Most people do not realize that extreme heat kills more people in the U.S. than hurricanes and tornadoes combined. While extreme heat can be deadly for anyone, older adults are uniquely vulnerable due to three key factors: biological changes that occur with age, higher rates of age-related diseases and greater use of medications that can alter the body's response to heat. Here are some tips to gauge the risk of a heat-related illness for individuals in your community.

How Heat Affects Seniors

The human body has two main mechanisms to cool itself: sweating and increasing blood flow to the skin. In older adults, both of those processes are compromised. Seniors sweat less and have decreased circulation compared with younger individuals.

Chronic health conditions that are more common in older adults, most notably cardiovascular disease and diabetes, can also exacerbate these issues. A compromised heart will struggle to pump sufficient blood, further reducing blood flow to the skin. If the nerves are affected in individuals with diabetes, the body might not receive the message that it needs to start cooling itself by sweating.

As people age, their sense of thirst diminishes, leading them to drink less. In hot conditions, that can cause them to become dehydrated faster. In addition, some older adults, particularly if they have some form of dementia or cognitive decline, may not perceive temperature changes very well. As a result, they will not respond appropriately to heat, both biologically (through sweating) and behaviorally (by moving to someplace cool).

Finally, certain medications that seniors may take, like diuretics and other high blood pressure drugs can affect hydration, blood flow and the sweat response. Individuals should be encouraged to consult their doctor about the side effects of any medications they are taking.

How to Stay Safe

On hot days, older adults and people with serious health conditions should limit outdoor activities like walking and gardening to cooler mornings and evenings. They should also take frequent breaks and drink plenty of water, even if they are not thirsty. If an activity starts to feel harder than normal, that is a signal to stop and find a place to cool down.

Signs of dehydration or heat exhaustion include dizziness, lightheadedness, headache, flushed face, a racing heart or feeling lethargic. Low energy is especially important to watch out for in people with cognitive impairment, who may not realize how hot they are and are unable to verbalize how they feel. If heat exhaustion worsens to a heatstroke, it becomes a life-threatening emergency.

While older adults face unique challenges when it comes to heat, the ways to cool down are the same for any age. If you or a loved one start to experience any of the above symptoms, the best thing you can do is to go somewhere that has air conditioning. If air conditioning is not available in the home, check for a local cooling center.

In the absence of air conditioning, water is extremely helpful in reducing the risk for heat-related injury. Rubbing an ice cube or cold compress over your skin, spraying yourself with cool water or taking a cool shower or bath can also help.

For more heat related safety tips, visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention website at CDC.gov/extreme-heat.

Savvy Living is written by Jim Miller, a regular contributor to the NBC Today Show and author of "The Savvy Living" book. Any links in this article are offered as a service and there is no endorsement of any product. These articles are offered as a helpful and informative service to our friends and may not always reflect this organization's official position on some topics. Jim invites you to send your senior questions to: Savvy Living, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070.

Caring for a parent or another loved one over time can be both physically and mentally challenging. Fortunately, there are many tips and services that may help lighten the load. Here are several tips to consider.

Assemble a care team: A good first step is to put together a network of people including family, friends and neighbors that you can call on when you cannot be there or when you need a break.

Tap local services: Many communities offer a range of free or subsidized services that help seniors and caregivers by providing home delivered meals, transportation, senior companions and more. Call 211 to find out what is available in your community.

Use short-term respite services: Some organizations provide short-term caregivers allowing you to rest, travel or attend to other matters. To locate services in your area, try the Eldercare Locator at eldercare.acl.gov.

Hire in-home help: You may want to consider hiring a part-time home-care aide to assist with preparing meals, housekeeping or personal care. Costs range from approximately $12 to $30 an hour depending on where you live, the qualifications of the aide and the services provided. To find help through an agency, use Medicare’s search tool Medicare.gov/care-compare. It may be more affordable to find someone on your own. Friends, neighbors or health care providers may be able to provide recommendations. You may also search online to find reputable aides who have undergone background checks.

Use financial tools: If you are handling your parent’s finances, you can simplify things by arranging direct deposit for their income sources and setting up automatic payments for their utilities and other routine bills. Also, consider signing your parent up for online banking so you can pay their other bills and monitor their account. If you want or need help, there are professional daily money managers who can do it for you. These professionals often charge between $75 and $150 per hour.

Get financial help: If your parent meets low-income requirements, you may be able to locate financial assistance programs in their area that can help pay for their medications, utilities, health care and other needs. If your parent receives Medicare or Medicaid covers, your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) provides free counseling and information on long-term care coverage. Call 877-839-2675 or visit ShiptaCenter.org to locate a nearby counselor. You can also get help at Medicare.gov or by calling 800-633-4227. The Medicare Rights Center also staffs a helpline and can be reached by calling 800-333-4114.

Tap other resources: There are several other organizations you can draw on for additional information, such as local nonprofits and government agencies. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (caregiver.va.gov) also offers caregiver support services to veterans and spouses of veterans.

Take care of yourself: Make your own health a priority. Being a caregiver is a big responsibility that can cause emotional and physical stress and potentially lead to illness and depression. The only way you can provide the care your parent needs is to make sure you stay healthy.

Savvy Living is written by Jim Miller, a regular contributor to the NBC Today Show and author of "The Savvy Living" book. Any links in this article are offered as a service and there is no endorsement of any product. These articles are offered as a helpful and informative service to our friends and may not always reflect this organization's official position on some topics. Jim invites you to send your senior questions to: Savvy Living, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070.

How can I determine if the health information on a website is trustworthy? I typically research a symptom, drug or health condition online. However, with so much information out there, I am not sure what I can trust.

