Finding Geriatric Doctors for Seniors

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It’s Q&A Day at 10almonds!

Have a question or a request? You can always hit “reply” to any of our emails, or use the feedback widget at the bottom!

In cases where we’ve already covered something, we might link to what we wrote before, but will always be happy to revisit any of our topics again in the future too—there’s always more to say!

As ever: if the question/request can be answered briefly, we’ll do it here in our Q&A Thursday edition. If not, we’ll make a main feature of it shortly afterwards!

So, no question/request too big or small

❝[Can you write about] the availability of geriatric doctors Sometimes I feel my primary isn’t really up on my 70 year old health issues. I would love to find a doctor that understands my issues and is able to explain them to me. Ie; my worsening arthritis in regards to food I eat; in regards to meds vs homeopathic solutions.! Thanks!❞

That’s a great topic, worthy of a main feature! Because in many cases, it’s not just about specialization of skills, but also about empathy, and the gap between studying a condition and living with a condition.

About arthritis, we’re going to do a main feature specifically on that quite soon, but meanwhile, you might like our previous article:

Keep Inflammation At Bay (arthritis being an inflammatory condition)

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  • Savory Protein Crêpe

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Pancakes have a bad reputation healthwise, but they don’t have to be so. Here’s a very healthy crêpe recipe, with around 20g of protein per serving (which is about how much protein most people’s body’s can use at one sitting) and a healthy dose of fiber too:

    You will need

    Per crêpe:

    • ½ cup milk (your preference what kind; we recommend oat milk for this)
    • 2 oz chickpea flour (also called garbanzo bean flour, or gram flour)
    • 1 tsp nutritional yeast
    • 1 tsp ras el-hanout (optional but tasty and contains an array of beneficial phytochemicals)
    • 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
    • ⅛ tsp MSG or ¼ tsp low-sodium salt

    For the filling (also per crêpe):

    • 6 cherry tomatoes, halved
    • Small handful baby spinach
    • Extra virgin olive oil

    Method

    (we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

    1) Mix the dry crêpe ingredients in a bowl, and then stir in the milk, whisking to mix thoroughly. Leave to stand for at least 5 minutes.

    2) Meanwhile, heat a little olive oil in a skillet, add the tomatoes and fry for 1 minute, before adding the spinach, stirring, and turning off the heat. As soon as the spinach begins to wilt, set it aside.

    3) Heat a little olive oil either in the same skillet (having been carefully wiped clean) or a crêpe pan if you have one, and pour in a little of the batter you made, tipping the pan so that it coats the pan evenly and thinly. Once the top is set, jiggle the pan to see that it’s not stuck, and then flip your crêpe to finish on the other side.

    If you’re not confident of your pancake-tossing skills, or your pan isn’t good enough quality to permit this, you can slide it out onto a heatproof chopping board, and use that to carefully turn it back into the pan to finish the other side.

    4) Add the filling to one half of the crêpe, and fold it over, pushing down at the edges with a spatula to make a seal, cooking for another 30 seconds or so. Alternatively, you can just serve a stack of crêpes and add the filling at the table, folding or rolling per personal preference:

    Enjoy!

    Want to learn more?

    For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

    Take care!

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  • Managing Sibling Relationships In Adult Life

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Managing Sibling Relationships In Adult Life

    After our previous main feature on estrangement, a subscriber wrote to say:

    ❝Parent and adult child relationships are so important to maintain as you age, but what about sibling relationships? Adult choices to accept and move on with healthier boundaries is also key for maintaining familial ties.❞

    And, this is indeed critical for many of us, if we have siblings!

    Writer’s note: I don’t have siblings, but I do happen to have one of Canada’s top psychologists on speed-dial, and she has more knowledge about sibling relationships than I do, not to mention a lifetime of experience both personally and professionally. So, I sought her advice, and she gave me a lot to work with.

    Today I bring her ideas, distilled into my writing, for 10almonds’ signature super-digestible bitesize style.

    A foundation of support

    Starting at the beginning of a sibling story… Sibling relationships are generally beneficial from the get-go.

    This is for reasons of mutual support, and an “always there” social presence.

    Of course, how positive this experience is may depend on there being a lack of parental favoritism. And certainly, sibling rivalries and conflict can occur at any age, but the stakes are usually lower, early in life.

    Growing warmer or colder

    Generally speaking, as people age, sibling relationships likely get warmer and less conflictual.

    Why? Simply put, we mature and (hopefully!) get more emotionally stable as we go.

    However, two things can throw a wrench into the works:

    1. Long-term rivalries or jealousies (e.g., “who has done better in life”)
    2. Perceptions of unequal contribution to the family

    These can take various forms, but for example if one sibling earns (or otherwise has) much more or much less than another, that can cause resentment on either or both sides:

    • Resentment from the side of the sibling with less money: “I’d look after them if our situations were reversed; they can solve my problems easily; why do they resent that and/or ignore my plight?”
    • Resentment from the side of the sibling with more money: “I shouldn’t be having to look after my sibling at this age”

    It’s ugly and unpleasant. Same goes if the general job of caring for an elderly parent (or parents) falls mostly or entirely on one sibling. This can happen because of being geographically closer or having more time (well… having had more time. Now they don’t, it’s being used for care!).

