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Warning signs of social isolation

Lifestyles

Human beings are wired for social connection, but millions of people confront isolation every day. Many of those people are seniors who lose contact with loved ones as time goes by. While temporary loneliness can be tolerated, prolonged isolation can be very harmful. Research by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine found roughly one-quarter of American adults age 65 and older live in isolation. Identifying the early warning signs of isolation may help to prevent the physiological and psychological toll isolation can take. Here are some signs of social ...

Learn about Legionnaires’ disease and how it’s spread

Lifestyles

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’ve been hearing about Legionnaires’ disease. What is it? How’s it spread? Can it really be spread through windshield wipers? — D.G. ANSWER: Legionnaires’ disease is a pneumonia caused by Legionella pneumophilia. Legionella live in soil and water, and water remains the most important source of infections in humans — not from drinking the water but through aerosolized water. Air-conditioning cooling towers and water systems are the usual sources of large outbreaks, such as the one occurring as I write this in New York City. There’s (almost) no ...

Addressing growing distance with a friend

Lifestyles

DEAR ANNIE: I have a friend, “Rosie,” who kicked me out to the curb (metaphorically speaking) when her sister moved into her mobile home park. Prior to her sister’s moving into the neighborhood, Rosie and I saw a lot of each other. I was always sewing for Rosie, her husband and her mother-in-law at little or no cost. I sent food to her after her surgery. I helped Rosie’s sister with planning Rosie’s 60th birthday party. Meanwhile, when I had health issues and told her, she didn’t contact me afterward to see how I was. When I had a baby shower for my daughter, she did not ...

Bridge by Steve Becker

Lifestyles

1. Double. The best way to show the strength of this hand is to start with a double. A simple overcall of two clubs would not adequately address the game possibilities and might lead to missing a good game contract in spades, diamonds, clubs or even notrump. It is true that a takeout double of one major suit tends to imply good support for the other, but this does not mean that such support is absolutely guaranteed. The more important consideration is to show the general strength of a hand, and the double in this case serves that purpose best. You plan to bid two clubs over ...

Americans without kids less confident about retirement

Lifestyles

As Americans weigh whether to have children and the effect on their financial future, those without kids are significantly less confident about meeting their retirement goals, according to the 2026 Annual Retirement Study from the Allianz Center for the Future of Retirement, part of Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America (Allianz Life). Americans without children are least likely to feel confident in their ability to meet their retirement savings goal (54%), compared to Americans with kids (72%). Among parents, those with one to two children (74%) are more likely to feel ...

Animals need fresh water daily

Lifestyles

DEAR HELOISE: My vet told me to make certain that my dog has fresh water every day. The big water bowl is in the kitchen, which is inside my house, so why does he need fresh water daily? — Joyce F., in Arcadia, Florida Joyce, your dog’s saliva and germs contaminate the water that he drinks. If you leave this water for three or four days, bacteria multiplies hour after hour. Then there’s also your average amount of dust and loose hair that floats into the water. And if other animals are drinking from the same bowl, then their bacteria is present as well. Before you know it, the ...