There is an abundance of health advice on the internet today and it can be hard to tell what is credible. To help you sort through the advice and locate reliable, trustworthy health information, here are a few tips to follow, and top-rated websites you can turn to with confidence.

Savvy Searching

First, know that online search engines are not always the best place to start. You will increase your odds of finding reliable health information if you begin with websites run by government agencies (identified by URLs ending in .gov), medical associations (often .org) or academic institutions (.edu).

Commercial websites (usually ending in .com), such as drug or insurance companies may not have the most reliable or up-to-date information. To find out who sponsors a website and the source of its information, click on the "About Us" tab on the website's home page. Also, note that good health and medical information often changes, so it is always best to check the publication date to ensure the information is current.

Other areas to be wary of include online symptom checkers and artificial intelligence (AI) tools. While online symptom checkers may be a convenient resource for health questions, they are oftentimes inaccurate and can lead to misdiagnosis, and possibly delay necessary medical care. AI tools, like ChatGPT, can also be incorrect or generate false but scientific-sounding information.

You also need to be cautious about medical information sourced from social media and online forums. Comments in these places may sound authoritative but the authors may have no medical training or expertise.

Top Health Websites

While there are many excellent websites that provide reliable health and medical information, one all-purpose website that is recommended by Consumer Reports for researching symptoms and conditions is MedlinePlus (medlineplus.gov).

A service of the National Library of Medicine, the world's largest medical library, and part of the National Institutes of Health, MedlinePlus provides high-quality, trustworthy health and wellness information that is easy to understand and free of advertising.

Here are a few additional websites to help you find reliable information on specific diseases, conditions and treatments.

Cancer: National Cancer Institute (cancer.gov), American Cancer Society (cancer.org) and National Comprehensive Cancer Network (nccn.org).

Heart disease: American Heart Association (americanheart.org), National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (nhlbi.nih.gov).

Diabetes: American Diabetes Association (diabetes.org).

Alzheimer's disease: Alzheimer's Association (alz.org) and Alzheimers.gov.

Public health and vaccines: Center for Disease Control and Prevention (cdc.gov).

Alternative medicine: National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (nccih.nih.gov) and the National Institutes of Health's Office of Dietary Supplements (ods.od.nih.gov).

To receive the best medical treatment for your specific needs, consult with a qualified medical provider. Be sure to save or print any research you do online before seeing a doctor, including the website you got your information from, in case you wish to review it with your doctor.

Savvy Living is written by Jim Miller, a regular contributor to the NBC Today Show and author of "The Savvy Living" book. Any links in this article are offered as a service and there is no endorsement of any product. These articles are offered as a helpful and informative service to our friends and may not always reflect this organization's official position on some topics. Jim invites you to send your senior questions to: Savvy Living, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070.

These scams have fraudsters frequently pretend to be representing a government agency and specifically target senior adults. They use carefully crafted strategies that are based on fear and deceit to exploit senior victims.

IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel stated, "Scammers often target seniors, attempting to steal personal information through phone calls, emails or text messages by pretending to be from the IRS or other agencies or businesses. Preventing these types of scams requires assistance from many different places. By partnering with other federal agencies and others in the tax community, we can reach more seniors and other taxpayers to help protect them against these terrible scams."

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is Saturday, June 15, 2024. This day has been observed for nearly two decades and focuses on programs to reduce neglect and abuse of seniors. It attempts to recognize the cultural, social, economic and demographic factors that are used by fraudsters.

The IRS offers specific cautions that enable seniors to understand the threats. The fraudsters continue to become more sophisticated and use "spoofed" caller IDs to appear legitimate.

1. Impersonation of Government Agents — Fraudsters often claim to represent the IRS, Social Security Administration, Medicare and other public agencies. They frequently spoof the caller ID, and the victim believes that it is a legitimate call from a government agency.
2. Claim of Prizes or Problems — Scammers may promise large prize winnings or claim you owe a significant debt. You might be promised a substantial tax refund or told that you owe a large amount to the IRS. The scammer’s goal is to convince you that you are receiving a large positive benefit or facing serious trouble. In either case, the scammer will attempt to persuade you to disclose financial information.
3. Pressure for Prompt Action — Fraudsters are skilled at creating a sense of urgency. They craft dramatic stories that persuade you to take immediate action. The stories could threaten a senior with arrest, deportation or loss of a driver's license. The urgency of the fraudster’s threat is a major red flag.
4. Unusual Payments — A fraudster knows he or she must remain anonymous. The scammer will use unusual payment methods that can make it difficult to track the money. These payments might include cryptocurrency, wire transfers or gift cards. The fraudster will explain why the senior must respond immediately. Under pressure and because of the urgency of the demand, many seniors have shared the financial information on a gift card and then had their funds disappear.

The IRS offers several protections for seniors. If you receive an unexpected call because you have not previously been notified by mail from the IRS regarding any issues with your taxes, you should hang up. You can contact the IRS at 800-829-1040 to verify the name and IRS department of the caller. You also can set up an online account on IRS.gov to review your tax information and status.

If you think you have been scammed, you can report it on the IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting form or call 800-366-4484.

Always keep in mind that there are four "never” rules that are followed by IRS staff.

1. Never Demand — The IRS emphasizes it will not demand immediate payment with a debit card, gift card or wire transfer.
2. Never Threaten Arrest — The IRS will not threaten you with arrest by police or a local law enforcement agency.
3. Never Skip Appeal — The IRS will never demand payment without giving you an opportunity to dispute the tax amount or proceed through an appeal process.
4. Never Demand Numbers — The IRS will never demand information from your credit, debit or gift card.

Finally, the U.S. Department of Justice has a National Elder Fraud Hotline. If you are a victim of elder fraud, you may call 833-372-8311. There are operators available who speak English, Spanish and other languages.