    It can also happen because of being female—daughters are more commonly expected to provide familial support than sons.

    And of course, that only gets exacerbated as end-of-life decisions become relevant with regard to parents, and tough decisions may need to be made. And, that’s before looking at conflicts around inheritance.

    So, all that seems quite bleak, but it doesn’t have to be like that.

    Practical advice

    As siblings age, working on communication about feelings is key to keeping siblings close and not devolving into conflict.

    Those problems we talked about are far from unique to any set of siblings—they’re just more visible when it’s our own family, that’s all.

    So: nothing to be ashamed of, or feel bad about. Just, something to manage—together.

    Figure out what everyone involved wants/needs, put them all on the table, and figure out how to:

    • Make sure outright needs are met first
    • Try to address wants next, where possible

    Remember, that if you feel more is being asked of you than you can give (in terms of time, energy, money, whatever), then this discussion is a time to bring that up, and ask for support, e.g.:

    “In order to be able to do that, I would need… [description of support]; can you help with that?”

    (it might even sometimes be necessary to simply say “No, I can’t do that. Let’s look to see how else we can deal with this” and look for other solutions, brainstorming together)

    Some back-and-forth open discussion and even negotiation might be necessary, but it’s so much better than seething quietly from a distance.

    The goal here is an outcome where everyone’s needs are met—thus leveraging the biggest strength of having siblings in the first place:

    Mutual support, while still being one’s own person. Or, as this writer’s psychology professor friend put it:

    ❝Circling back to your original intention, this whole discussion adds up to: siblings can be very good or very bad for your life, depending on tons of things that we talked about, especially communication skills, emotional wellness of each person, and the complexity of challenges they face interdependently.❞

    Our previous main feature about good communication can help a lot:

    Save Time With Better Communication

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  • Tech Bliss – by Clo S., MSc.

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    The popular idea of a “digital detox” is simple enough, “just unplug!”, they say.

    But here in the real world, not only is that often not practical for many of us, it may not always even be entirely desirable. The Internet (and our devices with all their bells and whistles) can be a source of education, joy, and connection!

    So, how to find out what’s good for us and what’s not, in our daily digital practices? Clo. S. has answers… Or rather, experiments for us to do and find out for ourselves.

    These experiments range from the purely practical “try this to streamline your experience” to the more personal “how does this thing make you feel?”. A lot of the experiments will be performed via your digital devices—some, without! Others are about online interpersonal dynamics, be they one-on-one or navigating a world in which it seems everyone is out to get us, our outrage, and/or our money. Still yet others are about optimizing what you do get from the parts of your digital experience that are enriching for you.

    As the title suggests, there are 30 experiments, and it’s not a stretch to do them one per day for a month. But, as the author notes, it’s by no means necessary to do them like that; it’s a workbook and reference guide, not a to-do list!

    (On the topic of it being a reference guide…There’s also an extensive tools directory towards the end!)

    In short: this is a great book for optimizing your online experience—whatever that might mean for you personally; you can decide for yourself along the way!

    Click here to get a copy of Tech Bliss: 30 Experiments For Your Digital Wellness today!

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  • The Doctor’s Kitchen – by Dr. Rupy Aujla

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    We’ve featured Dr. Aujla before as an expert-of-the-week, and now it’s time to review a book by him. What’s his deal, and what should you expect?

    Dr. Aujla first outlines the case for food as medicine. Not just “eat nutritionally balanced meals”, but literally, “here are the medicinal properties of these plants”. Think of some of the herbs and spices we’ve featured in our Monday Research Reviews, and add in medicinal properties of cancer-fighting cruciferous vegetables, bananas with dopamine and dopamine precursors, berries full of polyphenols, hemp seeds that fight cognitive decline, and so forth.

    Most of the book is given over to recipes. They’re plant-centric, but mostly not vegan. They’re consistent with the Mediterranean diet, but mostly Indian. They’re economically mindful (favoring cheap ingredients where reasonable) while giving a nod to where an extra dollar will elevate the meal. They don’t give calorie values etc—this is a feature not a bug, as Dr. Aujla is of the “positive dieting” camp that advocates for us to “count colors, not calories”. Which, we have to admit, makes for very stress-free cooking, too.

    Dr. Aujla is himself an Indian Brit, by the way, which gives him two intersecting factors for having a taste for spices. If you don’t share that taste, just go easier on the pepper etc.

    As for the medicinal properties we mentioned up top? Four pages of references at the back, for any who are curious to look up the science of them. We at 10almonds do love references!

    Bottom line: if you like tasty food and you’re looking for a one-stop, well-rounded, food-as-medicine cookbook, this one is a top-tier choice.

    Click here to check out The Doctor’s Kitchen, and satisfy your taste buds—along with the rest of yoru body!

    Don’t Forget…

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    Learn to Age Gracefully

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  • Kiwi vs Lemon – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing kiwi to lemon, we picked the kiwi.

    Why?

