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LONDON, England / Telegraph / Elder Health / February 17, 2009

As Terry Pratchett receives his knighthood, Cassandra Jardine examines how this writer and other public figures have brought a Cinderella illness into the spotlight.

By Cassandra Jardine



Thanks in no small part to Terry Pratchett, there has been a crescendo in the discussion of Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia Photo: BBC

Never has an honour been more richly deserved than the knighthood that Terry Pratchett accepts today from the Queen. His fantasy novels are not to every taste, but the work he has done over the past year in a very different field has been both heroic and of universal significance.

This second career began in December 2007 when, aged 59, he was diagnosed with posterior cortical atrophy, a rare form of Alzheimer’s, which he described with comic disrespect as an “embuggerance”. Until Pratchett discovered that his brain was atrophying, dementia was discussed, if at all, with resignation. Pratchett was different. He went on the attack. When his wife said that at least it was better than having a brain tumour, he said he would rather die of cancer, like his father, than have an illness that “strips away your living self, bit by bit”.

It enrages him that Viagra is easier to get on the NHS than a drug to slow the progress of dementia. He is equally infuriated by the embarrassment that surrounds such conditions, which resembles the stigma attached to cancer 30 years ago, when “The Big C” was so frightening it could scarcely be named. Since then, survival rates have improved so much that cancer is no longer something to keep quiet about. Its lowly, whispered-about status has now passed to dementia, the next disease up the line for a population living ever longer.

But, as Pratchett says, “If we are to kill the demon, first we must say its name.” Thanks in no small part to him, there has been a crescendo in the discussion of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Yesterday, in an interview with the Telegraph, former newsreader John Suchet added his name to the list of those prepared to talk about what it is like having, or caring for someone with, dementia. In his case it is his wife, Bonnie, who suffers. “The Bonnie I love has gone. It’s as if she’s died,” he says. Sometimes the anguish is so great that he thumps pillows to relieve his frustration.

Fear lies behind the silence about an illness that affects 700,000 people in the UK. “It taps into our big fear of loss of control,” says Niall Dickson, chief executive of the King’s Fund, a charity which last year showed that dementia is costing the country more than cancer, heart disease and strokes combined. “The natural reaction to something frightening is to push it to one side – not just on a personal level, but in terms of policy, too, because people believe that nothing can be done.”

Denial is no longer an option, not now the Baby Boomers are collecting bus passes and coming into the firing line. With dyed hair and undiminished vigour, Sir Paul McCartney et al have convinced us that 60 is the new 40, but there is no ducking the fact that dementia strikes five per cent of those over 65, and one in five of those over 80.

The Baby Boomers, used to having the world at their feet, will not go gently into that good night – and the Government is starting to share their alarm. Two years ago the Alzheimer’s Society produced the first figures on the prevalence and cost of dementia, which it estimates will affect 1.7 million people in this country by 2050. In 10 years, the price tag for drugs, nursing and time lost to productive life by carers will be £25 billion. Yet according to Rebecca Wood of the Alzheimer’s Research Trust, it remains a “Cinderella” disease, starved of attention: only £29.2 million of public money goes into funding research, an eighth of the figure for cancer.

It has taken a century for public awareness to come even that far. In 1906 Alois Alzheimer, a German psychiatrist, first gave a name to the most common form of dementia. In the 1980s, amyloid, a protein, was found to be involved in destroying cognitive function, causing memory loss and confusion. But it was not until the 1990s that people began to talk of the disease – again because a public figure refused to keep his illness private.

Even Ronald Reagan’s enemies felt a lump in the throat on reading his last words to the American people on November 5, 1994. Written in ragged handwriting, with an ever-expanding white margin that looked like a metaphor for the spreading fog within his mind, he described how he and his wife, Nancy, had been open about having cancer in order to encourage others to seek treatment. Now he wanted to do the same for Alzheimer’s, as “I now begin that journey which will lead me into the sunset of my life.”

Five years later, when John Bayley published his memoir of his wife, Iris Murdoch, describing her decline into a husk of her former self, the novelist

Muriel Spark could still condemn his “sordid” account as “muckraking”. In 2001, when Judi Dench starred in the film of Bayley’s book, it did much to reduce the stigma. Yet the following year, half the respondents to a survey maintained that dementia was an inevitable part of ageing, not an illness that could be investigated and treated.

Now, however, that presumption has changed. “We need more research,” says Professor Julie Williams, scientific adviser to the Alzheimer’s Research Trust. “And we need it now, because there is a 10-year time lag before a drug reaches the market. In the next five years we will have found the key genes involved in Alzheimer’s. We will then be able to reduce the risk by combinations of treatment.”

To date there are just a few drugs, including Aricept, that seem to slow the progress of the disease. But the internet buzzes with reports of substances that seem to help: apple juice, turmeric, aspirin, ibuprofen. Drugs designed to control high blood pressure and epilepsy may also play a role. “If we could delay onset by five years, we would halve the number of people with Alzheimer’s,” says Andrew Kettering of the Alzheimer’s Society.

For now, the main way to fight against the dying of the light is keep fit, adopt a low-fat diet, do a few crosswords (on the “use it or lose it” principle) – and cheer Sir Terry Pratchett on in his campaign. Long may he sustain it.

Dementia explained

The word dementia is derived from the Latin de – “away” – and mentis – “mind”. In the advanced stages at least, this is a good description: it is as though the sufferer’s mind is somewhere else, inaccessible and distant.

But dementia is not a single disease. Rather, it is an umbrella term for any condition that results in a progressive decline in cognition, and includes problems with memory, attention, language skills and thinking.

Alzheimer’s is the most common condition, responsible for about 60 per cent of cases. It is caused by abnormal deposits of protein in the brain, which lead to the gradual, steady death of brain cells. While there is no cure, a group of drugs called acetylcholinesterase inhibitors can slow it down temporarily. These work by increasing the quantity of a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, which is involved in communication between nerve cells. In Britain, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (Nice) recommends their use in the moderate stages of the disease, although many argue that they are of more use in the early stages, to enable people to live independently for longer. However, the inhibitors do not work for everyone and their benefits usually last for just six to 18 months.

The other major category is vascular dementia, which is responsible for around 20 per cent of cases. This is caused by the narrowing or blockage of the delicate blood vessels in the brain, leading cells to die as their blood supply is disrupted. The best treatment is to minimise the risk of further damage, principally through reducing blood pressure and cholesterol and ensuring that the blood is less prone to clotting.

There are many other types of dementia, such as Huntington’s, Picks and Creutzfeld-Jakob disease. While most cannot be cured, a small proportion are caused by vitamin or hormone deficiencies and do improve when the underlying condition is treated.

Dr Max Pemberton

© Copyright of Telegraph Media Group Limited 2009

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LONDON, England / BBC News Magazine / February 17, 2009

By Katie Fraser,BBC News

An eight-year-old girl starved to death because of an apparently severe dental phobia. It's an extreme reaction to a commonly held fear. But why do so many of us dread the dentist's chair?

Even for those with a dread of visiting the dentist, the tragic case of eight-year-old Sophie Waller seems bewildering. Sophie was already scared of dentists when one of her milk teeth became loose. Her parents were later to tell the inquest into the schoolgirl's death that it had developed at the age of four, when her tongue was nicked during a routine check-up.

Childhood memories are the source of most people's worries

Refusing to eat or talk, she was sent to hospital to have the wobbly tooth removed under general anaesthetic. Doctors took the opportunity to remove several teeth but following the operation, Sophie was so traumatised she refused to open her mouth and continued her fast.

While Sophie grew weaker, the severity of her condition was not realised by the hospital. She died the month after the operation from the effects of starvation and dehydration.

It was a highly unusual reaction to a relatively commonplace problem. But what explains this pervasive fear?

Dread of dentistry can broadly be divided into two forms:

•dental anxiety - a term coined in the mid-1940s to explain what is often a mild fear
•dental phobia - a more extreme dread that, nevertheless, affects about 10% of people
For whose with dental anxiety, this tends to be based on childhood experience, either one's own or someone else's.

The concerned parent, fretting at their child's side as he or she is reclined in a dentist's chair, may be more of a problem than a solution. Parents can, unwittingly, pass on their own fears to their children in what comes to be an unbroken chain of generational fear, says Dr Nigel Carter of the British Dental Health Foundation.

Advances in technology have help allay the fears of some

"I can recollect children coming in being fine and then the parents at the end of the visit saying, 'There, that didn't hurt did it?' It would be the first time the child had thought about any pain."

Often a child's initial visit to the dentist is an urgent response - they have been in pain and need some work - so that initial memory is connected with pain. This can set up an anxiety or phobia that lasts for the rest of their life.

But thankfully not always. Professor Ruth Freeman, of the Dental Health Services Research Unit, University of Dundee, says it can depend on a child's level of imagination. A bad experience can be reinforced by a vivid imagination that is carried on into adulthood.

