AARP reports that employees 65 and older are the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. workforce, but enforcement against age-based discrimination is lax, according to CNBC . AARP estimated that 61 percent of respondents older than 45 saw or experienced such discrimination in the workplace last year. The newly revived Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act would overturn a 2009 Supreme Court ruling that made age discrimination cases harder to prove. "I think this act is very important to strengthen protections for older workers so they're not excluded from the workforce earlier than they want to be based on bias," notes attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan. The reintroduced bill would reinstate the legitimacy of mixed-motive claims that would permit plaintiffs to prove age is a motivating factor, if not the deciding factor, in negative actions taken against them. "For both older workers and employers, this bill is something they should be paying attention to," says AARP's Cristina Martin Firvida.

The nonprofit GlamourGals organization, which has a chapter at New York University (NYU), gathers student volunteers to give makeovers to residents at local senior care communities to counter social isolation, reports Washington Square News . NYU GlamourGals President Prianka Koya says her branch has about 100 students on its mailing list, and the group visits senior communities twice each month. "We aren't just like any other community service organization," adds NYU GlamourGals Vice President Rima Mazumdar. "We really focus on the idea of self-love at any age and allowing these seniors to feel pampered and heard and connected to the community, no matter the age gap." GlamourGals volunteer Jacob Swe says makeover sessions with seniors offer participants a way to give back to the community. "Here at NYU, we are so privileged," he notes. "It is valuable to me to be able to use my privilege to give back in some sort of way."

A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine noted older people exhibiting little to no awareness of possible telephone fraud were at greater risk for mild cognitive decline and, in some cases, Alzheimer's, reports CNN . These findings "would suggest that . . . many cognitively intact older people also may be at risk of financial and other forms of fraud and abuse and really sheds new light on the scope of this problem," said Rush University's Patricia Boyle. Study participants first filled out a "scam awareness questionnaire," and also completed traditional neuropsychological tests each year for about six years. Participants who died during the study period received postmortem brain analysis for signs of disease. A total of 16.1 percent of subjects developed Alzheimer's, while 34.2 percent developed mild cognitive impairment. Participants who showed low scam awareness at the study's beginning were at higher risk for Alzheimer's, dementia, or mild cognitive impairment. Low scores on the fraud consciousness test also were associated with Alzheimer's symptoms in the postmortem brain.

A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences details synthetic peptides designed to inhibit amyloid beta aggregation at the early and most toxic stage when oligomers form, reports Medical Xpress . The synthetic alpha sheet's blocking activity inhibited amyloid beta-triggered toxicity in human neural cells grown in culture and suppressed amyloid beta oligomers in two laboratory animal models for Alzheimer's. These study results add credibility to the hypothesis that amyloid beta oligomers — rather than plaques — are the toxic agents underpinning Alzheimer's, and suggests synthetic alpha sheets could form the foundation of therapeutics to clear toxic oligomers in humans. "What we've shown here is that we can design and build synthetic alpha sheets with complementary structures to inhibit aggregation and toxicity of amyloid beta, while leaving the biologically active monomers intact," notes University of Washington Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute Professor Valerie Daggett.

A survey by University of Washington (UW) researchers published April 15 in the Annals of Internal Medicine found many older adults, including those who are mentally impaired, keep their firearms loaded and unlocked at home, reports United Press International . Nearly 39 percent of the more than 4,400 polled senior Washingtonians said they had a gun in their home, while almost 25 percent said they keep at least one gun loaded and unlocked. Fewer than 33 percent noted they keep all firearms locked up and unloaded. "Findings of this study highlight the importance of addressing access to firearms among older adults, especially those who display signs of dementia or suicide risk factors," stressed UW Professor Ali Rowhani-Rahbar. Respondents who had firearms in their home were more likely to be white, male, and married, while men in rural areas and military veterans were more likely to keep their guns unlocked and loaded. About 20 percent of respondents with loaded weapons not locked away had been diagnosed with depression, while about one in eight experienced memory loss in the past year. "We need to do better to promote firearm safety among these households and practice policies devised to prevent firearm injuries and save lives in this population," Rowhani-Rahbar said.

A new AARP study found older baby boomers will have fewer friends and family members to care for them as they enter their 80s, reports the San Diego Union Tribune . The study estimates that the ratio of potential caregivers to boomers needing care will fall from 7.2 to 1 in 2010 to 2.9 to 1 by 2050. "In just 13 years ... the decline in the caregiver support ratio will shift from a slow decline to a free-fall," the authors warn. This will amplify the emotional and financial strain on families. "More than two-thirds of Americans believe they will be able to rely on their families to meet their needs when they need long-term care," says AARP's Lynn Feinberg. "But this confidence is likely to deflate when it collides with the dramatically shrinking availability of family caregivers in the future."

A study published in the Annals of Medicine examined 779 twins between the ages of 71 and 75 who were currently living at home, reports Medical Xpress . The researchers found chronic diseases significantly lowered the measured amount of mobility without the research subjects being aware of it, with such diseases including coronary heart disease, heart failure, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoarthritis. A higher number of reported diseases led to less activities. For those without diseases, the accumulated average number of daily steps was nearly 7,000. Individuals who reported at least three diseases moved less than 4,000 steps daily. Exercise therapies customized to the type of disease can significantly enhance individuals' physical functioning, mobility, and potential for independent living.

Montana Sen. Tom Jacobson (D) is sponsoring a bill to designate the sharing of a humiliating photo or video of a senior citizen who has an expectation of privacy as senior abuse, reports KPAX . A first offense of senior abuse carries up to six months in jail and a $500 fine, but second offenses are deemed felonies, with up to 10 years' imprisonment and a $10,000 fine. The bill only covers seniors with developmental disabilities, like Alzheimer's or dementia. However, Beth Brenneman with Disability Rights Montana said during a public hearing in the House Judiciary Committee that older adults with developmental disabilities are particularly susceptible. The state Senate voted 40 to 10 to pass the bill earlier this month.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says a phone scam run by fraudsters posing as Social Security Administration (SSA) agents has topped the agency's call scam list for generating the most complaints, reports CBS Miami . The agency estimates that approximately 76,000 consumers have filed complaints about the scam, which stole $17 million in its peak year. For the 12 months ending March 31, the ruse had accumulated around $19 million. "What we have are scammers who have decided that it is too recognizable to pretend to be the IRS anymore," says FTC's Monica Vaca. "They know that they can't get away with that anymore so they've come up with a new angle, a new twist." The FTC warns that consumers can no longer trust their Caller ID, as the scammers use software to spoof a number to make it look like they are calling from the SSA or other federal agency.

A study by the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) determined older adults singing in a choir for six months felt less lonely and more interested in life, reports CNN . UCSF, the San Francisco Community Music Center, and San Francisco's Department of Aging and Adult Services monitored 400 older adults for the study's results. An earlier UCSF study found people older than 60 who felt lonely had a 45 percent increased risk of mortality. "We think that the arts are particularly innovative for helping to improve health inequities in these communities," says UCSF's Julene Johnson. The finding of the study helped the San Francisco Community Music Center acquire a grant to keep choir programs for seniors up and running. Meanwhile, the U.S. National Institutes of Health has funded a manual to help other communities start their own choirs.