HDFS 105 1st Edition Lecture 21 Outline of Last Lecture I Middle age How family children and aging parents affect health II Changing patterns of marriage divorce etc Outline of Current Lecture I Gerontology II Aging the myths and realities III Health IV Women s life span V Aging physical changes VI Physical fitness VII Cognitive development VIII Senility and dementia IX Psychosocial aspects of aging X Bernice Neugarten personality types in elderly XI Are older adults happy XII Retirement XIII More on social life in old age XIV Institutional care XV Potential problems Current Lecture I II II Gerontology a The study of elderly persons b Geriatrics the care of elderly persons c The elderly are our fastest growing age group in our population today d There are many myths about old people i Elderly are not necessarily sick poor fearful grumpy living in nursing homes incompetent b People continue to be who they are just older Aging the myths and realities a Ageism prejudice toward older people i Why 1 Society respects and admires youthfulness 2 Age segregation young people don t hang out with the old Health These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute II II II II a There is slightly higher incidence of chronic health problems among elderly b Physical aging is not a disease just efficiency of organs slowing down c Vision hearing smell taste can decline d Changes in touch feeling pain e Arthritis inflammation of joints f 60 adults 65 74 die of cancer cardiovascular g Women may suffer from osteoporosis loss of calcium in bones Women s life span a Women tend to live an average of 7 years longer than men i Why 1 Estrogen protects women against hardening arteries 2 Additional X chromosome may be associated with production of antibodies to fight disease 3 Men smoke and drink more than women 4 Men engage in risky behaviors more than women 5 Women more likely to seek help b Biological resistance to some diseases c Tend to lead healthier lifestyles i Ex Fewer women smoke than men Aging Physical changes a Physical appearance i Skin thinner less elastic wrinkles ii Vertebrae settle together iii Get shorter 1 Men from 30 50 lose 1 2 inch 2 Women from 25 75 lose 2 inches b Body composition i Lose muscle ii Increase fat b Respiratory and cardiovascular i Muscles of lungs lose elasticity ii Heart and arteries lose muscle replaced by fat Physical fitness a Important in old age helps fight high blood pressure heart problems diabetes and depression b Exercise helps coordination balance strength even in the very old Cognitive development a Use it or lose it b Decline in cognitive ability after age 60 this depends on level of cognitive development c Intellectual function drops shortly before death this fosters myth of being helpless throughout later adulthood d Brain and nervous system i Brain loses 5 10 of weight between 20 90 II II ii Brain cells can be generated iii Declines in neurotransmitters iv Acetylcholine loss memory loss v Dopamine loss planning and motor activities b Sensory i Hearing loss of high frequency ii Vision lens less elastic and more clouded declines in visual acuity color vision and depth perception iii Taste and smell sweet and salty go first iv Touch and dexterity reduced sensitivity in fingertips palms and lower extremities b Cognitive changes Do mental abilities decline i Crystallized intelligence accumulated information and verbal skills INCREASE ii Fluid intelligence ability to reason abstractly DECLINE b What happens to memory i Information processing declines 1 Encoding and storage declines 2 Working memory declines ii Information retrieval depends on type of info 1 Episodic memory declines retention of life happenings 2 Semantic memory less decline retention of facts about the world 3 Explicit memory declines facts in one s consciousness 4 Implicit memory stays effective experiences without consciousness ii Wisdom practical problem solving stays effective Senility and Dementia a Mental deterioration memory loss disorientation due to loss or slowing of blood flow in the brain b Alzheimer s Disease causes around 50 of cases of senility Psychosocial aspects of aging a The social lives of elderly change with age b Impact of physical health c Changes in work and marital roles d Behavioral expectations of society e Retirement is seen more positively by society as it was in the past i Larger number of retired people many with more money more social opportunity b Psychosocial changes Robert Peck aging adults face 3 issues i Redefine self without work 1 differentiation vs role preoccupation ii Not succumb to physical disabilities 1 Body transcendence vs body preoccupation ii Come to terms with own mortality 1 Ego transcendence vs ego preoccupation a Erikson Psychosocial tasks i ii II II II II II II Stage integrity vs despair Life review process 1 Wisdom 2 Redefining one s worth 3 Has life been well spent Bernice Neugarten Personality types in elderly a Adjustment to aging depends on person s outlook and personality 4 types i Integrated elderly competent complex inner life intact cognitive abilities ii Armored defended elderly ambitious achievement oriented controls events iii Passive elderly strong dependency iv Dis integrated elderly deterioration of thought processes psychological functions v Activity theory included in text Are older adults happy a Older adults are more satisfied with life than younger adults b Best predictor of life satisfaction income and health c Increase in marital satisfaction Retirement a Today people will spend 10 15 of their lives in retirement b Began with 1935 Social Security System c Approx 7 million Americans retirees will return to work of some kind some for the income many to be occupied d Retirement is a process not an event More on social life in old age a Kin and friendship ties are very important b Grandparents and children both benefit from time spent together c Mental health remains much better if people can remain autonomous control their own lives d Religious affiliations support emotional well being and offer social opportunity Institutional care a In the US only 6 of elderly live in nursing homes b Concerns in institutional care i Adequate staffing and care ii Can elderly make decisions for themselves iii Physical emotional economic dependence Potential problems a Depression grief b Alcoholism c Autonomy issues d Mobility issues e