"If children have a very good imagination they tend to have worries about going to the dentist then as an adult they can become very frightened."

Perhaps the thing with dentistry is that it feels like more of an optional treatment
Dr Nigel Carter

Dentist fear led girl to starve
The interventionist nature of dentistry means that people don't consciously think that they're ill - in the same way they would if going to a GP - yet they have to have something done.

"Perhaps the thing with dentistry is that it feels like more of an optional treatment. More of the visits that you go to the dentist are interventionist than with a doctor," says Dr Carter.

Yet advances in technology, and a greater awareness of the problem within the profession, appears to have had a dramatic effect in allaying the fears of many.

In 1988, a survey of oral health in the UK found 60% of people were "to some extent... nervous of some kinds of dental treatment". A decade later, that figure had dropped to 32%.

Total avoidance

For the most part dentists can help those with anxiety. And they are the majority.

But one in 10 of us has a deeper problem - a genuine phobia which is more difficult to treat.

For some, it is the white coat not the dentist that is the problem

Ms Freeman says dental phobia can be down to one of three reasons: false connections, learning difficulties and those with a wider psychological disorder.

False connections were originally identified by Sigmund Freud and Josef Breuer in 1893. They are based on the idea that the patient, usually a child, mixes up situations, transferring thoughts from the past to an object in the present.

Professor Freeman had one such patient, who was frightened that the local anaesthetic wouldn't work.

"He was an insulin-dependent diabetic whose injections didn't always work. He used to say that he didn't understand why he had a fear of the injection at the dentist, having used them daily himself. He'd displaced all his fears about his insulin not working and put them onto his anaesthetic."

This kind of connection is common, and medics can often work out where it has come from by reading the patient's medical notes.

With those who have a genuine phobia, you can't find out why and they can't tell you why
Professor Ruth Freeman

A fear of dentists can also be associated with learning difficulties, and these patients can be referred to specialists who are able to spend more time explaining procedures and putting them at their ease.

If a person suffers from a variety of psychological disorders - such as agoraphobia or any kind of social phobia - it is very likely that they have a dental phobia.

"It seems to be that with those who have a genuine phobia, you can't find out why and they can't tell you why," says Professor Freeman.

Needles and drills

Other factors that can trigger a fear of all things dental are the associated sights and sounds - the needles and drills. It may not even be about the dentist, rather the surgery.

"You do get children that have really got a phobia about white coats rather than the dentistry bit," says Dr Carter.

There is no notable difference between the number of men and women who suffer from a dread of dentists, although men may not admit to it, according to Dr Carter.

"You probably tend to get it a little more in women but that's also because women might force themselves to go, whilst men might stay away."

For those who are affected by a fear, dentists have become a lot more practised at managing it. Undergraduate dentistry courses recognise the problem and cover how to deal with nervous patients.

Often a phobia of this kind does disappear, over time, when a patient finds a dentist they like and trust. This can be an ordinary dentist or a someone who specialises in dealing with anxious patients. But it is rarely immediate.

Dr Carter says although a fear of dentists can be brought on by one bad experience, it is unlikely to be reversed by one positive visit.

"What's strange is that we don't seem to learn from a pleasant experience. There's a sort of irrationality about it."

© BBC MMIX

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NEW YORK, NY / Reuters / February 17, 2009

By Claudia Parsons

From housebound grandmothers who rely on charity meal deliveries, to ailing retirees who cannot pay rising costs for medications, older Americans feeling the pinch of the financial crisis are getting angry and forming groups with names like "Senior Outrage."

In New York, with city and state tax revenues tumbling, benefits and services to the elderly are being cut, and many older residents are furiously drawing comparisons to the billions of dollars spent to bail out banks -- and pay Wall Street bonuses.

Dolores Green, 68, retired as a home help worker and lives on a government Social Security check of $740 (521 pound) a month. She pays $719 a month in rent, leaving just $21 for everything else.

To eat, she relies on the federal food stamp assistance program, and worries that her cost for some medication she needs for her diabetes has gone up to $8 from $3.

To get by, she said: "I run errands for seniors. They may hand me $2 or $3 or something."

Green says she sees more people seeking government assistance, such as her daughter, who lost her job after 25 years.

"She's just applied for food stamps, she's got two kids," Green told Reuters at a community centre where some 25 elderly New Yorkers were eating a lunch of sandwiches, a gelatin dessert, milk and tomato juice. "That's why she can't help me, because she's got to help her children."

"Maybe I'll move in with you," she jokes to her friend Alice Jordan, 80, a retired teacher who suffers from osteoporosis and high blood pressure.

Jordan said her food stamp allocation had gradually eroded to $54 a month from $180.

When she reads about the well-heeled victims of financier Bernard Madoff's suspected $50 billion Ponzi scheme, she says she wishes they would spare a thought for those who never had such wealth.

"Just like this guy Madoff ripped them off, how did they feel when they lost their money and had to change their style of living? Think of us. ... How do you think we feel?" she asked.

BIG BUDGET GAPS

New York City's Department for the Ageing, which runs more than 300 community centres for ageing residents and provides services such as food delivery to the homebound, affordable housing and heating subsidies, has cut its 2009 budget by $4 million to $285 million and faces another proposed cut, of $9.5 million, in 2010.

The cuts are part of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's bid to close a $4 billion city budget gap caused by the collapse of corporate tax revenues, especially from Wall Street, which normally pumps a fortune into local coffers.

New York state, which typically gets 20 percent of its revenues from Wall Street taxes, also is proposing cuts in health care and services for the elderly as part of a drive to close a $13 billion 2009 budget gap.

Among the proposals is a cut in the state contribution to the Federal Supplemental Security Income, or SSI, for elderly, blind or disabled people with little or no other income.

Parvati Devi, 62, says that would cut her SSI check by $24. "I can't afford to have anything cut," she said. "We collect cans on the street, we do anything to survive."

A couple of hundred retirees attended a forum with New York city and state officials this month to express their anger at cuts they say are hitting the most vulnerable people hardest.

"We are outraged that the government, which has spent hundreds of billions of dollars to bail out financial institutions -- and they in turn have given $18 billion as bonuses to their top executives -- has no funds to support vital services for their senior citizens," said Muriel Beach, New York City head of the State Wide Senior Action Council.

State Wide and other groups formed the "Senior Outrage Coalition" this month to mobilise protest among the city's 1.3 million citizens aged 65 and over.

"We are of a generation that fought in the sixties," she said. "We're out there doing it again."

City figures show that in 2006, one-fifth of New Yorkers age 65 and older lived in poverty, twice the national average. Advocacy groups say by now it is closer to one-third, and New York is second only to Detroit among major U.S. cities in its rate of poverty among the elderly.

Moreover, the federal poverty guidelines for 2008, $10,400 for a single person and $14,000 for a couple, are so low that many who are in need do not qualify for most public benefits.

Minorities tend to fare worst, with 30 percent of Hispanic, 29 percent of Asian and 20 percent of elderly blacks in poverty compared with 13 percent of elderly whites in New York City.

A formidable crowd despite walkers, canes and wheelchairs, many at the forum vented rage at lavish bonuses being paid on Wall Street.

Richard Gottfried, a state assemblyman, said while they might have been pleased to hear that six top executives at investment bank Goldman Sachs gave up their bonuses last year, the tax on their bonuses alone put $12 million into the state budget in 2007.

"I, like many of you, could do a lot with $12 million," Gottfried said.

Editing by Patricia Zengerle

© Thomson Reuters 2008.

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WUHAN / ChinaView - Xinhua / February 17, 2009

A farmer who killed six villagers and injured another was sentenced to death in central China's Hubei province, despite his confirmed mental disorder, a local court said Tuesday.

Zhang Jinfu, 43, a farmer of Xuyang village in Jingmen City, killed two brothers in their 60s, a couple in their 50s and their elderly mother and a 7-year-old boy last August, the Jingmen Intermediate People's Court said Monday. He carried out the attacks with a sickle and rice cutter. The 7-year-old boy's mother, Xu Lizhen, was severely injured when she tried to rescue her son, the court said in its first trial.

Zhang was captured by police when attempting to flee the scene. The expert testimony by Hubei Provincial People's Hospital said Zhang was schizophrenic. The court found that Zhang intentionally committed the murders. The verdict was made based on the fact of the crime and in accordance to the law, the court said.

The court has not received appeal from Zhang and his family members as of Tuesday.

Under China's Criminal Law, if a mental patient who has not completely lost the ability of recognizing or controlling his own conduct commits a crime, he shall bear criminal responsibility, but he may be given a lighter or mitigated punishment. If the mental illness is intermittent, any person who commits a crime when he is lucid shall bear criminal responsibility, according to Chinese law.

In China, the death penalty is applied to criminals who have committed extremely serious crimes. All death sentences are required to be reviewed and approved by the Supreme People's Court.

