Home Care San Francisco joins the Social Network of Care is one of the most advanced social networking programs in the country. It offers blogs, media exchange, forums, wikis (group-document building) and, of course, groups. Groups can be public or private, open or closed – whatever suits your needs. Each group you establish automatically gains access to all of these tools, embedded for your use. You can use the Social Network of Care for individuals, clients, families, work groups, and more. Or, you can create your own private Social Network of Care area for you and your employees.   Everything on the Social Network of Care platform is completely free. It is also free of any advertising or e-commerce.

Your San Mateo County Network of Care for Seniors & People with Disabilities site also includes:

• Personal Health Records
• A comprehensive, community-based Service Directory
• News from all over the country
• Free Web-site building
• The Network of Care for eLearning – a state-of-the-art Learning Management System.
• Special features such as Fall Prevention, Financial Abuse Prevention, and much more.
• A Call Center application, should you need this advanced software program.

For more information about the Social Network of Care or any Network of Care services, please contact us at any time. Click here to visit your site or check out the Social Network of Care.

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

Home Care San Francisco cares for many aging adults, and we know that high blood pressure is a common occurrence in the senior population. It is important for all seniors to know and understand the facts of high blood pressure, as well as any symptoms that are associated with it. The list provided below contains symptoms and facts about high blood pressure.

1. High blood pressure is the primary risk factor for heart attack and stroke. It can also cause kidney damage, blindness and heart disease.

2. The symptoms of high blood pressure can be different for each person. Some seniors will never experience any symptoms. Symptoms include dizziness, blurred vision, headaches and fatigue.

3. If the heart has been affected, the following symptoms may be present: chest pain, heart palpitations, shortness of breath and dizzy spells.

4. If the kidneys are affected by high blood pressure, patients may experience frequent urination, urinary tract infections, pain in the lower abdomen, increased glucose and protein in the urine or blood.

5. Should high blood pressure affect your eyes, you will experience loss of vision, blurred vision, headaches or double vision.

6. Malignant hypertension is caused by the rapid onset of high blood pressure and may cause shortness of breath, severe headaches, nausea, chest pain, confusion or seizures.

7. Talk to your doctor if any symptoms are present. Then work on a solution to lower your blood pressure, either by diet changes, medications, exercise or a combination of all three.

Source: hearthealthyonline.com

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

One of the best ways to promote heart health is by adding an exercise program to your daily life. This does not mean intense exercise. Simple stretching and sitting exercises can be beneficial. Heart health is a major concern for seniors, so more people are starting an exercise program to help their hearts and increase over-all health. The list below contains some tips when starting a program.

Before starting any exercise program, Home Care San Francisco wants to remind all seniors to check with their doctor first to make sure that the exercises they’re doing are safe.

1. Make sure all exercises are paced. You do not want to go too fast or over-do it. Give your muscles time to relax between exercises.

2. Individuals who have heart failure should always exercise in a controlled climate. Do not exercise outside in the extreme heat or cold.

3. During all exercises, make sure to have water nearby. Staying hydrated is one of the most important factors of a healthy exercise regime.

4. If you become fatigued, stop the exercise. Do not exercise if you have not been feeling well or if you experience any shortness of breath.

5. Pain can be an indicator of other health problems. If you experience any pain, stop the exercise, especially if the pain is in the chest.

6. After all exercises, check your pulse 15 minutes after you have stopped. Your pulse rate should be lower than 120.

Source: webmd.com

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

Home Care San Francisco wants all seniors to know that they should always talk to their doctor before starting a new exercise or diet program.

When seniors face high blood cholesterol levels and increased risks of heart disease, a senior citizen may long for those days when their hearts were healthy. All is not lost. Seniors can change their diets and in the process lower cholesterol and eliminate that dreadful threat of heart disease.

• Saturated Fats—To follow the Heart Healthy Diet, only 8% to 10% of a senior’s total daily calories should come from saturated fats. This percentage is based upon the percentage of calories you actually eat. In other words, the amount will vary depending on how many calories you consume.

