On the day my oncologist told us I was in complete remission after treatment for my lymphoma, my wife turned to me and said, “Do you think you could have done this without softball?” There is no way to answer that question with certainty, but there are some things I do know. In the struggle …more

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I’ve long believed there must be some kernel of truth in any saying or aphorisms that we use to punctuate our conversations and read from authors and others. In an aging society, I’m particularly conscious of the sayings we use to describe old age. Some of those sayings take a bit of examination to find …more

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The ibuprofen story began in 2013, a year after I joined Dr. Brian Kennedy’s lab at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging. At that time, I had embarked on a new project involving a novel path to the discovery of drugs that slow aging. While the strategy follows a common path in aging research …more

Rather than acting your age, you may be better off acting your attitude. That’s right. By celebrating rather than dreading the number of candles on your birthday cake, you can improve your health and longevity. Without realizing it, your attitude about your age gets internalized and ultimately influences your physical and emotional health. As a …more

The concept of a Retirement Index is not new. There are several measures of financial readiness for retirement, both on a broad national level as well as at a more segmented level. Some well-known national indices include the National Retirement Risk Index by Boston College, the International Retirement Security Survey by AARP and the Retirement …more

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Drinking conjures many images in the popular culture. There’s the hard-drinking type and the lonely alcoholic; the beer culture of the working man and the cocktail parties of the upper class. These stereotypes tell something of the truth, but not the whole truth, and certainly not the nuances of drinking in our 60s and beyond, …more

I have Parkinson’s disease. I am not a hero, but a survivor of a number of challenges since 2000. They include Prostate cancer surgery, Rotator cuff Surgery, an acoustic neuroma between the brain and my left ear, surgery for colon cancer and cancer of the bowel, and two total knee replacements. Frankly, I was beginning …more

Last week I took advantage of a cool, clear day to head for the hills. During winter months in western Oregon, such days are at a premium, not to be wasted. Just at the edge of town, a popular county park beckons me. Trails wind up the slope about 1.5 miles to a soft, open …more