Editor: Xiong Tong

Copyright ©2009 Xinhua News Agency

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EDSON, Alberta / Edson Leader / February 17, 2009

Victoria's Secrets

Talk to many free speech advocates and they will likely show disdain for the political correctness movement due to the constraints it puts on the way people speak, write and communicate.

And although this may be true, sometimes a radical change in language can help guide people to change their thinking.

An organization that helps seniors achieve a high quality of life has released a new guide to help media personnel navigate the politically correct minefield of "ageism."

Aging Services of California recently published a style guide called Media Takes: On Aging to help writers and broadcasters refer to and describe senior citizens in a way that is not discriminatory.

I found mention of the guide in a New York Times article, but the book can be downloaded from the Aging Services website at aging.org.

According to Dr. Robert Butler of the International Longevity Center, by overcoming old-age discrimination in language society can also get away from its culture of fear surrounding growing old.

Some interesting statistics: centenarians (100-years plus) are the fastest growing age group and, in America, each day 12,000 baby boomers turn 62.

According to the guide, terms writers should avoided for their pejorative connotations are: ancient, biddy, codger, coot, crone, crotchety old man, fogy, fossil, geezer, gone senile, over the hill, little old lady and even sweet old lady.

Preferred language is now identifying individuals over 50 as "older adults," rather than senior or elderly. The best is just to say "man" or "woman" and identify their age if relevant to the story, the guide says.

Interestingly, although some people dislike "retiree," "aging" and "aged," one word that is accepted favourably in all age brackets is "veteran."

The book quotes further research to supports the change: according to an epidemiology and psychology professor Becca Levy at Yale University, those who are older than 50 and have a positive perception of aging live 7.5 years longer than their counterparts.

However, it's important to note that ageism can work the other way, too.

A young person can be discriminated against just as easily as an older adult can.

Case in point: (and this is one of my favourites!) a former Edson Leader reporter was standing outside the Edson Legion one night during the last municipal election. She wasn't allowed inside while the ballots were being counted, so she waited on the steps to try and catch some photos of the action as people exited. A man drove by and saw her standing there all alone and kindly stopped and asked if she needed a ride. "Are you waiting for your mom to come pick you up?" he queried. She, of course, was 27 at the time.

So there you go. It's not fair to treat a person different just because they’re retired but it's also just as easy to diminish or patronize (however nintentionally) a young'un (junior citizen?).

Although I may poke fun at politically correct movements that constrain free speech, I think the active aging adults may be onto something with the pro-age movement.

Usually prejudice happens because someone is different that we are. In the case of ageism, aging adults may be different than us for now, but we will all be in their shoes some day, and let's hope the respect catches on before us young'uns are considered old fogies.

© 2009, Sun Media

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LONDON, England / The Financial Times / Business Life / Columnists / February 17, 2009

By Luke Johnson

I got it wrong again. A few weeks ago, I wrote that only young innovators could save our way of life. But in truth there is just as much entrepreneurial potential among the greying generation. Society must do more to encourage them.

My favourite manual on the subject is an out-of-print autobiography called After I Was Sixty, by Roy – later Lord – Thomson. In 1953, aged 60, he suffered two blows. First, his wife of many decades died; then his business partner of 20 years, Jack Kent Cooke, left to run another business. So he left his modest radio company in Canada for Edinburgh and, almost on a whim, bought the struggling newspaper The Scotsman. A year later, he founded STV, the first commercial broadcaster north of the border. It was an astounding success, making a return of at least 1,500 per cent for its original subscribers. It was he who muttered the immortal phrase describing a television franchise as a “licence to print money” – not quite such a valid statement today. He went on to become a pioneer backer of North Sea oil, and later launched Thomson Holidays, Britain’s first package tour operator. Subsequently, he became the owner of The Times and The Sunday Times, and ultimately his organisation merged with Reuters to become one of Canada’s largest corporations. All this, and a peerage too, after 60.

I was moved to comment on mature entrepreneurs by a recent study from Standard Life, working with think-tank Reform. It revealed that one in 16 of those aged 46 to 65 hopes to embark on a new business venture rather than just retire. This would be seven times the number of start-ups from their parents’ generation – and could amount to a million new businesses. Their experience and wisdom will be their secret weapon. Ageing baby boomers – and I’m one – realise that, thanks to collapsing pension provision and rising longevity, many of us will have to work until we are well past 60. I am inspired by the example of my dad, still hugely productive at 80 – with two books due to be published in the next year, on top of the 50 he has already written. Interesting work brings a feeling of purpose at any age.

Not every venture started by a “silver entrepreneur” need be a for-profit undertaking. It might be a charity, a social enterprise, a civic endeavour, a new neighbourhood organisation or a recreational club. We do not, after all, face a shortage of opportunities – across industry, politics or in communities. There are endless activities that could be done more efficiently, or problems to be solved. And while capital might be in short supply, human ingenuity and energy are an infinite resource.

It was depressing to watch last week’s Channel 4 “Dispatches” documentary about ageism in the workplace. Clearly, companies must try harder to work with those over retirement age. But the veteran generation can take its revenge by going freelance and doing well in the self-employed world. Or they can volunteer, or mentor younger people. It is a tremendous way to keep in touch with other generations, and to contribute knowledge.

I occasionally teach a case study at London Business School, or give talks to groups of students. I find it hugely invigorating to interact with ambitious twenty-somethings, keen to learn and with a different perspective on work and life.

America has impressive initiatives such as encore.org, a campaign to encourage citizens to have a second career in later life. They award a Purpose Prize to those aged over 60 who are taking on society’s biggest challenges. It is based on the recognition that, for most, a dream of golden years of endless leisure is neither fulfilling nor practical. Moreover, millions of retirees doing nothing is a vast waste of human talent. Again, my mum reinvented herself as a counsellor after she was 60, giving her a genuine sense of renewal.

I plan to persuade the Royal Society of Arts in London, where I am chairman-elect, to seize this cause and work with its Fellowship to support a new breed of “olderpreneurs” to take the plunge. And the UK government should help with tax breaks and exemptions from regulations.

lukej@riskcapitalpartners.co.uk
The writer is chairman of Channel 4 and runs Risk Capital Partners, a private equity firm

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009

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NEW YORK, NY / ABC News / Money / Personal Finance / February 17, 2009

Seven Steps to Save Your Nest Egg After Your Employer Reduces Contributions

By David McPherson

First, we killed your pension plan; now, we're taking away your 401(k) matching contributions.

AP/ABC News
That is, in essence, what corporate America is telling workers as dozens of employers rush to halt their contributions to employee retirement savings accounts as a way to weather the current economic storm.

Since June, more than 60 employers have announced they would reduce or halt entirely contributions to employee retirement plans, according to the Pension Rights Center. These employers include Motorola, UPS, FedEx, the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau and A.H. Belo Corp., a newspaper company that once employed me.

By doing so, these employers are reneging on their end of an implied deal by corporate America that made it easier for companies to escape from the burdens of traditional pension plans with the enactment of the Pension Protection Act of 2006.

That's why I say don't believe a thing your employer tells you about helping you save for retirement. Always assume you are on your own when it comes to accumulating a nest egg that will carry you through your later years.

Given that reality, let me suggest seven steps you might take if your employer is among those that have halted contributions to your 401(k) or other retirement savings plans.

1. Don't stop saving: The absolute worst response to a halt in retirement plan contributions by your employer would be to stop your contributions. Even though the incentive of an employer match has been removed, you still benefit by contributing to a 401(k) plan or other retirement savings plan.

The first benefit, of course, is the accumulation of funds to help you reach a day you will no longer need to work. But if you are young and have trouble thinking that far down the road, remember there is an immediate tax benefit to retirement plan contributions. For every dollar you direct to a 401(k) account, you can easily save 20 cents or more in state and federal taxes.

2. Save more: There's no getting around it. If your employer stops its contributions, you will need to contribute more to make up the difference. If your employer kicked in 3 percent of your salary, you should try to save 3 percent more. If you can't do it all at once, try bumping up your contribution gradually -- maybe by 1 percentage point of your salary once or twice a year.

The truth is you already should have been setting aside more than your employer unless your employer is unusually generous. Given the disappearance of traditional pension plans, the minimum combined employer-employee contribution to a retirement savings account should be at least 10 percent of salary.

If your employer is kicking in 2 percent, you can get away with an 8 percent contribution. But if your employer contributes nothing, then you need to count on setting aside at least 10 percent yourself. And if you are in your 50s or 60s and behind in saving for retirement, that figure should be higher.

The eventual goal for every worker should be to contribute the maximum amount allowed by law. For 401(k), 403(b) and 457 accounts, the maximum contribution is now $16,500 with an extra $5,500 allowed for those 50 and over.

3. Know your allocation: With less money coming from your employer, there is a smaller margin for error when it comes to investing your own funds. That means you should pay close attention to how you are investing your retirement savings. How much are you investing in stocks? In bonds? In cash?

Take the time to learn about the funds available in your plan. Don't look simply at recent performance. Make sure you know what asset classes each fund represents and how they fit into your asset allocation plan.

