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Science in the Spotlight
Muscle Loss & Aging: Combatting Sarcopenia and Lost Independence
Typically, our muscles grow larger and stronger as we age. That is, until about the time we celebrate our 30th birthdays. That’s when most of us start down the other side of the hill and begin to gradually lose our muscle mass, strength, and function. While it’s usually not very noticeable in our 30s and 40s, the loss increases exponentially with age and tends to accelerate between the ages of 65 and 80.
This progressive loss of muscle mass is called sarcopenia, and it’s found to play a major role in the increased frailty, disability, and functional impairment that too often come with aging. While sarcopenia is a condition that is not uncommon with age, we don’t have to just sit back and accept it. There are things we can do to slow its progress, and current research promises to make that trip over-the-hill less traumatic.
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Report
2009 Task Force on Aging Research Funding
The 2009 Task Force on Aging Research Funding--more than 65 non-partisan disease groups, patient advocates, and foundations--urges Congress and the President to restore a national commitment to medical research on behalf of America's aging population. This year's report of the Task Force calls for a at least a 7% increase in funding for the National Institutes of Health in FY 2010. It also presents data on the burden of diseases and conditions that predominately affect older Americans, highlights the emerging research the NIH is doing to decrease these burdens, and serves as a resource for policymakers working to establish the funding levels necessary to advance healthy aging.
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Get Mad Column
Election 2008: Candidates Paying Too Little Attention to the Approaching Silver Tsunami
The 2008 presidential election is upon us and health care reform is at the top of both candidates’ agendas. Democratic Nominee Senator Barack Obama and Republican Nominee Senator John McCain have both offered detailed plans to fix our ailing health care system.
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Alliance Views
Caring for an Aging America: Moving from Study to action
In April the prestigious Institute of Medicine (IOM) released its latest report and recommendations about what needs to be done to build the health care workforce to care for an aging population. The report, Retooling for an Aging America: Building the Health Care Workforce, provides a snapshot of the health care challenges posed by elderly patients living with multiple chronic conditions, and highlights the increasingly complex health needs of this rapidly aging population and the inability of the nation’s current health care workforce to meet these needs.
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Report
2007 Task Force Report on Aging Research Funding
The 2007 Task Force on Aging Research Funding--more than 85 non-partisan disease groups, patient advocates, and foundations--urges Congress and the President to chart a better course for medical research on behalf of America's aging population. This year's report of the Task Force calls for a 6.7% increase in funding for the National Institutes of Health in FY 2008. It also presents data on the burden of 27 diseases and conditions that predominately affect older Americans, highlights some of the exciting work the NIH is doing to decrease these burdens, and serves as a resource for policymakers working to establish the funding levels necessary to advance healthy aging.
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Testimony
Geriatric Training Shortage Testimony:
Senate Special Committee on Aging
Daniel Perry, Executive Director of the Alliance for Aging Research testified before the Senate Special Committee on Aging, highlighting a new report Medical Never-Never Land: 10 Reasons Why America is Not Ready for the Coming Age Boom. The report highlights a critical gap in the education of U.S. health professionals.
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Report
Medical Never-Never Land:
Ten Reasons Why America is Not Ready for the Coming Age Boom
Less than 3% of health care providers have training to treat older patients. This lack of geriatric training is a crisis that will only grow as the Baby Boomer generation ages. Medical Never-Never Land is a report highlighting this crisis and based on a forum held under the auspices of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging.
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Alliance Views
Shortage of Geriatricians: A Quiet But Critical Health Care Crisis
Ever wonder whether the doctor treating your parent, older relative or friend, or you, if you happen to be over 65, has any special training in treating older people?
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Report
Will You Still Treat Me When I'm 65?
The National Shortage of Geriatricians
The level of geriatric training in the United States falls dangerously below what our nation's aging population will require to meet its healthcare needs. This report examines a looming healthcare crisis and provides recommendations on what should be done to correct today's unbalanced geriatric healthcare system.
