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March 2011
In This Issue
- The Myth of the "New Old Age"
- Forget the Pyramid: This Month Use a Color Wheel to Help With Meal Planning
- Caregiver Profile: Rosemary Agnik
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"Family Resource Home Care provides peace of mind, relief, respite, respect, dignity, and joy in friendship to our senior clients, their families, and their caregivers." |
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Sheila McKannay
VP - Client Care |
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The Myth of the "New Old Age"
Susan Jacoby, author, scholar and all around “advocate of reason” has written a new book, NEVER SAY DIE: The Myth and Marketing of the New Old Age. In this book she challenges the age-related myths of the health industry and American culture that even in aging we can still have it all – a rich fulfilling life, adventure, financial prosperity and physical health and an active social life. This is all propaganda, contends Ms. Jacoby; a marketing ploy aimed at the baby boom generation, who are now just beginning to turn 65, and who will do or buy just about anything to stave off the reality of getting old.
According to Ms. Jacoby’s thesis, baby boomers were raised in the can-do, self-help “me-generation” that said it was not only possible but imperative that we keep on reinventing ourselves to stay healthy and young. Boomers were told that age is just a number and that with the help of medical science, their later years will be filled with “vigor, work, travel and ‘giving back.’”
“The idea that there is a new kind of old age that is going to be very different than old age has ever been in the past, is a misconception,” suggests Ms. Jacoby. With advances in medicine we are all living longer. But that it is possible to defy the physical deterioration, suffering, crushing loneliness and the indignity of losing our independence, may sell products, but it is not based on either real life experience or good science.
Read the entire article
Read an excerpt from Never Say Die
Forget the Pyramid: This Month Use a Color Wheel to Help With Meal Planning
Every day we are bombarded with a dizzying array of diets that promise to make us thin, add muscle, give us clear skin and provide the nutrients we need to run a marathon. But this month the American Dietetic Association suggests that we simplify our lives and return to the core principles of a healthy diet. Their theme for 2011 National Nutrition Month is “Eat Right With Color,” and emphasizes the health benefits of including “a colorful variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins and dairy on (our) plates every day.”
This theme echoes the message in a new report put out by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services. The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, recommends an increased focus on a plant-based diet. This combined with including lean meats, fish and poultry, and low-fat milk and dairy products creates a “rainbow of colors” on the plate that serve as the foundation for a healthful eating plan.
Choosing a variety of colorful foods is important because every color indicates the presence of different nutrients.
Green produce indicates antioxidant potential and may help promote healthy vision and reduce cancer risks.
· Fruits: avocado, apples, grapes, honeydew, kiwi and lime
· Vegetables: artichoke, asparagus, broccoli, green beans, green peppers and leafy greens such as spinach
Orange and deep yellow fruits and vegetables contain nutrients that promote healthy vision and immunity, and may reduce the risk of some cancers.
·Read the entire article
Read more about the ADA’s “Eat Right With Color” program
Caregiver Profile: Rosemary Agnik
 Rosemary Agnik’s current client has dementia and no longer speaks. But she and Rosemary have a special connection and somehow, believes Rosemary, they are able to communicate with each other. “I speak and read to her all the time,” says Rosemary. “She follows me with her eyes and I sense what she needs and what she is feeling. She is so special. I just love her.”
Ten years ago it had not yet crossed Rosemary’s mind to look for a job as a caregiver. She was doing office work in Los Angeles when her mother, who lived in Arizona, needed assistance. So Rosemary moved to Arizona to provide that care. After her mother passed away, Rosemary moved to Seattle. She took another office job but discovered that she missed caregiving and spending time with seniors. In 2001 she looked at the help wanted ads in the newspaper, called the number for Family Resource Home Care, and began a relationship that has lasted now for almost 10 years.
Rosemary is incredibly devoted to her client. “She needs so much and I just love to help her,” said Rosemary. “I let her know that I am committed to her, that I enjoy helping her, and that she is loved. I see her as my mom and I just want to help and be a friend. I wish I had more years to do this work,” she concluded.
When not working, Rosemary loves spending time with her four children and eight grandchildren. But she is quick to point out that FRHC is also like “one big happy family.”
“When I call the office, whoever I speak to is so happy to assist,” said Rosemary. “And when I go to the office, the staff there makes me feel like I am a person of value.”
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© 2011 Family Resource Home Care, all rights reserved.
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