Tom Jones at 70: "I will sing as long as I possibly can. My enemy is time"

He's sold over 150 million records, but Sir Tom Jones has confessed that he dreads the day that he can no longer sing.

The 70-year-old veteran -- whose latest album 'Praise and Blame' is a meditative collection of gospel and blues songs dealing with spirituality and mortality -- was speaking to CBS News when he revealed his fear.

"I dread the day. Time is my enemy. Time will catch up with me vocally. And I dread that,' he said. "I dread to think about life without singing because I can express myself, it's a great release, it's a wonderful feeling to get on stage and pour all this stuff out and for people to go, 'Yeah!'''

From the comments on the YouTube video:

catcando75: I grew up listening to this man who belted out a song like no other & always did it in skin tight pants! His voice was clear & crisp yet deep & raspy. When you watched him you knew he loved every note because he wore it like a banner on his face. He pushed tv limits without a pause, his charisma was strong. This is a man so in love with music he knows no boundaries...

References:
Tom Jones: Time Is My Enemy. CBS.
'Time is my enemy': Tom Jones confesses to US TV network CBS that he 'dreads' the thought of retirement. Daily Mail.

Tom Jones: 'I Want to Live Forever' (video) http://goo.gl/UZ2jX

Evaluation of driving risk in dementia - practice parameter update

For patients with dementia, the following characteristics are useful for identifying
patients at increased risk for unsafe driving:

- Clinical Dementia Rating scale (Level A)
- caregiver’s rating of a patient’s driving ability as marginal or unsafe (Level B)
- history of crashes or traffic citations (Level C)
- reduced driving mileage or self-reported situational avoidance (Level C)
- Mini-Mental State Examination scores of 24 or less (Level C)
- aggressive or impulsive personality characteristics (Level C)


Evaluation of driving risk in dementia (click to enlarge the image).

The following characteristics are not useful for identifying patients at increased risk for unsafe driving:

- patient’s self-rating of safe driving ability (Level A)
- lack of situational avoidance (Level C)

References:
Practice Parameter update: Evaluation and management of driving risk in dementia. Neurology 2010;74:1316–1324 (PDF)

Pediatrician retires at 89, enjoys seeing 40-50 patients a day, will become an artist

From Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group:

"How are you? Have you retired?"

"No," said Dr. Segal, "I need to keep practicing until I get it right."

"You took care of my baby for me."

"Wonderful. How old is your baby now?"

"He's 58."

Dr. Segal laughed when he recounted this story. But, then, Segal laughs a lot. Maybe that's how he practiced medicine for more than six decades. Because he found pleasure in his work. So many people are in a hurry to retire so they can start having fun. Segal never understood the reason to wait.

He had fun going to the office every day, had fun saying hello to children and making them well.

Segal got an art degree from Memphis State. When World War II broke out, there wasn't much demand for artists. So Segal went to medical school.

Six decades later, he's not one of those doctors who will tell you how much better things used to be. Sitting in his office during his last week of work, Segal mostly wanted to talk about how good we have it now."

References:
Geoff Calkins: Retiring Dr. Segal didn't wait to have fun — he worked at it. Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group, 2010.

Pediatrics and Medicine

Image source: Wikipedia, GNU Free Documentation License.

Health Benefits of Pets - Mayo Clinic Video

May 10, 2010 — Health Benefits of Pets.

People will do a lot for their pets - see below:

- Somebody found a solution: Smokers are motivated to quit to protect their pets from secondhand smoke http://is.gd/iZ58

- "Do it for Fido: smokers may quit smoking because of their pet" http://is.gd/iZtQ

Sign of the times

One more sign of the increasing geriatric population - in 2009 the adult size diapers outnumbered the baby diapers at the U.S. waste sites for the first time.



From Twitter:

@drwalker_rph Who counted the diapers???

Video: A life cycle in 90 seconds

From the British tabloid Daily Mail:

"Sometimes we forget just how short and precious our time on this planet really is. It's for this reason that John Lewis's new television ad seems to have struck an uncharacteristic chord.

You won't find many people admitting to crying over the usual flood of formulaic adverts on our screens - yet this 'moving' ad has got Britain talking - and sobbing into their breakfast bowls.

At 91 seconds long, and costing £6 million, the ad shows the the life cycle of a woman from birth to old-age - infancy, a girl's birthday party, a clumsy kiss in a university corridor, marriage, pregnancy, parenthood and the path into old age."

How to live to be 100 - The Secret of the "Blue Zones"

"To find the path to long life and health, Dan Buettner and team study the world's "Blue Zones," communities whose elders live with vim and vigor to record-setting age. At TEDxTC, he shares the 9 common diet and lifestyle habits that keep them spry past age 100."

A Blue Zone is a region of the world where people commonly live active lives past the age of 100 years.

Five Blue Zones have been identified by Buettner:

- Sardinia, Italy
- The islands of Okinawa, Japan
- Loma Linda, California
- Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica
- Icaria, Greece

Venn Diagram of longevity clues from Okinawa, Sardinia, and Loma Linda. Image source: Wikipedia, public domain.

References:
Dan Buettner: How to live to be 100+
Blue Zone. Wikipedia.
Uncovering secrets to a longer life. CNN.

Maps:


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Happiest men are ages 60 to 69, while least happy are ages 20 to 29

From CNN:

"As you get older, if you're wise, you avoid all stress. Older people are better able to recognize what will bother them, and better able to negotiate their environment."



References:
More happiness may come with age, studies say. CNN.

Secrets of longevity from a Greek island or How to outlive your doctor

Icaria, Island Chain: North Aegean. Image source: Wikipedia, public domain.

From CNN:

"Since at least the sixth century B.C., Icaria was known to the ancient Greeks and Romans as a health destination -- largely for its hot springs believed to relieve pain, joint problems and skin ailments.

For much of the ensuing two millenniums, people here lived in relative isolation. The people here evolved a unique diet that we believe is a more heart-protective version of the Mediterranean diet. We're doing pharmacological analyses of dozens of herbal teas and unique honey produced by bees that draw pollen of thyme, fir and erica. We think we'll find anti-cancer, anti-oxidant and probiotic properties in these locally produced products.

We also know that people here have a vastly different character than the rest of the Mediterranean. They have volcanic tempers that quickly subside. Despite living on harsh, steep terrain, they're known for relentless optimism and three-day parties. They don't get stressed by deadlines. They go to bed well after midnight, sleep late and take naps. Anecdotally, we know that most people over 90 are sexually active.

Do these people possess the true secret to longevity? We're not sure yet, but we'll certainly distill a few clues about living longer, better."

References:
Commentary: How to outlive your doctor. CNN.
Sex + Sleep = Long, healthy life? CNN.
AC360 transcript. CNN.

Average Andorran lives 85 years, longer than anywhere else on the planet. Why?

References:
Why Andorrans live longer than everyone else. CNN.