An elder law attorney at The Law Office of Michael Robinson, P.C. helps you to make sure you are as prepared as possible for the effects of aging. As you get older, you need to ensure you have plans in place in case you become unable to live independently and you need to move into a nursing home. This includes plans to find the right care facility and to ensure that you’re able to pay for it without having to spend down all that you have saved over the course of your life. 
While preparing for the effects of aging is important, many people also want to do all that they can to try to stay young, healthy, and independent as long as possible.
Medical Express reported recently that researchers from the University of Rochester now believe that the loss of muscle stem cells are a major driving force behind the age-related decline in their muscles that many people experience as part of the aging process.
Stem Cell Loss Could Lead to Muscle Decline
According to Medical Express, the strength and size of muscles starts to decline as early as your mid-30s, although for many people the changes are subtle and gradual so aren’t really noticeable. However, as you get older, the decline becomes more pronounced and it becomes harder to do activities that once came easily to you. By the time you reach your 70s or 80s, even simple daily activities can become difficult to do and you may end up becoming frail and needing to rely on family, home healthcare aides, or nursing home staff for even basic activities of daily living.
The speed of decline will vary from person to person, and some of this decline can be prevented or slowed through regular exercise and diet. However, even elite athletes with extensive muscle strength experience age-related declines, according to one of the University of Rochester Medical Center researchers who co-authored the recent study.
The revolutionary new research conducted by U of R experts has, for the first time, begun to deeply probe the role that stem cells play in muscle maintenance over the course of a persons’ life. Adults have stem cells within their muscles which respond when they exercise or if they get hurt, and these stem cells produce new cells that are responsible for muscle growth or for repairing muscles. However, as people age, these stem cells die off. While the die-off of muscle stem cells was already well known, this recent research is the first to suggest the die-off could be contributing to muscle loss.
This is a promising new development because if it is determined that loss of the stem cells is a major or the main contributing factor to muscle weakness, new drugs could be developed that help to prevent muscle atrophy.
A lot more research is needed, but the lead researcher for this study is currently working on a drug target that would help to stave off muscle generation for as long as possible by helping to maintain the muscle stem cell pool.
Getting Help from an Elder Law Attorney
While there are some steps you can take to try to stay healthy as you age, there are never any guarantees in life. That’s why it is so important to work with an elder law attorney at The Law Office of Michael Robinson, P.C. to make sure you have the right plans in place to protect your family and assets in case you need to move to a nursing home.
To find out more about how we can help you to be prepared for the aging process, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at 585-374-5210 or contact us online to get personalized advice on making your plans for the future.
Michael Robinson, Estate Planning Attorney
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