Not sure what your asset allocation plan should be? Take a look around the Web for the many asset allocation tools and models published by a variety of investment firms and sites. A classic moderate portfolio consists of 60 percent stocks and 40 percent bonds.

4. Lower costs: One sure way to make up for lost employer contributions is to lower your investment costs. Cut your annual portfolio costs by 1 percent, and you increase your rate of return by 1 percent.

Your success in cutting expenses will depend upon the funds available in your particular plan. Some 401(k) plans are loaded with lousy, high-fee funds; others feature stellar, low-cost index funds.

Study the expense ratios and 12b-1 fees. In the ideal world, your plan should feature index funds with expense ratios of less than .5 percent and no 12b-1 fees. In reality, that may not be the case. But just remember that studies have shown that funds with lower expenses tend to outperform those with higher expenses.

5. Consider a Roth-type plan: Over the long haul, you can make up for the lost employer contributions by investing in a Roth 401(k) or other Roth-type retirement plan. In recent years, many employers have begun to offer a Roth option under their 401(k) or 403(b) plans. With a Roth plan, there is no tax savings when you contribute, but you pay no taxes in retirement when the money is withdrawn. That can mean a higher income in retirement than if you had contributed to a regular 401(k) plan.

An online calculator from Charles Schwab allows you to easily compare the effects of contributing to a Roth 401(k) versus a regular 401(k).
If your employer does not offer a Roth-type plan, then look to a Roth IRA that you can set up on your own if your income does not exceed certain levels.

6. Set up an SEP: If you do any work as an independent contractor or operate a small side business, then consider setting up an SEP IRA account to shelter some of that income. A SEP IRA will lower the taxes you pay on self-employment income and possibly allow you to set aside even more money than you could with your employer's 401(k) plan.

Your total SEP contribution is tied to the net income generated by the business, but it's possible to direct as much as $49,000 into a SEP IRA this year. If your spouse works in the business, that figure can be doubled. Just be aware if you have any employees, you need to contribute on their behalf as well.

7. Hold them to their promise: Many of the employers now eliminating retirement plan contributions describe the move as temporary until business improves. That may well prove to be true, and within a few years, your employer again may be kicking in 3 percent or more of your salary to your retirement.

If contributions do not resume when times are good again, then start looking for a new job. Unless working for a startup, I say no worker should stick by an employer that contributes nothing to their retirement. Vote with your feet when there's a better destination you can reach.

This work is the opinion of the columnist and in no way reflects the opinion of ABC News.

David McPherson is founder and principal of Four Ponds Financial Planning in Falmouth, Mass. He previously worked as a financial writer and editor for The Providence Journal in Rhode Island. He is a member of the Garrett Planning Network, whose members provide financial advice to clients on an hourly, as-needed basis. Contact McPherson at david@fourpondsfinancial.com.

Copyright © 2009 ABCNews Internet Ventures

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CHANDIGARH / Punjab Newsline Network / February 17, 2009

Haryana Chief Minister, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Tuesday announced to further enhance the amount of old age allowance from Rs 500 to Rs 700 per month for those who have been getting the allowance under Old Age Allowance Scheme for the last 10 years as on April 1, 2009.

The Chief Minister made this announcement on the floor of the House during the on going discussion on budget of the State in the State Assembly here today. Mr Hooda made this announcement following a demand made by Congress MLA Mr Anand Singh Dangi that although the State Government had done a lot for all sections of the society, something more should be done by the Chief Minister for the senior citizens.

The Chief Minister also announced an annual increase of Rs 50 for only those beneficiaries who would get monthly pension of Rs 500. These incentives would be admissible with effect from April 1, 2009.

Mr Hooda also announced to rename the on going Old Age Allowance Scheme as "Vridhavastha Samman Bhata Yojna" and said that its all beneficiaries would be honoured by presenting the females with a shawl and males with a "safa" (turban) and "doga" (walking stick) once.

The Chief Minister said that the scheme would be reviewed after an interval of four years. He said that the decision to increase the allowance with an annual enhancement of Rs 50 has been taken as a mark of respect to the senior citizens and give them their right.

Asked the number of beneficiaries, the Chief Minister said statistics did not matter in such schemes as the Government had given them their right and to uphold their dignity.

On February 13 the chief minister had announced an increase in monthly Old Age Allowance from Rs.300 to Rs.500 in the ongoing session of the State Assembly. This decision was highly appreciated by the legislators in the House and the people at large in the State.

In reply to a question that whether the Government would like to honour those who have crossed 100 years of their life, the Chief Minister said that the issue would be considered.

© PunjabNewsline.com 2004-2007

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DALLAS, Texas / United Press International / Business News / February 17, 2009

The recession has not stopped time or aging, a combination that has opened the door for new elder care consulting businesses, U.S. entrepreneurs said.

"There's no bad time to launch an enterprise that promises to ease the burden of caregiving," Boomer Project founder Matt Thornhill told The Dallas Morning News. "The numbers don't lie," he said.

Similarly, Sharon Quick, a registered nurse, opened Park Cities Healthcare Consultants last year, the News reported Tuesday.

The business assembles experts to plan options to allow an older person to remain at home. After expecting to wait a month for the phone to ring, Quick found she had 20 clients lined up within the first few weeks of her business launch.

The numbers that don't lie include estimates of the 65-plus population increasing from 38 million today to 72 million by 2030. More than three-fourths of elderly adults will suffer from at least one chronic medical condition, the newspaper said.

The recession has even pushed the need for care-managers who can devise plans to help the elderly stay at home and avoid costly nursing homes or facilities, said Tom Mann a managing partner of TR Mann Consulting.

© 2009 United Press International, Inc

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WASHINGTON DC / The Washington Post / Arts & Living / February 17, 2009

By Manoj Jain, Special to The Washington Post

"Did you know that women live longer than men?" I asked my wife.

Of course she did -- and not just because, like me, she is a physician. Anybody who walks into a nursing home can see the imbalance. Most people's grandmothers outlive their grandfathers, and 85 percent of centenarians are women. So my wife nodded, without paying much attention.

"It isn't really that women are living longer, but men are dying sooner," I persisted. "Among the top 10 causes of death, men have a higher mortality rate than women. Men are four times more likely than women to suffer from cirrhosis of the liver and alcoholism." My voice rose a bit dramatically. "Men are dying, and no one is paying attention."

"I never thought of it that way," she said, with a small note of sympathy. But then she caught herself: "You do this to yourselves."

She had a point. Eighty percent of Americans who have a serious drug addiction are men; more than 80 percent of drunk drivers are men; during young adulthood, the peak age for homicide, suicide and accidental death, three men die for every woman. "It's your behavior," my wife said.

That led me to wonder: Are there other, less obviously self-destructive kinds of behavior that contribute to my sex's early mortality? The next morning at hospital rounds, I decided to observe my cases not just as patients, but as male patients or female patients.

First on my list was a former salesman in his 50s with a double chin, divorced and living with his daughter, with kidney disease that had put him on thrice-weekly dialysis. As I questioned him about an infection in his line, his eyes remained fixed on the flickering but muted television, his responses were brief and he appeared annoyed by the entire process. I did my exam, washed my hands and asked if he had any questions. "Nope." And our encounter was complete.

My next patient was a middle-aged woman who had pneumonia, according to the emergency room note on her chart. When I began asking questions, she narrated a list of symptoms and elaborated on how she had had nasal congestion for several weeks before she became critically ill. I suspected sinusitis. This was confirmed by a CT scan, and I prescribed antibiotics appropriately. When I asked if she had any questions, she had a list: What caused this? Could she have avoided it? Would it resolve completely? When could she go home?

Had she been more inhibited in her conversation, I would not have uncovered the underlying cause of her pneumonia so quickly. And once she leaves the hospital, her willingness to demand information means it's likely she will manage her health better.

Did I fail to get significant information from the conversation with my male patient? Almost certainly. Did he lose an opportunity to gain insight into his illness? Yes.

It was a pointed illustration of the sex difference in health-care behavior.

Women visit the doctor more often than men, and nearly twice as often for preventive care, according to a 2001 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Among 45- to 64-year-olds, women spend 50 percent more on health care than men (an average of $2,871 a year vs. $1,849). In my experience, doctors spend more time per visit with women than with men, as I certainly had done with my female patient that morning.

Later in the day, I asked Belinda, an intensive care nurse with more than 25 years of experience, if she noticed differences between men and women as patients.

"Most certainly," she said, and gave me an example from her own life. She and her husband, Bob, had gone to the same doctor for routine physicals. The office nurse put them in separate exam rooms with the doors cracked open. The doctor visited Bob first and began by asking if there were any problems. "Nope," Bob said.

"That is absolutely not true," Belinda shouted from next door. "Bob, you tell the doctor about your sinuses. And the blood pressure and your back." The doctor invited Belinda to join them.

