Consumer News: Older adults who walk faster may be more active each day

From challenging a DMV decision to dealing with memory loss, here's what families can do when an older adult can no longer drive

• Losing a license doesn't always mean driving is over: Appeals, medical evaluations, retesting, or restricted driving privileges may still be options.

• Memory problems can make giving up the keys much harder: Doctors and driving specialists can help determine when it's no longer safe to drive.

• Have a transportation plan ready: Rideshare, senior transportation, family rides, and delivery services can help an aging parent maintain their independence.

My dad recently failed a driving test and lost his driver's license. It made me realize how little guidance there is for what happens after an older adult is told they can't drive anymore.

Losing a license isn't simply about losing a car, or a truck in my dads case. It can affect grocery shopping, medical appointments, friendships, and perhaps most importantly, a person's independence.

Sometimes the decision isn't necessarily permanent. Depending on why the license was suspended or revoked, an older driver may be able to challenge the decision, provide medical evidence, retest, or qualify for restrictions.

Other times, particularly when dementia or significant memory problems are involved, the family may need to help someone stop driving permanently.

Here's where to start.

Find out exactly why the license was taken away

Don't assume failing a test automatically means someone will never drive again.

Rules vary by state, so start by reading every document the DMV provides. Find out whether the license was restricted, suspended, or revoked. And exactly why.

In California, for example, the DMV can require a driver to be evaluated if there are concerns about their physical or mental condition or deteriorating driving skills. The DMV officially calls this process a "reexamination," and it can include a medical evaluation, vision and knowledge tests, and a behind-the-wheel driving test.

Possible outcomes aren't always simply "drive" or "don't drive." California can impose restrictions such as requiring corrective lenses, prohibiting nighttime driving, or limiting where someone can drive.

What to do: Ask the DMV specifically what would have to happen for driving privileges to be restored or restricted rather than revoked.

Don't miss your chance to challenge the decision

If you believe the DMV got it wrong, don't wait to investigate your options.

In California, drivers generally have only 10 days to request an administrative hearing when personally given notice that their driving privileges are being suspended or revoked. This changes to 14 days if the notice was sent via the mail.

At a hearing, drivers may be able to present medical information and other evidence supporting their ability to drive safely.

Other states have different procedures and deadlines, so be sure to check directly with your state's DMV or licensing agency website.

Pro tip: Its important to always keep every DMV notice, medical evaluation, and test result together. Also, write down all important dates and deadlines as soon as you receive them.

Consider an independent driving evaluation

If Dad says, "I'm perfectly capable of driving," and the family says, "No, you're not," you're probably not going to settle that argument over dinner.

Consider bringing in someone who can evaluate the situation objectively.

A comprehensive driving evaluation can assess cognitive, visual, and physical abilities along with actual behind-the-wheel performance. These evaluations are often performed by occupational therapists or driver rehabilitation specialists.

Instead of recommending taking the keys away, a specialist might recommend things like additional training, adaptive equipment, or driving restrictions, that could allow someone to continue driving in a safer way.

You can search for a specialist in your area through the Association for Driver Rehabilitation Specialists.

Of course, the evaluation may also confirm what nobody wants to hear, that its time to stop driving.

Memory problems make this much more complicated

A failed road test and dementia aren't the same problem.

Someone with mild cognitive impairment may potentially still be capable of driving safely. But progressive dementia can affect judgment, reaction time, navigation, and the ability to respond appropriately when something unexpected happens.

California, for example, may allow some drivers diagnosed with mild dementia to undergo reexamination. The state says drivers diagnosed with moderate or severe dementia aren't eligible for reexamination because they can't safely drive.

But families can face an even harder problem: What if Mom or Dad doesn't remember that the license was taken away?

Or remembers but refuses to accept it?

The National Institute on Aging recommends involving the person's doctor and potentially taking steps to prevent access to a vehicle. This can include things like hiding the keys, disabling the car, or simply selling it.

Pro tip: Its smart to try and avoid making one family member the permanent bad guy. Instead, ask the person's doctor to explain why driving may need to stop. It will often be much better received and will avoid creating resentment in the family dynamic.

Replace the transportation before taking away the independence

This may be the most important step.

Don't tell Mom she can't drive to the store anymore without being able to answer the obvious question: "Then how am I getting to the grocery store?"

Make a list of everywhere the person normally drives during a typical month. Think about doctors, pharmacy, groceries, church, haircuts, restaurants, friends, and family.

Then find an alternative for each one. Possibilities include public transit, paratransit, senior transportation programs, Uber or Lyft, family members, grocery delivery, and pharmacy delivery.

The federal government's Eldercare Locator can also connect families with transportation and other aging services available locally.