    A fairly straightforward one today!

    In terms of macros, kiwi has more protein, carbs, and fiber, the ratio of the latter two also giving it the lower glycemic index. An easy win for kiwi here.

    In the category of vitamins, kiwi has more of vitamins A, B2, B3, B9, C, E, K, and choline, while lemon has more of vitamins B1 and B6. Yes, that’s right, lemon didn’t even win on the vitamin C that it’s famous for. In any case, a clear 8:2 win for kiwi.

    Looking at minerals, kiwi has more calcium, copper, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc, while lemon has more iron and selenium. So, looking at this 7:2 win for kiwi, you might want to reconsider that “glass of lemon water to replenish minerals” trend!

    None of this is to knock lemons, by the way; lemons are still a very respectable fruit, nutritionally. Probably very few people are out there eating lemons the way one might eat kiwi…

    (writer’s note: I say “very few”, as once upon a time when my son was small, I remember coming into the kitchen to find he had helped himself to lemon wedges and was just eating them, so it can happen. But I also one time when he was just as small, found him drinking hot sauce directly from the bottle, so hey, he clearly already enjoyed strong flavors. Lest I seem a very inattentive mother, I’ll say in my defense that our kitchen has no real toddler-height hazards when the oven is cold, and those items were from the bottom of the fridge, so easy to access if I leave the room for a moment to grab something)

    …but what we do want to say here is: if you don’t care for lemons so much, you’re not missing out. If the lemon water isn’t calling to you, you can skip it guilt-free.

    In any case, do enjoy either or both, but kiwi’s the clear winner here!

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    Top 8 Fruits That Prevent & Kill Cancer ← kiwi is top of the list! It has some cool properties, as you’ll see, killing cancer cells while sparing healthy ones.

    Take care!

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  • Screaming at Screens?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    I Screen, You Screen, We All Screen For…?

    Dr. Kathryn Birkenbach is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Neuroscience at Columbia University, and Manager of Research at Early Medical in New York.

    Kathryn has things to tell us about kids’ neurological development, and screen time spent with electronic devices including phones, tablets, computers, and TVs.

    From the 1960s criticism of “the gogglebox” to the modern-day critiques of “iPad babies” as a watchword of parental neglect, there’s plenty people can say against screen time, but Dr. Birkenbach tells us the that the reality is more nuanced:

    Context Is Key

    On a positive note”: consistent exposure to age-appropriate educational material results in quicker language acquisition than media that’s purely for entertainment purposes, or not age-appropriate.

    Contrary to popular belief, children do not in fact learn by osmosis!

    Interaction Is Far More Valuable Than Inaction

    Kathryn advises that while adults tend to quite easily grasp things from instructional videos, the same does not go for small children.

    This means that a lot of educational programming can be beneficial to small children if and only if there is an adult with them to help translate the visual into the practical!

    There’s a story that does the rounds on the Internet: a young boy wanted to train his puppy, but didn’t know how. He asked, and was told “search for puppy training on YouTube”. His parents came back later and found him with his iPad, earnestly showing the training videos to the puppy.

    We can laugh at the child’s naïvety, knowing that’s not how it works and the puppy will not learn that way, so why make the same mistake in turn?

    ❝The phenomenon known as the “video deficit effect” can be overcome, when an on-screen guide interacts with the child or a parent is physically present and draws the child’s attention to relevant information.

    In other words, interaction with others appears to enhance the perceived salience of on-screen information, unlocking a child’s ability to learn from a medium which would otherwise offer no real-world benefit.

    Screens Can Supplement, But Can’t Replace, Live Learning & Play

    Sci-fi may show us “education pods” in which children learn all they need to from their screen… but according to our most up-to-date science, Dr. Birkenbach says, that simply would not work at all.

    Screen time without adult interactions will typically fail to provide small children any benefit.

    There is one thing it’s good at, though… attracting and keeping attention.

    Thus, even a mere background presence of a TV show in the room will tend to actively reduce the time a small child spends on other activities, including live learning and exploratory play.

    The attention-grabbing abilities of TV shows don’t stop at children, though! Adult caregivers will also tend to engage in fewer interactions with their children… and the interactions will be shorter and of lower quality.

    In Summary:

    • Young children will tend not to learn from non-interactive screen time
    • Interactive screen time, ideally with a caregiver, can be educational
    • Interactive screen time, not with a carer, can be beneficial (but a weak substitute)
      • Interactive screen time refers to shows such as Dora The Explorer, where Dora directly addresses the viewer and asks questions…But it’s reliant on the child caring to answer!
      • It can also mean interactive educational apps, provided the child does consciously interact!
      • Randomly pressing things is not conscious interaction! The key here is engaging with it intelligently and thoughtfully
    • A screen will take a child’s time and attention away from non-screen things: that’s a genuine measurable loss to their development!

    Absolute Bottom Line:

    Screens can be of benefit to small children, if and only if the material is:

    • Age-Appropriate
    • Educational
    • Interactive

    If it’s missing one of those three, it’ll be of little to no benefit, and can even harm, as it reduces the time spent on more beneficial activities.

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