In my practice, I often do the same. I look to the spouse to give a more accurate history of illness, especially when the spouse is female.

"This is because women are natural nurturers and caregivers." Belinda told me. I was mildly offended. But I have to admit that around my house, our kids, our friends and extended family, including my own parents, give more weight to my wife's medical opinion than to mine. This is true even on matters of infectious disease -- my specialty.

Women are also known to be greater consumers of health information. I'm certain more women than men are reading this page. A physician colleague tells me that his wife reads my health columns religiously and for years has encouraged him to do the same; he finally read one last week.

A survey done by Harris Interactive for the American Academy of Family Physicians. released in June 2007 (Men's Health Month -- who knew?) showed that 78 percent of all married men who visited a doctor had been influenced to come in by their wives.

I once treated a man with a brain abscess who, after a long hospitalization, was put on continuing high doses of intravenous antibiotics. Even with such a serious medical condition, he failed to manage his own health after his discharge: An alcoholic before his hospitalization, he started drinking again and missed two appointments. Finally, his wife (who was running their family and business single-handedly) came in to see me alone, bringing a pen, a notebook and a list of questions about his condition.

Daniel Kruger, a research fellow at the University of Michigan who has done extensive research on mortality rates, notes that behavior isn't the only factor in men's shorter life span; there are contributing genetic and physiologic differences.

Just as in many other species, he says, human "males are built for competition and females for longevity." Physiologically, the male hormone testosterone builds muscle mass, while the female hormone estrogen boosts the immune system and increases the level of HDL, the "good" cholesterol. But Tom Perls, founder of the New England Centenarian Study at Boston University, estimates that about 30 percent of the male-female disparity in longevity is due to biological differences, and 70 percent to social and cultural factors.

Surely, I said to my wife, there has to be a way to get men to change their life-shortening behaviors. "Yeah, like that's going to happen," she snorted.

I would have called the Office of Men's Health in the Department of Health and Human Services -- but no such office exists. An Office of Women's Health, on the other hand, has been operating since 1991, when it was established to correct an imbalance in research and health care.

As I was watching the football playoffs one recent weekend, my wife stepped into the family room during a commercial break. The ads were about trucks, the new BlackBerry, fast food and Cialis. She observed for a while, then suggested, "Maybe if you want men to be interested in their health, this is where to start."

In fact, the government's Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is already trying. An ad campaign promotes the idea of getting regular checkups and preventive medical care. Using the slogan "Real men wear gowns," it shows middle-aged men in (non-revealing) hospital gowns teaching a child how to ride a bike, attending a teenager's graduation and walking a daughter down the wedding aisle.

I just wish they had run an ad during the Super Bowl.

Manoj Jain is an infectious-disease specialist in Memphis.

© Copyright 1996-2009 The Washington Post Company

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SEATTLE, WA / The Seattle Times / Business and Technology / February 17, 2009

The deepening recession spells trouble for a little-known government corporation that insures the pensions of 44 million workers and retirees. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. already has an $11 billion deficit that seems sure to grow larger as Corporate America suffers through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

By Deb Riechmann, The Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The deepening recession spells trouble for a little-known government corporation that insures the pensions of 44 million workers and retirees.

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. already has an $11 billion deficit that seems sure to grow larger as Corporate America suffers through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

With companies reporting shortfalls in their pension funds, it's all but certain the PBGC will be forced to take over the plans of a rising number of bankrupt businesses.

Its future financial health is hard to forecast. It is hinged on interest rates, the length of the recession and the PBGC's own luck in playing the market, where it has billions invested.

The agency has $63 billion in assets but is obligated to spend $74 billion on pension benefits in the coming years. The PBGC might have time to rebound, but over the long term it might become insolvent and require a bailout.

"Someday — probably more than 20 years from now — there's a significant chance that somebody is going to have to pay the piper," said former PBGC Director Charles Millard, a Bush administration appointee who stepped down Jan. 20 when Barack Obama took office.

"In the near- to medium-term, there will be no need for a bailout of PBGC," Millard said.

The PBGC, which awaits a new boss, quietly operates in a brick office building a few blocks from the White House. Its fate is important to the workers covered by the more than 29,000 employer-sponsored benefit pension plans it insures, and to all taxpayers who could be asked to foot the bill down the road.

Congress created the PBGC in 1974 to guarantee the retirement security of workers covered by defined-benefit pension plans. These traditional plans, which pay a specified monthly benefit at retirement, are being phased out as companies turn to 401(k)-style programs that require workers to make contributions and shoulder investment risks.

The PBGC gets its money from premiums paid by companies that sponsor the pension plans, along with revenue from its investments.

The corporation's balance sheet has taken heavy hits in recent years. Nine of the 10 largest pension-plan terminations in PBGC's history, including United Airlines, Bethlehem Steel and Kaiser Aluminum, have occurred since 2001.

When a plan is terminated, the PBGC takes over and pays benefits to the retired workers. But they might not get the full amount their employer promised. The maximum guaranteed amount currently is $54,000 a year for a person retiring at 65.

Some pension experts shrug their shoulders at the PBGC's $11 billion deficit, noting that the 35-year-old corporation has been operating at a deficit for most of its existence.

"Every time the economy bounces around, everybody acts like everything is going to collapse and that they should worry about the PBGC, and then things come back," says Dallas Salisbury, president of the Employee Benefit Research Institute

Others who pore over the PBGC annual reports predict a bailout is inevitable.

"Barring some absolutely phenomenal gains in the market or what PBGC's new or future investment strategy comes up with, the PBGC will need taxpayer money at some point in time," said David John, a pensions expert at the conservative Heritage Foundation.

For now, the PBGC will remain on the Government Accountability Office's "high risk" watch list for the seventh consecutive year because of worries that the economic crisis could mean more plan terminations.

Copyright © 2009 The Seattle Times Company

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ST. JULIANS, Malta / The Malta Independent / February 17, 2009

By 2015, the number of persons aged over 65 years in Malta will reach 77,000 while in the year 2050 the number of elderly persons over 65 years will exceed 101,000, Mario Galea, parliamentary secretary for the elderly and community care, yesterday told the opening of an international training programme in social gerontology. People are indeed living longer with a life expectancy of 77 years for males and 81 years for females, he said.

An ageing population will trigger huge challenges. Elderly people need costly health care services because “it is not simply a matter of adding years to life but adding life to years,” he said.

In real terms, it also means that large numbers of elderly persons need costly operations such as open heart surgery, angioplasty, knee and hip replacement, cataract operations and so many other surgical interventions. This is only fair because such interventions will not only result in longevity but most importantly they will also improve the quality of life of elderly persons. Another example is the incidence of Alzheimer and dementia which is more prevalent among the elderly. In Europe it is estimated that there are over six million people suffering from Alzheimer and dementia whereas in Malta there are over 4,000 people suffering from dementia, and the number is on the increase.

The demand for long-term beds is also on the increase. “At the moment in Malta we have approximately 4,000 long term care beds for the elderly (government/Church/ private).

According to recent estimates we have concluded that we need to increase the number of long term care beds by at least 150 beds a year, which is a lot by our standards. In Malta like the rest of Europe there is a shortage of nurses. So the real challenge is of course to find the staff for these extra beds.”

The way forward is to try and prolong as much as possible the stay of the elderly in the community. At the end of the day, you can build the most comfortable wards, the most luxurious homes for the elderly but ultimately there is no better place for the elderly person than his home, near his family and loved ones.

Despite all the community care one can possibly provide there comes a time when the elderly person living in the community becomes dependent and will request long term care. So there is no doubt that an ageing population like ours poses great challenges on our health care services as well on our social security system.

“But there are advantages too. The increasing number of elderly persons should also be perceived as a potential resource which needs to be tapped,” Mr Galea said.

“At this point allow me to present to you another issue which you might want to discuss in your deliberations – the relevance or irrelevance of chronological age. Every country has a yardstick to administer and determine the onset of old age. However, improvements in medicine have contributed to better health across the human life course.

Better health standards have thus improved the traditional outlook of old age. People get old not when the state decides to label them as an elderly person but when they can no longer be independent in their daily activities of living and in most of the cases this is not at the age of 60 or 65 but much later on in life.”

In this regard, because people are living longer and healthier, in Malta the retirement age is gradually being raised to 65 years. Also, a person reaching retirement age can continue to work and derive any earnings from such work and at the same time still receives his or her social security pension.

“In conclusion I do acknowledge that trying to understand and tackle the implications of mass longevity is a big and complex challenge in itself. And a very difficult one too! The task ahead of you is an enormous one because this phenomenon is posing unique and unprecedented political, economic and social challenges to our world. So I fully understand that the following days will be tough and challenging for you all.

“A famous author once wrote that ‘if you choose a path with no obstacles it probably doesn’t lead anywhere’. In this regard I am convinced that you are indeed on the right track.”