Pro tip: If your parent already uses Uber or Lyft regularly, ask a driver they know and trust if they also provide private rides outside of the app. Having the same trusted driver for groceries, appointments, and errands can make giving up driving much easier. Just make sure the driver has appropriate insurance for providing paid rides outside the app.

Figure out what the car was actually costing

One objection you'll probably hear is that Uber or another transportation service is "too expensive." But compare it with the actual cost of owning a car. After you add up insurance, gas, registration, maintenance, repairs, and any car payment, and it may not be.

If getting rid of a vehicle saves $400 or $500 a month, suddenly a $15 or $20 rideshare trip looks different.

Selling an unneeded vehicle could also provide additional money that can be earmarked for transportation. Take the amount previously spent on the car each month and create a dedicated "transportation budget." That can make paying for rides feel less like an unexpected expense.

Don't forget the insurance or the car sitting outside

Once someone permanently stops driving, call the auto insurer before changing anything.

Ask whether the person should remain on the policy, how coverage changes if a spouse or family member continues driving the vehicle, and what could happen if the person whose license was revoked gets behind the wheel anyway.

Then decide what happens to the car, as this is particularly important when memory loss is involved. Keeping a familiar vehicle in the driveway with keys readily available can create a temptation for someone with dementia who simply forgets they're no longer supposed to drive.

Selling or relocating the vehicle may ultimately be safer than repeatedly hiding the keys.

Pro tip: Ask your health insurer about potential help with rides. Some Medicare Advantage plans include transportation as an extra benefit, including rides to medical appointments. Call the number on your insurance card and ask specifically about transportation benefits, eligibility, and any limits.

The goal isn't simply taking away the keys

For an older adult, "You can't drive anymore" can sound a lot like "You can't live your life anymore."

That's why families shouldn't treat losing a driver's license as merely a DMV problem.

If there's a legitimate path back to safe driving, investigate it quickly. Understand the appeal process, get medical documentation, and consider an independent driving evaluation.

But if returning to driving isn't safe, particularly because of progressive memory problems, change the goal. It might be time to figure out how you're going to give back as much independence as possible.

New research suggests the brains memory process may begin shifting by middle age

• Researchers found differences in memory performance between younger adults and people in middle age.

• Brain scans showed that hippocampal activity became less consistent across different stages of memory with increasing age.

• The findings suggest middle age may be an important period for understanding how memory changes over time.

Forgetting a name or struggling to remember where you know someone from can feel like an inevitable part of getting older. But new research from Binghamton University suggests that some changes in how the brain handles memories may begin earlier than many people realize potentially around middle age.

The study focused on the hippocampus, a brain region that plays an important role in forming and retrieving memories. Researchers wanted to better understand what happens to memory as people move from young adulthood into middle and older age, particularly when the brain has to remember connections between different pieces of information.

The researchers found that memory accuracy declined with increasing age, with a notable difference between younger adults and participants in their 50s. The findings suggest that middle age could represent an important transition point for memory function.

This is one of a growing list of studies highlighting that the period of middle age is really important for memory functioning and shouldn't be ignored, researcher Ian McDonough said in a news release. For a long time, most studies have been focused on young adults versus older adults.

How the researchers studied memory

The study included 61 adults between 18 and 74 years old. The participants were divided into younger adults ages 18 to 30, middle-aged adults ages 50 to 60, and older adults ages 61 to 74.

While undergoing functional MRI scans, participants were shown faces paired with objects or scenes. After a short rest period, they completed a memory test in which they had to identify the correct object or scene associated with each face. Because all of the images had previously been shown, participants had to remember the specific pairing rather than simply recognize an image as familiar.

The researchers analyzed patterns of activity in the participants hippocampi during the different stages of memory: learning the information, resting afterward, and retrieving it during the test.

What the findings mean for consumers

Younger adults correctly identified a greater proportion of the face-object and face-scene pairings than both middle-aged and older adults. Importantly, the middle-aged and older groups did not differ significantly from each other on overall accuracy.

The brain scans also revealed that similarity between hippocampal activity patterns across the different memory stages decreased as age increased.

In older adults, stronger reactivation of memory-related patterns was actually associated with more errors, suggesting that the brain may sometimes reactivate a broader category of information rather than the precise memory being sought.

The researchers emphasize that more work is needed to understand why these changes occur. They also argue that future studies should pay closer attention to middle age and follow people over longer periods.

For consumers, the takeaway is less about a specific age when memory starts declining and more about recognizing that memory changes can emerge well before older adulthood making middle age an important period for researchers to understand.

We really don't have a good scientific understanding of what is happening in middle age, because the brain is not declining uniformly across this time, with some regions declining faster than others, McDonough said. Finding when those tipping points are is going to be important.

