Dutchess County Office for the Aging’s
AGING NEWS
For the week of January 10th
Note: the Office for the Aging and all OFA Senior Friendship Centers will be closed in observance of the national Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday on Monday, January 17th. Clients of OFA’s Home Delivered Meals program will receive their meals in advance of the holiday.
WHEN IT SNOWS…
In the event of disruptions to OFA Home Delivered Meals and/or Senior Friendship Centers services, any postponements or cancellations will be posted on Dutchess County Government social media at facebook.com/DutchessCoGov and twitter.com/DutchessCoGov.
Postponements/cancellations will also be announced and/or posted on area radio stations and their websites.
AVOIDING THE POST-HOLIDAY SLIDE INTO DEPRESSION
It may not have been a jolly holiday season for seniors who live alone. Two out of every seven American seniors live alone, according to a recent estimate from the National Council on Aging (NCOA) – and with over 60,000 seniors living in Dutchess County, that would be over 17,000 of our senior friends and neighbors living alone.
It’s being alone for the holidays, and through the winter, that can bring an even heavier burden of loneliness – equivalent to a 15-cigarette-a-day smoking habit, according to NCOA. As a risk factor, loneliness has more impact on seniors’ mortality than even obesity or a sedentary lifestyle.
It doesn’t have to be that way. The Office for the Aging plays a key role in helping seniors maintain social connections and keep loneliness at bay, most notably with our eight Senior Friendship Centers, in Beacon, East Fishkill, Millerton, Pawling, Red Hook, South Amenia (Wassaic), the City of Poughkeepsie, and Pleasant Valley, where our Tri-Town Senior Friendship Center reopened in the fall of 2021.
Visit a Friendship Center and the first thing you may hear are seniors laughing. There could be a furious game of mah-jongg happening at one table. At the next table over, they’re debating how the Knicks look this season. At another table, it’s an exchange of advice on which stores have been able to keep cans of cat food stocked.
There’s also a nutritious midday meal, and a regular variety of informative and entertaining presentations. If a senior you know is interested in finding out more about Senior Friendship Centers, contact information is available at dutchessny.gov/OFANutrition, or by calling 845-486-2555.
GOOD NUTRITION CAN DEFEAT THE WINTER BLUES
As the glow of the holidays fades, feeling a bit blue may seem normal enough – but there’s reason to be concerned if the feeling continues for more than a couple of weeks. It may be Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) manifesting itself. Even pets can suffer from SAD, according to researchers from the University of British Columbia.
While a call to a health care provider may be in order, there’s a good chance a senior could be prescribed good nutrition rather than an antidepressant, especially if the senior is already taking several other prescribed medications.
This month’s issue of the OFA Nutrition News contains a trove of useful information on nutrition’s role in preventing depression, including the foods that can help and those that can’t. There’s also an easy recipe for Portuguese caldo verde, a hearty green soup containing potatoes, collards or kale, and chicken or beans. You can find each Nutrition News at dutchessny.gov/OFANutrition.
Golden Living is prepared by the Dutchess County Office for the Aging, 114 Delafield St., Poughkeepsie, New York 12601, telephone 845-486-2555, email: ofa@dutchessny.gov website: www.dutchessny.gov/aging
OFA SEEKS VOLUNTEER EXERCISE LEADERS IN HYDE PARK, LaGRANGE, PAWLING, POUGHKEEPSIE, RED HOOK
The Office for the Aging’s Senior Exercise Program is looking for volunteer class leaders at venues throughout Dutchess County. Several classes in the Poughkeepsie area are looking for volunteer leaders, as are OFA classes in Hyde Park, LaGrange, Pawling and Upper Red Hook.
Training is provided, and all current COVID-19 safety protocols are followed. We’ll work with your availability, whatever it may be, as best we can. For more information, contact OFA at 845-486-2555 or ofa@dutchessny.gov.
Other aging news online:
Things to know about the new “No Surprises Act” national medical billing law: https://www.nextavenue.org/what-to-know-about-new-surprise-medical-bills-law/
Former MLB pitcher Jim Corsi died this past week at age 60 of complications from colon cancer, which he said might have been prevented had he gotten a colonoscopy when he was younger: https://www.mlb.com/news/jim-corsi-dies-at-60
Can you “think yourself young?” There’s five decades of research that says yes: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2022/jan/02/can-you-think-yourself-young-ageing-psychology
Some useful tips for senior job-seekers: https://seniorplanet.org/beat-the-bots-when-job-hunting/?utm_source=Senior+Planet+Email+List&utm_campaign=9f2af20261-the-orbit_01-04-22&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_7aaa498d1b-9f2af20261-419083417
More US seniors, especially women, are retaining healthy brains: https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2021-12-30/more-u-s-seniors-especially-women-are-retaining-healthy-brains-study
This week in senior birthdays:
1/10: Singer/songwriter Rod Stewart (77)
1/11: Singer/songwriter/actress Naomi Judd (76)
1/12: Magician/mentalist “the Amazing” Kreskin (87)
1/13: Actor Richard Moll (79)
1/14: Drag racing legend Don Garlits (90)
1/15: Guitarist/actress Charo (71 or 76 or…nobody’s quite sure. Es un misterio!)
1/16: Journalist/author William Kennedy
And we did not forget a Bad Joke to wrap up the week:
Q: When do you know you’re old enough to retire?
A: When you stop lying about your age and start bragging about it!