© Standard Publications Ltd 2004

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WINDHOECK, Namibia / New Era / February 17, 2009

By Kae Matundu-Tjiparuro

The hosting of a Valentine’s Day for senior citizens of the Katutura Old Age Home is not something that the St Stephen Rommanna Church of Africa can boast about, as this has been divined by the Almighty so that other denominations can emulate this benevolent act and spirit and provide for the senior citizens next time around, said the General Secretary, Bishop Anton Kandjima.

Likewise, Bishop Gustaf Mutaazu of the St John Prophecy Church, echoed Bishop Kandjima pointing out that the church’s act is according to the scripture in the “Book of Life” and it has been empowered and spirited as such by it.

The essence of Christianity, he said, is to look after communities. He prayed for strength to the Government so that it can in turn continue to look after communities. He especially prayed that the Government gives the Church the necessary support in view of the fact that the Church works for all Namibians inside and outside the country. He said the Government must pay heed, especially to the efforts of the Church in communities.

The church’s Archbishop, David Kakero, in turn appealed to the Government to seriously look at the situation of senior citizens in the country, especially their monthly N$450 allowance. He said the senior citizens do not spend this allowance on their own needs but this has become an important lifeline for many a household, with most of the senior citizens spending it on caring and looking after families, including their grandchildren.

The Government, he said, today owes its existence to the contribution to the struggle of the senior citizens.

Thus, it must look at their needs. He said it must look beyond old people in homes such as the Katutura Old Age home and into the broader society, where they are carrying the burden of looking after their families.

In this regard, the Government must look at exempting them from paying for services such as water and electricity.

The Katutura Old Age Home here was on Saturday a hive of activities as members of the St Stephen church converged on the home to give senior citizens living in this home a Valentine’s Day treat. The treat started with the tidying up of the home, which included cleaning the rooms of the lodgers. The lodgers were also treated to manicures and haircuts for the gentlemen before the activities culminated in a Valentine’s Day lunch for the lodgers and a few other elderly citizens from the surroundings.

It wound up with some spiritual trance as the church, led by its youth choir, engaged in some spirited singing in which the Archbishop himself, fellow bishops and the supervisor of the home, Martha Pholoana, joyously joined.

Despite the tranquility of the day characterized by messages such as “St. Stephen Church Cares About You”, “Share The Love”; “God Love Us All. Love Is In The Air,” one of the lodgers, Josef Titus, used the opportunity to air his unhappiness, complaining that they only get one meal a day – porridge in the morning.

After that, they are left to their own devices and are expected to fend for the rest of the meals out of the pension allowance of N$450 a month. He says the balance of N$430 after a N$20 deduction for meals a month, is not enough to provide for the two other meals every day.

However, Pholoana says the lodgers receive breakfast and lunch and the only meal they have to provide for themselves is dinner. She says N$430 is enough to provide for a daily dinner for a month. The home relies on business benefactors to cater for the meals of the lodgers, while the building housing the senior citizens belongs to the City of Windhoek that also takes care of the electricity and water bills. The church also donated old clothes to the home.

Copyright 2008 ©New Era Publications

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WINDHOECK, Namibia / New Era / February 17, 2009

By Helvy Tueumuna

OSHAKATI – Valentine’s Day was celebrated worldwide including the northern town of Oshakati. But people from different social backgrounds and age groups in Oshakati had different meanings and interpretations of Valentine’s Day.

“When I worked at the smelter (TCL in Tsumeb), sometimes whites (employers) would give us presents to take to our families because it was Valentine’s Day. I didn’t really know what it was until my Damara-speaking girlfriend explained it to me. She told me that it was the day of love. She would demand special treatment that day, but I am an Oshiwambo-speaking man, I don’t believe in such things. I’m not a coward,” says Simon Johanes (67), a resident of Oshakati.

Johannes said he believes Valentine’s Day was a day created by women so that they can seek attention from men. According to him, he will never commemorate Valentine’s Day and will always discourage his children from believing in Valentine.

Although she had a different opinion, Nazareth Kakala said she fully understands what Valentine’s Day is all about. She said many people think they know what Valentine’s Day is but they don’t. According to Kakala, Valentine’s Day is supposed to be a day of mourning, not a celebration.

In addition, the young woman said Valentine’s Day should be commemorated like Cassinga Day and other days where people commemorate the deaths of loved ones.

“Look at me, I am wearing black today because I am commemorating the death of a woman who was murdered because of love. Valentine’s Day is not supposed to be the day of roses and presents. Those things are encouraging murderers to think that if they kill in the name of love, it will be celebrated.

After all, it is not an African culture to celebrate death. We mourn, we cry, we show remorse – we don’t celebrate.”

According to Kakala, she spends Valentine’s Day with her family.

“I cannot spend Valentine’s with a man. Today they (men) are killing women; if you spend your day with him, he can kill you and claim that he did it in the name of love.”

Also coming up with a different view on Valentine’s Day was Hilen Shatumbu, a resident of Ongwediva. Although she is at the stage where her age mates celebrate the day, on Saturday afternoon (February 14, 2009) Shatumbu was wearing a yellow T-shirt with brown prints and a pair of jeans.

Shatumbu considers Valentine’s Day as a day where young girls and boys break the rules and engage in sexual activities.

“Just go to high school now – you will find them standing in the dark corners doing all sorts of forbidden activities, apparently it’s because of Valentine. I don’t celebrate such evil.”

Wearing a red skirt and a white top was Rauna Amunyela, hairdresser at Ongwediva Hair Salon. Although Amunyela said she will always dress up in red and white on February 14, it would be her last year to exchange presents. “I did not know what Valentine’s was until today.”

The programme on Valentine’s Day, broadcast on a local radio station, gave Amunyela a different view of Valentine’s Day.

“The programme made me understand that Valentine’s Day is a commemoration of someone’s death – it’s not about presents.”

While talking to Hamunyela, a man walked into the salon with a parcel in his hand and handed it to another woman who was also wearing red and white.

“I gave my wife a Valentine’ present, because me and my wife believe in Valentine’s Day,” said Salomo Mukwendja, who personally delivered a valentine’s gift to her wife Selma at Ongwediva Hair Salon.

The Mukwendja family maintained that although they show each other love every day, Valentine’s Day is a special day for them.

Josua Ferdinand, also a fan of Valentine’s Day, said he normally celebrates the special day with his girlfriend.

“We used to go out, hang around and eat out but she is not here.”

Ferdinand said now that his girlfriend is not in the area, he will still go out with his friend and have a good time as is his culture to go out on the day of love.

John Joseph, Ferdinand’s friend said for him Valentine’s Day is a foreign culture.

“Apparently it is the day of showing love, but for me love should be shown every day, not just once a year.”

About the author
Helvy Tueumuna: Journalist at New Era Oshakati
Where I grew up: Ongwediva
Places I've lived: Windhoek and Ongwediva
Companies I've worked for: Informantè and Namibian Sun
Schools I've attended: Unam, Haimbili Haufiku SSS, Tucsin
Other names: Kula

Copyright 2008 ©New Era Publications

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LISMORE, Australia / The Northern Star / Lifeatyle / February 17, 2009

By Ernest Gill

YET another incentive for older people to lose weight has come from a team of German researchers, who say reducing caloric intake can help older people to remember better.

The researchers at the University of Muenster in Germany found that memory and cognitive skills showed marked improvement among healthy, overweight subjects who cut their caloric intake by 30 per cent over a three-month period.

But unlike conventional "weight-reduction diets" which focus on cutting specific food groups, the German test subjects were not told which foods to avoid.

Instead, the 49 men and women with a median age of 60 were divided into three groups. The first group were told to eat as they normally would. The second group had a similar diet but were given a higher proportion of unsaturated fatty acids, such as those found in olive oil and fish.

The third group were told to strictly reduce their caloric intake, while making sure not to drop below 1,200 calories a day. They were told that they were to avoid crash-dieting, but that they should eat about a third less than they normally would.

After three months, there was no difference in memory scores in the first two groups, but the 50 in the third group performed better.

The average weight loss was 2.5 kilos per person. Those who adhered most strictly to the guidelines and reduced their intake by up to 30 per cent lost an average 3.5 kilos.

Those who restricted their caloric intake the most also exhibited the most striking improvement in memory and cognitive skills, according to Dr. Agnes Floel, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Muenster.

"To our knowledge, the current results provide first experimental evidence in humans that caloric restriction improves memory in the elderly," she wrote in a report published in the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

"The present findings may help to develop new prevention and treatment strategies for maintaining cognitive health into old age," she added.

However, Floel stressed that the test subjects had been instructed to avoid crash-dieting. They were admonished to eat a balanced diet rich in vitamins, minerals and nutrients. They were told they must not reduce caloric intake below 1,200 calories per day.

Floel said more research is needed and added that a larger study is being planned.

© AAP

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia / The New Straits Times / February 17, 2009

By Adib Povera

KANGAR: A police officer had a shock when she discovered a baby hidden in a cupboard in her maid's room in Taman Fauziah here yesterday.

