Gerontology News and Research

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Gerontology is the study of the social, psychological and biological aspects of aging.

Severe mortality-associated diseases less prevalent in members of long-lived families

Recent research from the Long Life Family Study (LLFS) confirms that severe mortality-associated diseases are less prevalent in the families of long-lived individuals than in the general population. The Journals of Gerontology, Series A will publish these findings in the article titled, "Are Members of Long-Lived Families Healthier than Their Equally Long-Lived Peers? Evidence from the Long Life Family Study" on March 5, 2015.

6 Mar 2015

Association for Gerontology in Higher Education announces new awardees

The Association for Gerontology in Higher Education -- the educational branch of The Gerontological Society of America -- is proud to announce its newest awardees. The presentation of the awards will occur at AGHE's 41st Annual Meeting and Educational Leadership Conference, taking place from February 26 to March 1 at the Sheraton Nashville Downtown in Nashville, Tennessee.

28 Feb 2015

Study lays groundwork for building consensus on successful aging

Scholars have long debated what successful aging is, how to measure it, and how to promote it. But the latest issue of The Gerontologist lays the groundwork for building consensus on the topic -- while pointing out that the answer may differ among academics and the general public, as well as across populations and demographic groups.

16 Feb 2015

OUP announces launch of new journal that focuses on worker aging and retirement

Oxford University Press is pleased to announce the launch of a new interdisciplinary journal, Work, Aging and Retirement, which is published in association with Lingnan (University) College of Sun Yat-sen University.

15 Feb 2015

NSF issues new recommendations for proper sleep durations

The National Sleep Foundation, along with a multi-disciplinary expert panel, issued its new recommendations for appropriate sleep durations. The report recommends wider appropriate sleep ranges for most age groups. The results are published in Sleep Health: The Official Journal of the National Sleep Foundation.

3 Feb 2015

Prevalence of falls among older adults on the rise

Over a 12-year period, the prevalence of self-reported falls among older adults appeared to be on the rise, according to a new nationally representative study.

19 Jan 2015

Abnormal attachment of sugar to BACE1 enzyme leads to formation of Aβ plaques in the brain

Researchers at the RIKEN-Max Planck Joint Research Center in Japan have demonstrated that hallmark symptoms of Alzheimer's disease can be reduced when sugars are prevented from binding to one of the key enzymes implicated in the disease. The new findings, reported in EMBO Molecular Medicine, show that abnormal attachment of a particular sugar to the enzyme BACE1 is a critical factor leading to the formation of Aβ plaques in the brain, and that plaques were reduced and cognitive performance improved when this action was prevented in mice through loss of the enzyme GnT-III.

17 Jan 2015

Individualized, patient-centered care needed to treat and monitor people with chronic pain

An independent panel convened by the National Institutes of Health concluded that individualized, patient-centered care is needed to treat and monitor the estimated 100 million Americans living with chronic pain. To achieve this aim, the panel recommends more research and development around the evidence-based, multidisciplinary approaches needed to balance patient perspectives, desired outcomes, and safety.

14 Jan 2015

Man-made insulin nasal spray may improve memory in adults with Alzheimer's-related dementia

A man-made form of insulin delivered by nasal spray may improve working memory and other mental capabilities in adults with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease dementia, according to a pilot study led by researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

9 Jan 2015

New multidisciplinary publication presents current findings on healthy aging

The way people age is determined by many factors including lifestyle, health conditions, genetics but also socioeconomic position, social cohesion and even the current national economic situation.

22 Dec 2014

Aging: A risk factor for malnutrition

Health care systems and providers are not attuned to older adults' malnutrition risk, and ignoring malnutrition exacts a toll on hospitals, patients, and payers, according to the latest issue of the What's Hot newsletter from The Gerontological Society of America.

18 Dec 2014

Maf1 protein that makes other proteins also controls fat levels in the body

Like a smart sensor that adjusts the lighting in each room and a home's overall temperature, a protein that governs the making of other proteins in the cell also appears capable of controlling fat levels in the body.

14 Dec 2014

Researchers evaluate barriers to coordinating 'transitional care' of older adults

In what is believed to be the first interview-style qualitative study of its kind among health care providers in the trenches, a team led by a Johns Hopkins geriatrician has further documented barriers to better care of older adults as they are transferred from hospital to rehabilitation center to home, and too often back again.

5 Dec 2014

Johns Hopkins to fund new center to improve health, well-being of older people

Johns Hopkins University has been awarded a five-year, $1.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Aging to fund a center that will conduct research on the informal support resources of vulnerable older adults.David L. Roth, Ph.D., director of Hopkins’ Center on Aging and Healthand a professor in the Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, will be the principal investigator.

5 Dec 2014

First issue of GSA's new publication series explores pain as public health problem

The first issue of a new publication series from The Gerontological Society of America called From Policy to Practice explores pain as a public health problem and takes a look at how various policies impact the care provided to patients in a range of practice settings.

23 Nov 2014

PP&AR: 1 out of 4 older Americans experience unwanted medical treatment

Nearly one out of four older Americans say that either they or a family member have experienced excessive or unwanted medical treatment, according to the latest issue of The Gerontological Society of America's Public Policy & Aging Report, which goes on to show that Americans strongly support holding doctors accountable when they fail to honor patients' end-of-life health care wishes.

31 Oct 2014

BIDMC investigators develop three-minute assessment that identifies delirium in older hospital patients

Delirium is a state of confusion that develops suddenly, often following an acute medical illness, a surgical procedure or a hospitalization. Although delirium is estimated to complicate hospital stays for over 2.5 million elderly individuals in the U.S. each year, this common condition often goes undetected. The end result can be serious complications with sometimes devastating consequences for vulnerable hospitalized elders.

21 Oct 2014

Social status can impact health, happiness even among egalitarian forager-farmers

In western society, where keeping up with the Joneses — or, better yet, surpassing them — is expected and even encouraged, status matters. So important is it that for many people, physical and emotional wellbeing are directly connected to their place in the social hierarchy.

9 Oct 2014

Bad sleep quality may trigger insomnia in older adults

Reports of insomnia are common among the elderly, but a new study finds that sleep problems may stem from the quality of rest and other health concerns more than the overall amount of sleep that patients get.