MorningStar

At MorningStar of Wheat Ridge, we understand there are all sorts of emotions that occur when a family begins to look into assisted living for a parent or a loved one.  Often it is a complete learning experience as many people do not know what assisted living offers and how it differs from a nursing home.  Assisted living is a fairly new concept that started in the late 1990’s and is designed for seniors who want to maintain their independence but need a little help with daily living activities.  Based on the European social model, it creates a new paradigm in wellness and engagement, and we believe that the structure and society offered in Assisted Living communities introduces a return of healthy routines and healthier lives.  It is estimated that approximately one million Americans are living in senior care communities and that number is expected to almost double by 2030 as people are living longer.  Most assisted living residents moved into a c...

Regardless of your age, you can benefit from regular physical exercise.   Studies show exercise can help prevent heart disease, diabetes, and certain forms of cancer as well as reduce the pain associated with arthritis.   It can also improve balance, flexibility, endurance and strength.   Staying active can even improve sleep quality and duration and enhance your mood.   Different forms of exercises offer different benefits but please remember to check with your doctor before beginning any new exercise.  Stretching exercises can improve mobility and flexibility and relieve sore and stiff muscles.  They can also help to reduce lower back-pain, improve posture and increase blood flow and energy.  Aerobic exercises can help improve endurance and increase your breathing and heart rate.  Moderate aerobic exercises for seniors include walking briskly, swimming and dancing.  Doctors suggest you start slowly and build up your endurance, a...

The American Healthcare Association defines assisted living as “part of a continuum of long term care services that provides a combination of housing, personal care services, and health care designed to respond to individuals who need assistance with normal daily activities in a way that promotes maximum independence.”  So rather than taking away the independence of seniors assisted living actually helps residents to maintain their independence while giving them the care they need to live comfortably and safely.  Also, please remember assisted living is not a nursing home.  It is a community designed to meets the needs and preferences of the residents and to give them their dignity, autonomy, privacy, independence, choice and safety.  While each community has its own personality, assisted living typically addresses the needs of its residents with 24-hour care services, daily meals and wellness activities .   In fact, it is often more cost effective ...

As one of the newest senior living communities in the West Des Moines area, MorningStar at Jordan Creek offers seniors an unparalleled lifestyle of comfort, wellness and community.  Our team also understands that when families are looking into assisted living for a loved one, they want to know how we meet each resident’s needs to ensure their utmost comfort and safety.  At MorningStar, that process starts as soon as you make the decision to join our community.  Each new resident and their family meet with our Wellness Director to allow us to get to know your personal preferences and normal routines.  Our Wellness Director will also review your medical history to enable us to create a customized care plan that meets your approval.  Furthermore, your care plan will be regularly re-evaluated to address any changing needs. Various auxiliary services provided by MorningStar include medical and non-medical and are priced a la carte.  For example, if ...

MorningStar at Mountain Shadows is a loving senior living community nestled at the foot of the Rockies in Colorado Springs.  We are able to provide such exceptional care and create a true “home” for our residents due to a committed, passionate team lead by our leadership team who sets an example for all of us.     Leading our team is MorningStar at Mountain Shadows’ Executive Director, Suzanne Chapple.  Suzanne explains how MorningStar means LOVE to her and how our atmosphere radiates it from the moment you walk through the door.  She is gratified to see residents and staff alike smiling and feels privileged to know she is making a difference in someone’s life, which is turn makes her life feel more complete.  Suzanne says, “Seniors teach me to slow down, to be in the moment, and to enjoy all those who make such precious moments happen.” Cheryl Nelson serves as our Wellness Director and agrees with people who say seniors are “The Greatest Gener...

Now that outside temperatures are the hottest of the year, it is especially important for seniors to stay hydrated.  Dehydration can cause serious problems, and since older adults can become dehydrated even when it is not hot outside, they need to remember to make a conscious effort to increase their fluid intake.  There are several reasons why the elderly are more at risk for dehydration including the fact that the body’s mechanisms meant to protect us from dehydration do not work as well as we age.  This means older adults often experience diminished thirst sensations that may lead to reduced fluid consumption or su ffer from conditions such as incontinence that can increase water loss.  Certain medications commonly prescribed to seniors to treat high blood pressure or heart failure can also cause dehydration.  Other things that can lead to dehydration include memory problems that result in someone forgetting to drink or mobility problems that make it ...

A recent article in the journal, Science, reports on a study that found the death rate of seniors “abruptly slows around 80 years old and then plateaus at 105 years old.”   Researchers have interpreted this to mean that humans are not close to the biological limit on how long they can live.   Up to now, a 2016 study from the Elbert Einstein College of Medicine suggested that the human maximum lifespan was about 115 years. The data for the study involved looking at the records of 3,836 Italians who had reached the age of 105 years old in 2009 to 2015.  Researchers then examined mortality rates for persons born in 1896 to 1910.  They discovered patterns when death rates seemed to naturally ebb and flow such as go up in a person's thirties and drastically increase when people reach their seventies and eighties.  While the study “doesn't explain why death rates plateau at 105 years old, one possibility is that some people have genes that make them stronge...