Sleep Archive

Do you wake up tired, struggle to fall asleep, or rely on caffeine to get through the day? Your daily habits may be playing a bigger role in your sleep quality than you realize. This quick quiz will help you evaluate your sleep hygiene from your bedtime routine and screen use to exercise, stress, and sleep environment.

Stuffy nose and sneezing caused by allergies can narrow airways and disrupt sleep, sometimes fueling snoring and even sleep apnea. Targeted treatment may help.

A variety of disparate factors can speed up people’s biological aging, which describes how well their body functions (in comparison to chronological aging). Drivers of aging include ultraviolet light, stress, smoking, obesity, radiation, and loneliness and social isolation.

Links between restless legs and iron, caffeine, and alcohol are emerging. See which dietary tweaks might be worth trying.

Most people want to live at home for as long as possible as they age, and managing this successfully may mean hiring outside help. Considering this step raises many questions, and answering them honestly will help guide decisions about when and how to proceed.

Caring for a person with dementia is physically, emotionally, logistically, and financially demanding. Caregivers can benefit from numerous services, such as caregiver support groups; respite care; and dementia care navigators, such as the local Area Agency on Aging (which can provide a long list of resources) or a local hospital dementia care program. It can also help to speak to doctors about consolidating appointments for the person with dementia and to reach out to family and friends to ask for assistance.

There are many health-related requirements for living independently in older age. For example, one needs sharp thinking skills in order to manage medications, pay bills, choose clothes for the day, and select and buy groceries; and one needs strength, balance, and flexibility in order to get up from a chair, cook, or clean. People with weakening aspects of health should talk to a doctor for potential solutions to improve or cope with health challenges in order to continue living independently.

When you take an aging parent to a medical appointment, you wind up playing many roles. Millions of people in the US are caring for family members and are learning as they go along, so they can benefit from tips to keep them on track before, during, and after the appointment.