A Rutgers study finds many young children may not need emergency care after suspected poisonings

• Researchers found that about 65% of young children in the study likely didnt need emergency department evaluation.

• Many cases involved children who swallowed substances that werent toxic or could be safely monitored at home.

• Poison Control is available for free, 24/7, at 1-800-222-1222 for suspected poisonings.

When a young child gets into something they shouldnt, heading straight to the emergency room may seem like the safest option. But new research from Rutgers suggests that, in many cases, parents may have another resource they can turn to first: poison control.

The study found that about 65% of young children who went to New Jersey emergency departments after suspected poison exposures probably didnt need emergency care. Instead, their situations could potentially have been handled at home with guidance from poison control experts.

The researchers say the findings also highlight a persistent awareness issue. Even though poison centers have been available for decades, families may not realize they can call for guidance before going to the hospital.

A big takeaway from the paper is that more needs to be done to make sure parents, schools and communities know the poison center is a resource they can turn to when a poisoning is suspected, researcher Liam McLoughlin said in a news release.

The poison center is available 24/7, 365, and is staffed by amazing people who can provide life-saving information by phone at no cost. A quick call could save huge amounts of time, money, and stress while also easing pressure on a busy emergency department.

How the researchers studied the cases

The researchers looked at 1,436 cases reported to the New Jersey Poison Control Center by emergency departments across the state in 2022. The cases involved children younger than 6 who had unintentionally been exposed to a potentially poisonous substance and whose caregivers had not contacted the poison center before arriving at the hospital.

From those cases, the researchers randomly selected 348 for closer review. Two toxicologists independently evaluated each case based on information that could have been provided over the phone, including the child's age, the suspected substance, and a brief description of what happened.

They then assessed whether the child actually needed to be evaluated in an emergency department.

What the results mean for parents

The toxicologists determined that 38% of the children definitely didn't need emergency evaluation, while another 27% probably didn't.

Many of the cases involved children who had swallowed substances that weren't toxic or could have been safely monitored at home. Symptoms such as fever or vomiting were the only factors that significantly increased the reviewers' concern.

For parents, the researchers say the findings underscore the value of knowing the Poison Control number before an accident happens. The service is free and available 24 hours a day, every day, anywhere in the U.S., at 1-800-222-1222.

Dont rely on online searches or AI-generated answers, McLoughlin said. Trust the poison center experts standing by. Help is just a phone call away.

There is one important exception: If a child is unresponsive or having trouble breathing, parents should call 911. For other suspected poisonings, a quick call to poison control can connect families with experts who can help determine what to do next.

The gap between wholesale and grocery-store beef has jumped 24% here's how to fight back

• The beef price gap is widening: Choice beef averaged $10.49 per pound at grocery stores in July, while wholesale prices actually fell, pushing the wholesale-to-retail spread up considerably.

• Don't assume the difference is supermarket profit: The retail spread also covers transportation, labor, refrigeration, packaging, merchandising, and spoilage.

• Shop the deal, not the cut: Check weekly ads, compare price per pound, look for manager's specials, and freeze extra when you find a genuinely good price.

If you've been staring at the beef case wondering how a couple of steaks suddenly became a luxury purchase, here's another frustrating piece of the puzzle: The price retailers are paying for beef isn't necessarily moving in the same direction as the price you're paying.

New USDA data highlighted by RFD-TV shows that the gap between wholesale and retail beef prices widened considerably in July.

Choice grade beef averaged $10.49 per pound at grocery stores, compared with $9.69 a year earlier. Yet wholesale Choice beef actually got cheaper, averaging about $5.58 per pound versus $5.72 last year.

That pushed the wholesale-to-retail spread from roughly $3.97 to $4.91 per pound, which is an increase of about 24%.

Before you start blaming your local supermarket for pocketing the extra $4.91, however, there's something here worth understanding.

A bigger spread doesn't mean bigger grocery store profits

The wholesale-to-retail spread isn't simply the grocery store's normal profit margin.

That $4.91 gap has to cover expenses that happen after the wholesale stage. These include transportation, labor, refrigeration, packaging, and merchandising, along with spoilage.

USDA data also shows that the farmer's share of the retail Choice beef dollar fell from 53.3% to 51.1% over the past year.

And beef prices overall remain painful. USDA recently reported beef and veal prices were 11.8% higher in June than a year earlier and forecasts they'll rise about 10.7% for 2026.

So what can you actually do about it? Here are a few ways shoppers can fight back.

1. Stop shopping for a specific cut

This may be the easiest way to save money. Instead of walking into the store thinking, I need a juicy ribeye tonight, look at what's on sale first, then decide what youre going to cook for dinner.

