Never too old for love : 100 year old Mavis and her toy boy

A sweet story I found in the paper today proves that you are never too old for love.

A 100 year old Sydney woman called Mavis Cook is being wooed by a toy boy – a spry gent of 91 who is in the same aged care home.

Mavis and her beau, John Clarke, are like a couple of regular love birds, holding hands and gazing into each other’s eyes, proud of their love for each other – and the fact that romantic love is still important to them.

But Mavis is not a woman who gives her heart too easily. At 95, she turned down a marriage proposal because she didn’t want to be tied down.  However, John found his way into her heart.

This spry Romeo doesn’t mind being called a toy boy and Mavis is pretty proud of having a younger man in her life.

But John feels he got a good deal as his “gorgeous” girlfriend did not look a day over 50. Looking at the picture of the pair, I can see what he means.

The secret to Mavis’s long life and good health is having led an active life.  A champion ice skater in her younger years, Mavis said sport had always been part of her life.

This is truly an inspiring story and proves that maintaining your  health and being positive  stand you in good stead for having a long and happy life. Staying young at heart is an important key to feeling young.

Baby boomers take note. If you want to still be loving and laughing into old age, get moving and watch what you eat.

Maybe I should walk the talk as well, I hear you say. Well, if this story doesn’t motivate me, what will?

Click here for the full story and photo of Mavis and her toy boy.

New Alzheimer’s disease treatment gives hope for cure

Senile dementia sufferers like my daddy could be helped by latest research on a Alzheimer's cure

Great news just came my way today – Alzheimer’s disease treatment which could cure the cruel condition could be here in five years.

Could this be true? With the brain-wasting disease expected to affect 600,000 Australians by 2050, this is astounding news for us baby boomers, especially those caring for elderly parents with Alzheimer’s and other dementia and  for the next generation who may have to care for those of us who develop it.

It is heart-breaking when loved ones first develop Alzheimer’s disease symptoms and the inevitable diagnosis hits you like a ton of bricks.

Of course, Alzheimer’s does not only affect the elderly as it can strike at earlier ages. But the older a person gets, the greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s grows.

The newspaper article which brightened my Sunday said that researchers at the University of Sydney had isolated the cause of the disease in the interaction between two proteins in an otherwise healthy brain cell.

The university team stopped this interaction in mice genetically engineered to develop Alzheimer’s disease by injecting a special protein into their brain using special implants.

This is another example of the brilliant medical researchers we have in Australia where we lead the world in so many areas.

While the research is concentrating on Alzheimer’s, it is feasible that any breakthrough will lead to better treatment for other forms of dementia. My father has senile dementia, not as cruel as Alzheimer’s but heart-breaking enough as bit by bit, he slips away from me.

If you want to read about the research in more detail go to the Herald-Sun website. Hope it puts a smile on your face, my friends