• Fats—A senior’s total daily calories from fat should be 30% or less. Once again, this percentage is based on the percentage of calories you eat.

• Dietary Cholesterol—Seniors should keep their daily dietary cholesterol intake under 300 milligrams if they want to stick with the heart healthy diet.

• Sodium—Sodium consumption should be limited to 2400 milligrams a day.

• Eating Habits —Seniors should not deprive themselves of calories or over eat. It is important to always eat enough calories towards maintaining or achieving a healthy weight. Also, a healthy calorie intake should help reduce blood cholesterol levels.

Source: nhlbisupport.com

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

While it is tradition to wait until the New Year to begin working on a resolution, many seniors are starting early. There is no definitive timeframe in which a resolution need be started. Actually, you can begin as soon as you decide what the resolution will be. At Home Care San Francisco, we care for many seniors and understand the benefits to seniors who start early on their self-improvement goals.  Some of the reasons are listed below, along with some tips for started early.

1. Millions of people make resolutions each year and many of them are seniors. These goals are often centered on changes that will improve daily life, so there is no better time to start than now!

2. Resolutions do not have to be made just for the New Year. You can make a resolution at any point during the year and begin working on it as soon as you can. There is no need to wait until the first day of a new year.

3. When starting early, you will see there are benefits. You will begin improving your life sooner. Self-discipline is one of the most important factors of any resolution success, so start early and make changes for the better.

4. Keep your goal in mind, no matter when you start to work on your resolution. Create a plan that will allow you to stick to your convictions and achieve your goals. Resolutions not only improve life, they also help people grow physically, emotionally and psychologically.

Source: ehow.com

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

Home Care San Francisco knows that achieving new goals can be difficult for many seniors. They will often require some help from friends and family, even if that is just moral support. There are many websites that can offer tips and resources to help seniors achieve their goals this year. The sites listed below are a few that are commonly used by those who wish to get a little help in achieving their goals.

1. ResolutionsReminders.com – This is a free site that can help you stay on track and attain your resolutions. The site was established in 1997 and has been going strong ever since. It contains valuable resources and users can sign up to receive email reminders.

2. DietTV.com – This site is great for anyone who has set diet goals for the New Year. A personalized program can be created, including a customized diet plan. The site has many areas that will help with all diet and exercise needs, such as an exercise finder and support groups.

3. StopSmoking.net – Many seniors still smoke, and many members of the senior population make resolutions each year to quit smoking. This is one of the hardest goals to achieve, especially for seniors who have been smoking for many years. The site also offers tips on how to quit as well as the option of creating a personalized stop smoking plan.

Source: helium.com

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

Here at San Francisco Home Care, we know that your goals can be accomplished this year and you’ll improve your life as you age. This year can be different than those past where you’ve struggled to meet them after a few turns of the calendar, if you make sure you don’t enter into the following pitfalls:

1. Don’t procrastinate – get started with them right away. As soon as you set your goals, get going. The longer you procrastinate, the less likely you’ll ever begin on your journey

2. Overcome the hurdles – it’s Murphy’s Law that what can go wrong will go wrong; but just because you encounter hurdles while trying to meet your New Year’s resolutions doesn’t mean that you need to give up. Overcome!

3. Don’t let a plateau discourage you – no matter what your goal is, you’ll see a lot of progress early on and then hit a plateau. This doesn’t mean you’re not meeting success, this a natural occurrence, and you simply need to keep moving forward with your goals

4. Recognize that if you feel discouraged, it’s simply an emotion – at some stage along your journey to reaching a goal, you’ll likely feel discouraged. But that doesn’t have a bearing on your success, especially once you recognize that it’s simply an emotion and you can get through it

Via: Huffington Post

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

So many of us focus upon improving our health by improving our bodies at this time of year. Whether we’re worrying about our appearances, or want to drop a few pounds to prevent the onset of a health issue; physical fitness is often at the center of New Year’s resolutions. For optimal health, the mind needs to be a focus too, and this is of even more importance to older adults. Resolve to focus on your mind, as well as your
body with these tips:

1. Keep your brain active – use training sessions that keep your brain active regularly. Try memory games, activities that require skill and logic, or learn new skills in order to help keep your brain on its figurative toes!

