Imagine being a prisoner in your own home, unable to visit friends, make it to doctor appointments, eat out, attend cultural events or shop for groceries unless someone is available to drive you. After an exodus to the suburbs in the 1950s, operating a car became a necessity for getting to work, maintaining our daily lives and connecting with friends and family. But as we get older, driving can become a challenge. What circumstances might make driving no longer a good choice for a senior living in Thousand Oaks? Aside from a major health setback such as a stroke or a broken hip, other consequences of aging can make driving difficult for seniors: Low vision, night blindness or loss of peripheral vision; difficulty walking long distances in parking lots or carrying heavy packages; joint stiffness in hands, legs and neck. Seniors may also fear getting lost as new streets and routes are created. Socially responsible seniors accept their challenges and voluntarily give up the keys...

A few weeks ago the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a draft recommendation that all baby boomers (those born between 1945 and 1965) take a one-time blood test to detect hepatitis C, a disease that, if left untreated, can ultimately lead to liver cancer and death. According to the CDC, hepatitis C deaths have been on the rise. Baby boomers already account for 2 million of the 3.2 million people infected with the blood borne virus, averaging one in every 30 people in that age group. Many people probably don’t know they are infected because a person with hepatitis C can live without symptoms for many years, even while the disease is damaging the liver. Over time, hepatitis C can scar the liver and lead to cirrhosis of the liver or liver cancer. The disease is the leading cause of liver transplants. The disease is transmitted through the blood, so anyone who grew up before concerns about HIV led to more cautious handling of blood products is especially at risk. At...