The baby girl survived on just water for three days until her discovery yesterday..

The woman, a senior officer from the Perlis police headquarters, heard the baby's cries from her maid's room about 9.30am. She inspected the room and found the baby girl, without its umbilical cord, in a drawer. The maid denied the baby was hers but admitted keeping her in the drawer and feeding the newborn with plain water since last Friday. The maid claimed she found the baby next to a rubbish bin near the officer's house.

Kangar district police chief Supt Yusof Mohd Diah said the maid had hid the baby because she was afraid it would come to her employer's knowledge.

"The baby was sent to the Tuanku Fauziah Hospital for treatment. The maid was also sent to the same hospital to ascertain if the baby was hers."

The Welfare Department will take responsibility after the baby is discharged.

Copyright © 2007 NST Online

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MOSCOW, Russia / Ria Novosti / February 17, 2009

ROSTOV-ON-DON - Police in Southern Russia have detained an 80-year-old woman who decided to maintain public order in her home village after finding a pistol, a police source said on Tuesday.

The elderly woman, who happened upon her husband's pistol in a shed, patrolled the village for several months and shot in the air when she thought public order was violated. Her terrified neighbors complained to police.

"Police have detained the woman and seized her weapon," the source said, adding that she was released after signing a written pledge not to flee.

The octogenarian now faces criminal charges of illegally keeping a firearm.

© 2007 RIA Novosti

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LONDON, England / The Daily Mail / Femail / February 17, 2009

Why is it so difficult for anyone who has not yet hit the menopause to believe that anyone past it can possibly want, let alone indulge in, sex?

I know women in their 80s who have fallen in love: really, genuinely, seriously. I know women in their 70s who have met Mr Right and married him. I know dozens of women in their 50s, 60s and 70s who long for love.

The main problem is a lack of suitable chaps. It's not just a shortage of numbers; women are fussier than men. Men will happily marry a bimbo with half a brain and no conversation, but women still want to admire their partners, look up to them, respect them.

Latest targets for Cupid's arrow:
Sir Ernest Hall, 78, and Prue Leith

I went to a dinner party when I had been on my own for nearly four years and considered myself to have cracked widowhood.

Not to like it, but to see its merits: like having meals at any time of the day or night, getting crumbs in the bed, putting the light out at two in the morning, not having to phone home and apologise for lateness and not having to shave my legs all the time.

Three of the guests were single women. After too much good wine, we all confessed to wanting a 'walker' - someone to go to the theatre with, to squire us when a squire was called for.

Most of all, someone to do nothing with, a male best friend. Preferably gay, we all said, so there would be no danger of embarrassing advances.

In my usual over-enthusiastic way, I became more specific. I specified someone in their 70s, Jewish and a musician.

I explained that someone ten years older than myself would regard me as young. And in my experience, Jewish men were more interested in the arts and business and were seldom nuts about sport. And a musician could do something about my utter ignorance of music.

One of the guests said he'd put an ad in the papers and vet any applicants for me. In the morning, however, I sobered up and chickened out. But then, a few months later, I went to the Canaries to spend a weekend holding the hand of a friend and business colleague I'd known for 20 years, Sir Ernest Hall, who is 78.

According to mutual friends, he was depressed by the double whammy of retirement and separation from his wife, and could do with some TLC.

To my astonishment, we fell in love. I was 66 and four years a widow. He is a pianist and in his 70s. Only one-eighth Jewish, though. But he's an entrepreneur, fascinated by business, mad about the arts and only very marginally interested in sport. So that's OK then. And I'm very glad he's not gay.

I shudder to think how easily we could have missed each other. I had twice postponed my trip because I had an idea Lanzarote was full of beer-swilling, lobster-tanned Brits bulging out of their bathers; I could not spare the time; I thought Ernest would be sad company.

Love blossomed in Lanzarote

And he, just wanting to be left alone and knowing I would force him into driving all over the entire island to see everything in a few days, thought of cancelling on me, but somehow failed to get round to it.

The airline managed to lose my luggage, so all I had for four days was the white T-shirt and cotton shorts Iberia's 'emergency pack' contained. I slept, swam, sunbathed and lunched in them. At night I wore a kaftan abandoned by Ernest's wife. I had no make-up.

I was certainly not looking for love. Whenever, as occasionally happened, some friend told me comfortingly that one day I would meet someone and misery would be behind me, I would want to punch them.

I had no desire, either. I did not lie awake dreaming of ageing beefcake like Harrison Ford. As I'd said, I was up for a walker, not a lover.

But, hey ho, Nature, or Cupid, or maybe Hormone Replacement Therapy, or the combination of sun, wine and music took a hand, and it was all exactly as I remembered the last time I'd fallen in love, and that was with my husband of 30-odd years.

Someone needs to do some of that clever brain-scanning research to discover why love does the same things for everyone of any age, be it 16 or 60.

Mooning around, willing the telephone to ring, discovering just how lovely the night sky is, a sudden interest in poetry, talking all night, feeling sick, shaking, every sense alert, the whole world singing - there is not a cliche in the book that lovers don't feel. And thank God for that!

Why are we so disapproving of the old, refusing to sit in a corner and knit? I read last week of cruise ships full of 50-plus women in search of Eastern European men who line the dockside to sweep them off to sun, sea and sex.

I have a friend, my age, who goes to Cuba because men will dance (and more) with her there. I rather admire her, as well as being deeply shocked. I am far too conventional for any of that. I once went salsa dancing at Bar Cuba in Kensington. I ended up fleeing the place.

It was so dark I was sure the young man determinedly grinding his groin into mine and kissing my neck had no idea how old I was.

I pulled back and in my most headmistressy voice ticked him off. 'Now, young man! I am old enough to be your mother, if not your grandmother. So stop that at once and teach me to do the rumba.'

Perhaps I expected him to turn tail and flee, but he leered and said: 'Don't worry, m'am, I like old women.' Well, not many do. I remember my mother, at 70, having a boob job. I, then aged 40, was censorious and unkind. 'Mum, you are 70!. Far too old to find a man! So who is going to see your boobs anyway?'

She protested that she had always hated the size and weight of them. She bared a shoulder to show me how her bra- strap cut into her flesh.

'I've carried these things around with me for 50 years, and I only put up with them because your father was fond of the things. And he's long dead, so I can do as I like and I am going to have small bosoms.'

And she did. And she was so delighted by them that she went on a diet and lost a couple of stone. And looked like 50. And got a really good part (she was an actress). And acquired two suitors - whom she rejected. And was happy.
The young, so free and easy about love themselves, find the thought that their elders should even think about such things, much less read or write about it, deeply embarrassing.

When I was writing my first novel, my husband said: 'There isn't going to be any sex in it, is there?'

'Of course there is. It's a modern love story.'

'Oh no, the children would be so embarrassed.'

I pointed out that the 'children' were 28 years old. But he had me worried, so I gave them a slightly raunchy chapter to read.

They both appeared vaguely surprised, as if their mother had no business knowing the facts of life. But they swallowed hard and said they could bear it.

'But,' said my son, 'I don't think Dad will be able to handle it.'

• Choral Society is published by Quercus, £17.99.

www.prue-leith.com

© 2009 Associated Newspapers Ltd

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LONDON, England / BBC News / Health / February 17, 2009

By Jane Dreaper
Health correspondent, BBC News

John Suchet is now caring for his wife, Bonnie, after she developed dementia

He has reported on momentous events such as the revolution in Iran, and he's won awards as a newsreader.

Now John Suchet is talking publicly for the first time about one of the toughest events in his life.

Dementia is slowly robbing him of his wife of more than 20 years, Bonnie.

He told BBC News: "I've gone from being a lover to a carer."

She began to develop symptoms of the devastating brain disease in her early 60s, and is now aged 67. She was diagnosed with dementia three years ago, after sporadic instances of forgetfulness and confusion. Doctors think Bonnie Suchet has Alzheimer's disease. Her husband prefers to call it "the A word".

'Love and cherish'

Mr Suchet, 64, said: "By and large, her morale is good. She's happy. She smiles at me.

"I should be grateful because she's co-operative most of the time. I promised myself after the diagnosis, 'Right, John, you will be an understanding husband - you will love and cherish your wife.' Life isn't that simple. Every now and then, you just explode. It's a culmination of little things - dinner plates going straight back onto the shelf instead of going into the dishwasher or being wiped dry while they were still dirty."

Mr Suchet has been able to air his distress and guilt by meeting regularly with an Admiral Nurse, who is a specialist nurse working with dementia sufferers but particularly their carers.

Guilty feelings

The nurse, Ian Weatherhead, said: "I first met John and Bonnie two years ago. At that time, he needed a release. John comes to see me down at my office - and sometimes I see him at home, so I can monitor Bonnie and see what's changed for her. I've yet to meet a carer who hasn't shouted, sworn or got angry at the person they're looking after - and then felt guilty. Families row. It's a normal part of life. And yet people feel so bad about it when they're caring for someone with dementia, because they're exhibiting emotions to someone who can't understand or comprehend what's going on.

