and well-being of seniors in Texas." The virtual art series is part of Molina's Quality Living program, which supports nursing communities that seek to boost their quality of care.

A study published in the Journal of Nutrition positively associated vitamin C with skeletal muscle mass in older adults, reports Pharmacy Times . The researchers reviewed data from over 13,000 people between ages 42 and 82 years, participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study. Participants who consumed a standard amount of dietary vitamin C had the highest skeletal muscle mass. The authors said 60 percent of men and 50 percent of women participating in the study were consuming less vitamin C as was recommended by the European Food Safety Agency. "Our findings . . . suggest that dietary vitamin C is important for muscle health in older men and women and may be useful for preventing age-related muscle loss," said the University of East Anglia's Richard Hayhoe. "This is particularly significant as vitamin C is readily available in fruits and vegetables, or supplements, so improving intake of this vitamin is relatively straightforward. We're not talking about people needing mega-doses. Eating a citrus fruit, such as an orange, each day and having a vegetable side to a meal will be sufficient for most people."

A study presented at the American Thoracic Society's 2021 conference found nearly two in five older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) cannot access required pulmonary rehabilitation services, reports United Press International . The authors identified nearly 10.3 million Medicare beneficiaries 65 and older who were diagnosed with COPD between 1999 and 2018. Data indicated that slightly fewer than 40 percent of beneficiaries reside over 10 miles away from the nearest pulmonary rehabilitation clinic. The nearest clinic offering COPD services, which include exercise and educational programs for improving lung function, is more than 25 miles away for almost 15 percent of the study group. Generally, one in four Medicare beneficiaries with COPD lives in small towns or rural areas with one pulmonary rehab clinic per 4,300 beneficiaries with COPD, on average. Previous research estimated that people who live more than 10 miles from a pulmonary rehabilitation clinic are less than half as likely to use treatment than those who live closer. "People with COPD should make themselves aware about pulmonary rehabilitation and discuss their options and available resources with their healthcare provider," advised the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Gargya Malla.

KCRW reports that beginning March 1, the Silverado long-term care community chain, with most locations in Southern California, started mandating COVID vaccines for staff. Silverado founder Loren Shook says before the mandate, as few as 50 percent of staff at some of the communities were voluntarily inoculated, and he was concerned about driving employees away in an industry that is already short-staffed. Now Silverado's worker vaccination rate is 97 percent, and fewer than 1 percent of their staff have quit while the other 2 percent either obtained an exemption or are attempting to get one. "If there is some sort of virus or pandemic or some other thing that creates a direct threat to the health and safety of others in the workplace, the employers can try to manage that," says Mizrahi Law founder Ramit Mizrahi. "If a vaccine is available that can mitigate that risk, employers are allowed to mandate that." Mizrahi adds that a vaccine requirement must come with several exemptions: a disability exemption for people who could have a severe allergic reaction to an ingredient in the vaccine, or a condition that prevents inoculation; and a religious exemption.

Yahoo! Finance reports that people over the age of 60 are using apps like Zoom, WhatsApp, and FaceTime to socialize and combat loneliness during the pandemic. A study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health polled 1,429 people, 84 percent of whom were over 60, and learned that many have adapted to videoconferencing technology to boost social interaction. "Our research found that the COVID-19 lockdown triggered feelings of loneliness in older people — with many experiencing less social contact and support," noted University of Stirling Professor Anna Whittaker. "However, the study also highlighted positive outcomes. For example, lockdown encouraged some older people to embrace and engage with technology . . . to stay in touch with loved ones or participate in exercise classes or religious groups." Many of those who engaged in such activity were able to prevent high levels of loneliness, therefore helping older adults to increase their digital literacy.

In an interview with PharmExec , Annovis Bio's Maria L. Maccecchini discusses her investigations into shielding nerve cells in the brain and in the body as a treatment for Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Annovis Bio makes a drug that combats neurodegeneration by enhancing axonal transport, the "information highway" of the nerve cell. "Axonal transport is the process by which nerve cells transfer substances between the cell body and the synapse," Maccecchini explains. "When the axonal transport system is not working properly, nerve cells can die, resulting in disease." Currently undergoing Phase II trials, the ANVS401 drug was originally designed to block production of the myloid precursor protein. "Additional research showed that the therapy actually inhibits the synthesis of all neurotoxic proteins; the ones that make plaque, which are amyloid, the ones that make tangles, which are tau, and the ones that make Lewy bodies, which are alpha-synuclein," Maccecchini says. "We are targeting multiple neurotoxic proteins with a single drug with a single target." The drug was found to improve the speed, coordination, and overall motor skill functions in people with Parkinson's disease following 25 days of treatment, while a current study on Alzheimer's patients will hopefully indicate that it improves their cognitive abilities.

