The elderly population is a constantly growing one here in the United States, its inflation spurred on by the Baby Boomer generation. More and more people are retiring (typical age of retirement: 63) and more and more people are growing in need of long term care. Though most people will not need long term care until later on in their elderly years, up to 70% of all current elderly citizens will need it at some point in time. And there are many reasons that this is the case.

For one thing, the elderly body is simply just more frail than the typical younger adult body. This is thanks to the process of aging, and is something that can leave just about any person susceptible to falls. When these falls occur in the home, it can be harder to get the person in question to get the medical treatment that they are in need of. When many people become unstable, moving to an assisted living home becomes a must, or else hiring a live in caretaker.

Developing dementia is yet another reason to move into an assisted living home – or even a specialized memory care home. Such a memory care facility is growing more and more in demand as dementia rates climb with our growing population of elderly people. After all, there are more than 100 different types of dementia that exist and are diagnosed. Alzheimer’s disease, however, makes up the brunt of dementia cases, accounting for well over 80% of all dementia diagnoses seen throughout the United States.

And there are many of these cases seen. For instance, one eighth of all elderly people have currently been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease alone, let alone any of the other types of dementia seen throughout the country. In addition to this, the number of people living with this disease and type of dementia in particular is likely to rise to reach 16 million all by the time that we reach the year of 2050, which is now only just a few decades in our future, something that reflects the growing number of elderly people in this country, as has been discussed above.

For a great many people, dealing with day to day life as an Alzheimer’s patient can be quite difficult indeed. After all, Alzheimer’s can progress quite quickly, making it hard to live as an independent adult in a very short span of time. When this happens, living alone as an adult is no longer likely to be feasible in any way. And while this can certainly be a difficult thing for many an elderly person to come to terms with, moving to a nursing home can very much be for the best.

For one thing, the nursing home has become a common establishment seen all throughout the United States. As a matter of fact, there are now well over 15,000 nursing homes seen throughout the country. Therefore, finding a reputable nursing home or memory care home is likely to be easier than you think. Getting the chance to tour and vet any given assisted living facility or nursing home is likely something that can help to put the minds of many people at ease, making it at least slightly easier for them to leave their home once it has become obvious that this is something that will need to be done.

Of course, moving to a nursing home is often just not as bad as many people fear it might be. In many cases, as a matter of fact, moving to such an assisted living home makes life a whole lot easier, as up to 40% of all residents at such a home are able to receive the help that they need with day to day tasks. And with around the clock surveillance, family members can rest assured that their loved ones are being treated as they should and kept safe at all times of the day. As anyone who has ever had a family member in any given assisted living facility can readily attest to, this is something that matters quite a great deal, to say the very least on the subject.