If chuck roast is deeply discounted, build a meal around that. If sirloin is the loss leader this week, skip the New York strips. If ground beef is still too expensive, chicken or pork may make more sense for your budget.

Turns out that's increasingly what consumers are doing. Recent reporting indicates some shoppers are moving toward cheaper proteins, buying smaller packages, or simply passing on pricier cuts of beef.

2. Learn the price per pound not the package price

A $13 package of beef may look cheaper than the $18 one next to it, but that doesn't tell you which is the better deal.

The little number you want is price per pound.

Start paying attention to the normal price-per-pound range for the three or four cuts you buy most frequently. After a few shopping trips, you'll quickly recognize when a supermarket promotion is actually good.

Pro tip: Take a photo of the price label when you find a particularly good deal. You'll essentially create your own price history and have something to compare against the next time the store puts a big "SALE" sign over the beef case.

3. Be skeptical of the word "sale"

Just because you see a Sale tag doesn't automatically make something cheap.

Be sure to compare the sale price against other cuts, and other stores in your area, rather than assuming the bright tag means you must be getting a bargain.

Also look for manager's specials on beef approaching its sell-by date. If you're cooking it soon or freezing it immediately, those markdowns can be substantially better than the advertised weekly special.

Pro tip: Ask the meat department what time of day they typically mark down packages nearing their sell-by date. There's no universal schedule, but knowing your particular store's routine can give you first shot at the discounted packages.

4. Make your freezer part of your grocery strategy

When you find a legitimately good beef price, don't limit yourself to what you'll eat this week.

Buying extra during a strong promotion and freezing it effectively lets you skip the meat aisle when prices are bad. Divide family packs into meal-size portions before freezing so you aren't forced to thaw five pounds of ground beef to make two burgers.

Just don't turn "stocking up" into an excuse to buy beef you wouldn't otherwise eat. A bargain buried in your freezer for 18 months isn't much of a bargain.

Don't expect beef prices to suddenly collapse

There are reasons to think relief could eventually come, but consumers shouldn't count on dramatically cheaper beef in the immediate future.

The U.S. cattle herd remains exceptionally tight. USDA says calf supplies are expected to remain constrained heading into late 2026 and early 2027, while beef production forecasts have been reduced.

The federal government is also moving to temporarily allow more ground beef imports at reduced tariffs. But economists have questioned how much effect that relatively small amount of additional beef will ultimately have on supermarket prices.

That means waiting around for your favorite steak to return to its old price may not be much of a strategy.

New research challenges the idea that fish alone can protect against cognitive decline

• A new study found no clear evidence that eating more fish lowers the long-term risk of Alzheimers disease.

• Researchers used a method designed to more closely mimic a long-term randomized clinical trial.

• The findings dont mean fish isnt healthy they suggest it may not be enough on its own to prevent Alzheimers.

Fish, particularly oily fish, has long had a reputation as a brain food. It contains nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, and previous research has suggested that eating fish may benefit brain health. Some observational studies have even linked higher fish consumption with a lower risk of Alzheimers disease.

But theres a catch: People who eat more fish may also differ from those who eat less fish in other important ways. They may have different diets, exercise habits, education levels, incomes, or access to health care, for example. That makes it difficult to determine whether fish itself is responsible for any difference in Alzheimers risk.

How researchers put fish to the test

For the new study, researchers from Tufts University used a technique called target trial emulation. The approach uses long-term observational data while applying some of the principles researchers would use in a randomized clinical trial.

The researchers analyzed data from 2,012 cognitively healthy adults in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring cohort. They used the data to emulate a 21-year randomized trial, comparing seven different fish-intake strategies.

The analysis accounted for participants diets before the study, characteristics at the beginning of the study, and changes in factors that could influence the results over time. The researchers specifically looked at whether sustained fish intake was associated with developing Alzheimers disease over the 21-year period.

So, should you still eat fish?

The researchers found that the estimated 21-year risk of Alzheimers ranged from 10.33% among people following a no-fish strategy to 9.98% among those eating at least three servings per week.

Overall, the differences were small, and the study found no clear long-term protective effect from sustained fish consumption. Replacing meat with fish produced similar results.

That doesnt mean fish should suddenly disappear from your dinner plate. The researchers emphasize that fish remains a healthy food. Instead, the findings suggest that simply eating more fish may not be a standalone strategy for preventing Alzheimers disease.

Researchers say future studies should look more closely at factors such as when people consume omega-3s, how their bodies process them, and whether certain genetic or other subgroups may benefit more than others.

The real advance is that this new research method helps move the field from broad associations to more precise prevention strategies, researcher Jos Ordovs said in a news release. That is the kind of evidence we need if we want dietary guidance to become more personalized, more realistic, and more useful for healthy aging.