A new study in Nature Aging determined that the late-life development of dementia, often from Alzheimer's disease, is associated with abnormal blood levels of numerous proteins up to five years earlier, reports ScienceDaily . The researchers analyzed blood samples of over 10,000 middle-aged and senior people, and connected abnormal blood levels of 38 proteins to higher risks of developing Alzheimer's in five years. Sixteen proteins appeared to predict Alzheimer's risk 20 years in advance. The analysis cited levels of one protein, SVEP1, as a likely causal contributor to disease progression. Other proteins associated with Alzheimer's risk included several key immune proteins, which tracks with decades of findings linking Alzheimer's to abnormally aggressive immune activity in the brain. "Some of these proteins we uncovered are just indicators that disease might occur, but a subset may be causally relevant, which is exciting because it raises the possibility of targeting these proteins with future treatments," said Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Professor Josef Coresh.

The Watauga Democrat reports that residents "adopted" stuffed animals at the Deerfield Ridge Assisted Living Community in Boone, N.C., at a recent event organized by the Watauga Dementia Project. The event was part of the project's efforts to distribute stuffed and robotic animals to dementia patients and all other residents of the community. "We figured that everyone could enjoy the event and the comfort of a stuffed animal, especially after the feelings of isolation imposed by the COVID-19 restrictions," said Project Coordinator Tyler Mancini. Each resident could select and name their animal, receive a polaroid, and sign an "Adoption Form" agreeing to love and care for their new pet. "It is amazing to think that something so simple as a stuffed animal would be so comforting and bring so much joy to each and every one," said Deerfield Ridge Social Director Lorie Fidler. "The residents have not let go of their new pets and enjoy telling staff and other residents all about their special friend."

A study in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report found that the prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in older Americans has steadily risen over the past 20 years, reports MedPage Today . The researchers reviewed data on Medicare fee-for-services beneficiaries age 67 and older enrolled in part A and part B, excluding health maintenance plans, with yearly samples ranging from 23.7 million to 25.6 million participants. Age-adjusted IBD prevalence increased annually by 3.4 percent for Crohn's disease and by 2.8 percent for ulcerative colitis 2001 to 2018. By 2018, 0.40 percent of the beneficiaries had received a Crohn's disease and 0.64 percent had received an ulcerative colitis diagnosis, which was most frequent among whites. The largest yearly percentage increase occurred among non-Hispanic Black individuals, at 5 percent for Crohn's disease and 3.5 percent for ulcerative colitis. IBD prevalence generally increases with age, with 10 percent to 15 percent of new diagnoses in people 60 and older. IBD also was more prevalent in women than men, and highest in large urban areas and Northeastern states. "The potential rapid increase of disease prevalence in certain racial and ethnic minority groups indicates the need for tailored disease management strategies in these populations," the investigators wrote.

National data indicates that COVID-19 patients ending up in U.S. hospitals are now tending to skew 50 or younger, reports the Wall Street Journal . Health officials and epidemiologists said this trend is unsurprising, given older Americans are being vaccinated at higher rates. However, they worry that stagnating immunization rates among younger Americans could delay the pandemic's end, while others fear that new, more transmissible and possibly deadlier variants are putting more younger people in hospitals. Americans 65 and older currently make up 28.5 percent of hospitalizations — a 24.5 percent decline from early January — while the proportion of COVID-19 patients between 18 to 49 surged. That demographic presently accounts for 36 percent of hospitalizations, marking a 15.5 percent spike. Patients 50 to 64 years old have increased 7.1 percent to constitute 32.4 percent of hospitalizations. "I think the real story here is that vaccines work," said MaineHealth Chief Medical Officer Joan Boomsma. "We're seeing fewer hospitalizations in the older age groups, and the only patients we're seeing in the ICU now are those who are not vaccinated."