"John's a great guy to work with - and being the journalist he is, he takes copious notes on everything we talk about."

Limited nursing

Mr Suchet is taking part in a fundraising event in central London, in aid of For Dementia, the charity which funds Admiral Nurses. He has access to the specialist help because he lives in a part of London where the NHS has paid for eight such nurses. There are only about 70 Admiral Nurses in England, and one service in north Wales, in Flintshire. Scotland doesn't yet have any.

Mr Suchet said: "There should be 70,000 of them.

The Suchets got married more than 20 years ago.

"The best bit of advice Ian gave me was to beat the living daylights out of a cushion every now and then. It works. I keep thinking I'm a complete failure and I'm useless at being a carer. But Ian tells me I'm actually doing quite well."

The former ITN correspondent and newsreader is still presenting a daily live quiz show, Going for Gold, on Five.

He told me the work is "good therapy". He adores classical music and has written five books about Beethoven. All are dedicated to Bonnie. It is of huge sadness to Mr Suchet that his wife can no longer share what used to be a joint passion. He said: "We went to every place that Beethoven ever went to that is still there to be seen. She loved it. I loved it. But now she looks at the books and she says, 'Bloody Beethoven - I've had enough of him.' I have to stop myself from saying, 'You weren't like that before.' I have to remind myself it's not my Bonnie who's talking.

"She's gone. And yet she's physically still there."

Source: BBC NEWS

© BBC MMIX

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KAMPALA, Uganda / The New Vision / February 17, 2009

By John B. Thawite

THE European Union has disbursed 300,000 Euros (about she750m) for a three-year programme to improve local government services for vulnerable older persons in Kasese and Bundibugyo districts.

Madaada speaks at the launch

The state minister for disabilities, Sulaiman Madaada, launched the programme at Virina Garden Hotel in Kasese on Tuesday. He said it would be implemented by Help Age International and the Uganda Reach the Aged Association.

Madaada said the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development was finalising a policy to protect older persons.

“It has delayed because many MPs are interested in older persons and are candidates of old age, so they want an action plan attached to the policy before it can be passed,” he said.

Madaada disclosed that more younger people were abandoning the elderly in rural areas.

He said the elderly and disabled persons were becoming more vulnerable to HIV because they too, are sexually active and increasingly taking care of children orphaned by AIDS.

He urged the elderly to form Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations to benefit from the Prosperity-for-All programme.
“When an old person goes for a loan, they call you a loan-risky person and disqualify you,” he added.

“We have agreed with the Minister of Finance that once the older persons are organised, we should give them loans,” Madaada said.

Kasese deputy RDC Wilson Isingoma asked stakeholders to establish data banks on the elderly.

The deputy chief administrative officer, Willy Bataringaya, said the district would provide an enabling environment for the programme.

© Copyright The New Vision 2000-2009

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MALAYSIA / Sin Chew Jit Poh / AsiaNews / Life And Style / February 17, 2009

By Wong Mei Ling in Singapore

The next time you sip a cup of tea, think of its health benefits. For example, its antioxidant properties are purported to reduce the risk and progression of cancer, boost the immune system and increase metabolism.

Legend has it that more than 4,000 years ago in 2,737 BC, tea was discovered by Chinese Emperor Shennong quite by chance. A dead leaf had fallen into his drinking water while it was boiling under the tree.

Photo courtesy: Desmond Foo / The Straits Times.

He unwittingly drank it and was so taken by the refreshing effect of the tea leaf that he named it cha (tea in Mandarin).

Tea drinking soon spread across the country and became a symbol of Chinese high culture, which later travelled to other parts of Asia, Europe, the Americas and Russia. However, beyond its social symbolism, tea was an important form of medicine used by early physicians.

Since ancient times, the Chinese have been using tea to improve their health and to cure illnesses, said Chin Chew Seng, a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) physician and senior trainer at Eu Yan Sang in Singapore.

It is not known when tea was first used for its medicinal value but the earliest records were traced back to the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD).

Today, there are about 1,500 varieties of tea according to the United Kingdom Tea Council. Only the leaves from the camellia sinensis species of plants are considered tea.

"Certain tea when mixed with certain medicine would help enhance the total medicinal effect."

Chinese tea is also distinct from TCM tea which is prepared differently and is mixed with herbs and are often drunk for medicinal purposes rather than leisure.

There are six main grades of Chinese tea—white, green, yellow, oolong, red and black.

Indian and Ceylon tea like Darjeeling, Orange Pekoe and Earl Grey are all blends of black tea which are drunk frequently. It’s the most popular type in the world.

Based on the level of fermentation, each has different health benefits.

Fermentation is the process of crushing fresh tea leaves and leaving them to ferment. This produces chemical reactions that result in different flavours and colours. The different health benefits of tea have also been attributed to the varying levels of fermentation of the leaves.

Tea contains naturally occurring chemical compounds called catechins. These are antioxidants that may boost the body’s immune system, prevent infections and possibly reduce the risk and progression of cancer.

Chin also said that Chinese tea helps stimulate the nervous system, aid digestion, increase metabolism and even improve one’s memory.
However, it is not just Chinese physicians who recognise the medicinal value of tea.

Dr Koh Woon Puay, associate professor at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore (NUS), said laboratory research has shown that the catechins found in green and black tea may prevent the onset and/or the progression of cancer.

“Both green and black tea extracts have also demonstrated cancer preventive properties in experimental animal studies,” she said, adding, however, that no human population study has been able to show that tea can cure cancer in patients.

Green and black tea may each prevent different types of diseases too said Dr Koh, who does research on the link between dietary habits and lifestyle and common diseases among adults in Singapore. This includes tea drinking.

A study of 63,000 middle-aged and elderly Chinese Singaporeans in the Singapore Chinese Health Study conducted by NUS between 1993 and 2007 showed that women who drink green tea daily had mammograms that could possibly relate to a lower risk of breast cancer. Also, men and women who drink black tea daily had a lower incidence of Parkinson’s disease and possibly diabetes.

This, she said, is because of the different levels of fermentation in green and black tea, which lead to different changes to the catechins in the tea, thus altering their biological effects.

Holistic nutritionist Yondi Lee of Ascension Healing, a centre that advises on nutritional therapy, also defends the scientific basis of tea and its health benefits.

“There is definitely scientific evidence showing the benefits of tea. There is countless research on EGCG, the antioxidant touted for its anti-cancer effect,” she said, adding that recent research has shown that flavonoids, chemical compounds found in black tea, help lower bad cholesterol and reduce dental decay.

Another kind of tea that is often confused with Chinese tea is TCM tea. It is a combination of medicinal herbs and tea. TCM practitioners believe that combining the two makes the medicinal quotient act better, strengthening the effect of the medicine.

“Certain tea when mixed with certain medicine would help enhance the total medicinal effect,” Chin said.

TCM tea also differs from Chinese tea in its preparation techniques. Unlike the latter which is prepared by pouring boiling water over it, TCM tea has to be brewed for 30 to 45 minutes under low heat.

Unlike Western medicine, the science behind TCM is based on a compilation of traditional Chinese medicine over several thousand years and is therefore hard to pin down.

Prescriptions of TCM tea are made based on prescriptions that have been tried and tested by Chinese physicians over thousands of years.
According to Chin, TCM tea helps remove ‘heatiness’, which is due to the lack of water in the body, leading to symptoms like sore throat, red eyes and constipation.

It is also believed to purge the body of toxins and reduce inflammation and pain.

Nevertheless, Koh cautioned that there is still insufficient evidence to prove the health benefits of tea and it is too early to prescribe tea drinking for its disease prevention qualities.

Not everything we consume must be for a health benefit.

“If one enjoys tea and drinks it as part of a daily diet... it adds to the simple pleasures in life,” she said.

By WONG MEI LING In Singapore/ The Straits Times/ AsiaNews

Copyright © 2009 Sinchew-i Sdn Bhd

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NEW YORK, NY / The New York Times / February 16, 2009

“Sensors Help Keep the Elderly Safe, and at Home” (front page, Feb. 13) sheds light on the frustration of caring for our aging population at home and the promise of enhanced technology to monitor safety and health management.

The new technologies for the home may empower older people who are cognitively functional and can partner with the devices and the medical staff monitoring the system. But these advances, effective in assisting with long-distance care-giving for some, should not be viewed as a panacea to resolve the many problems and issues that require direct patient contact.

Geriatric care managers are an excellent resource for the elderly at home to provide essential human contact, along with the professional skills to identify behavior changes and unsafe environments and to communicate information to the medical team and family. It is a disservice to the ones we care about the most to rely solely on cybercare.

Teri Koff
New York, Feb. 13, 2009

The writer, a social worker, is an elder care specialist.

Related report:
Sensors Help Keep the Elderly Safe, and at Home (February 13, 2009)

Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company