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The Keiro Conference, “Aging into Tomorrow: An innovative approach to the aging process” was held at The Westin Long Beach on October 13, 2018. Nearly 350 community leaders and members from all over Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura county areas attended the one-day conference to hear from experts in a variety of fields on the latest aging trends, providing insight and depth on nutrition, financial health, dementia, decluttering and more.
In her welcoming remarks, Keiro President & CEO Leona Hiraoka shared about the challenges and joys that come with aging. A video clip of Akemi Miyake, a 99-year old Keiro class attendee and prominent Orange County leader, speaking on what aging well can mean was also shown.
Keynote speaker Dr. Carla Perissinotto, Associate Chief of Clinical Programs in Geriatrics at the University of California, San Francisco, spoke about the complexity and growing rise of social isolation among older adults, a topic for which she has gained national and international recognition. Sharing research that prolonged social isolation is as harmful as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, she called this out as the new public health epidemic people should be aware of. She also shared ways to find solutions to this pressing issue.
During lunch, the second keynote speaker Peter Walsh brought laughter and inspiration to participants on how to declutter and downsize, as well as the importance of letting go of things to live a happier life.
Breakout sessions covered a wide range of topics from smart-home technologies, dementia, and the Mediterranean diet to mind-body exercise, aesthetic treatments, and financial planning.
One participant commented, “We’re aging, and reading through these topics I felt that they were relevant and interesting. A lot of these apply to what I’ve been thinking about and that’s the reason for coming. I can’t attend everything but I plan to come again to continue learning.”
About Keiro
Keiro is a mission-driven organization engaged in improving the quality of life for older adults and their caregivers in the Japanese American and Japanese community of Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura counties. Keiro delivers a wide range of resources to address the challenges and barriers that aging presents: isolation, limited financial resources, complex health conditions, and cognitive and memory disabilities. Keiro also partners with companies and organizations that can expand its services and ability to reach seniors and caregivers, and participates in research and innovative work where Keiro can contribute to advancing progress in resolving the challenges of aging. Keiro is based in Los Angeles.