Study: Higher rates of depression, diabetes in older Lynn residents

LYNN – Older Lynn residents suffer more than others in the commonwealth from depression, diabetes, hypertension, COPD, heart disease, congestive heart failure and lung cancer, according to a new study on healthy aging by Tufts Health Plan Foundation.On the plus side, there is less arthritis.”We’re glad they did this study,” said Greater Lynn Senior Services Executive Director Paul Crowley. “We’re already poring over the information, and a lot of what we’re doing is based on a similar study we did.”Lynn Public Health Director MaryAnn O’Connor also said Lynn is already on top of the situation.”Based on incident rates higher than the state in several area, we applied for and were just awarded a significant grant to address these areas among older adults in Lynn as well as asthma rates in school aged children,” she stated in an email.O’Connor said residents suffer from hypertension, cancer and several other issues at rates higher than the state average. She called the grant an exciting venture and a true community-wide effort to improve health and wellness.Senior Health Policy Officer for Tufts Health Plan Foundation Ruth Palombo said what O’Connor is doing, addressing the issues from a local perspective, is exactly the kind of results she hoped the study would generate.The first-of-its-kind report for the state lists healthy aging indicators for older adults in each of the commonwealth’s 351 cities and towns plus Boston’s 16 neighborhoods. Each community profile includes nearly 100 indicators that look at a variety of attributes, including physical/mental health, chronic disease, nutrition/diet, access to care and available care.Palombo said the foundation analyzed data and statistics to build the lists, but they are leaving it up to the communities to go back and determine the story behind each indicator.In 2011, GLSS conducted its own root cause study to determine why certain health issues were plaguing North Shore residents and how it could address them. The study guides much of what the organization does, he said.According to the Tufts study, nearly 11 percent or an estimated 10,651 Lynn residents are age 65 or older and 95.7 percent of them are satisfied with life. However, the report also indicates that 32.2 percent have been diagnosed with depression, 33.7 percent have been disabled for a year or more and 37.6 percent have diabetes.Crowley said learning who is suffering from depression is important because that can be a root cause for other issues, such as obesity and bad self-medicating habits.The Tufts study also shows that numbers soar to 63.2 percent for those suffering with four chronic conditions or more, 51.2 percent of seniors have ischemic heart disease and a whopping 81.2 percent live with hypertension. A little more than 28 percent of Lynn seniors are also considered obese.However, 96.7 percent of seniors have a regular doctor and 91.5 percent claim they receive a yearly check up.In Saugus, 33.7 percent of the senior population has been disabled for a year or more, and hypertension outpaces all other illnesses by more than 20 percent. Swampscott statistics are similar to Saugus in that 75.9 percent suffer with hypertension and 58.8 percent have four or more chronic conditions. Thirty-eight percent of Swampscott residents also suffer from complete tooth loss. Revere has lower-average rates of stroke and prostate cancer but higher than state average rates of hypertension, congestive heart failure and lung cancer.Palombo admitted it is not surprising that poorer communities, such as Lowell and Lawrence, tended to score below the state average on a variety of health indicators, whereas more upscale communities, such as Wellesley, Carlisle and Brookline, did much better.”A lot of things happen in some lower-income communities,” she said. “It could be there are fewer supermarkets, fewer places to buy fresh fruit or more crime so there are fewer places to walk safely.”Crowley said the focus at GLSS is to develop a comm