2. Snap out of your routine – when you follow the same routine day after day, your brain is no longer actively engaged. Simply by doing the same routine tasks in different ways you can keep your brain sharp

3. Think positively – since stress can affect memory, think positively about all aspects of your life. Don’t expect that your memory is likely to fail simply because of family history. Understand that you can take some control over your future in a positive way!

Via: AARP

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

Cognitive decline can come as part of the aging process for some seniors, but it doesn’t need to be that way. This year, pledge to begin these 25 smart habits to keep your brain healthy:

1. Choose fruit – instead of chocolate bars, try blueberries and almonds

2. Dance – ballroom dancing can help prevent Alzheimer’s

3. Choose healthy crunch – in salads, instead of croutons try walnuts for texture

4. Walk daily – reduce blood sugar with a 20 minute walk daily

5. Try Chinese vitamins – use Chinese moss

6. Become a tour guide – at a hospital, museum or historical place guide tours to help you remember facts

7. Use video games – use brain teaser games and practice hand-eye coordination

8. Try new things – don’t stick to the same old logic puzzles you’re used to

9. Deal with stress – seeking support helps reduce the effects of shrinking to your brain’s memory center

10. Look around – take in your surroundings closely

11. Notice details – really look so you could recount your surroundings

12. Try special tea – gotu koala tea protects brain cells

13. Use other herbal teas – teas with ginseng and holy basic can protect from cortisol

14. Choose a calming word – focus on a word that calms you as a form of meditation

15. Stay focused on time – keep calendars in every room

16. Take a course – take a class at a college

17. Wear a helmet – if you ride your bike, protect your head

18. Drink red wine – drink 2 or 3 glasses of red wine per week

19. Have thyroid testing – thyroid problems can hamper the brain, receive testing and get it under control

20. Choose lean foods – skip the burger and fries

21. Choose healthy sweets – fruits can satisfy a sweet tooth like candy

22. Try oats and cinnamon for breakfast – oats prevent plaque in brain arteries and cinnamon improves blood sugar

23. Listen to music – turn off the TV, turn on the music

24. Try Indian food – ingredients in curry have great antioxidants for brain health

25. Eat regularly – break for food throughout the day

Via: AARP

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.

New Year’s resolutions are rarely stuck by because they just aren’t realistic and enjoyable. These resolutions are ones that can help improve seniors’ health, so they are smart; and they are lots of fun!

1. Be social – attend parties, classes, and social groups. Seniors who are socially active have better physical and mental health than those who are isolated. It’s not uncommon for seniors to withdraw, but avoid it in 2010

2. Try healthy indulgences – controlled amounts of red wine and dark chocolate are enjoyable and can improve health by preventing diabetes, lower blood pressure and more

3. Laugh a lot – you’ve heard laughter is the best medicine. It’s true. Laughter is about the only thing you shouldn’t do in moderation. People should get in a good laugh a couple of times a week to improve the health of their blood vessels

4. Take a snooze – heart related death has been proven to be reduced in seniors who nap for 30 minutes at least 30 times per week. It can also help seniors feel refreshed and improve their immune systems

5. Dance for health – dancing can help to prevent dementia, and is a great form of exercise. Get out those dancing shoes in 2010!

6. Eat some fat – linoleic acid and safflower oil can actually help seniors with a few pounds to shed lose weight, so incorporate them into your diet

7. Get some sun – don’t forget the sunscreen, but vitamin D can lift spirits and reduce the risk of heart disease

8. Try tai chi or yoga – these activities can improve mental health through meditation and help with balance, strength and flexibility

9. Have sex – many seniors give up sex, but it can help you to sleep better, reduce pain, blood pressure and stress

10. Spend time in nature – anxiety and depression are greatly reduced in those who appreciate green space!

Via: AARP

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Home Care San Francisco Bay Area serving seniors in San Bruno, San Mateo, Walnut Creek and Concord. Call us at 415-333-3944 or 650-877-8009.