Essay and Critical Thinking Questions. Section IX Late Adulthood. Chapter 18 Physical Development in Late Adulthood

Comprehension and Application Essay Questions

 

We recommend that you follow either our guidelines for "Answering Essay and Critical Thinking Questions," or those provided by your instructor, when preparing your response to these questions. Your answers to these kinds of questions demonstrate an ability to comprehend and apply ideas discussed in this chapter.

 

1. Describe the nature of love and marriage during middle adulthood.

2. Define the empty nest syndrome, and explain its relationship to marital satisfaction.

3. Imagine a situation in which adult children move back into their parent's home. Describe the concerns from both the young adult's and parent's perspectives, and summarize important issues for discussion by both parties.

4. Define and provide at least two examples of intergenerational relationships.

5. Evaluate whether mid-life entails a crisis in development according to each of the four adult stage theories.

6. Explain how the concepts of cohort and social clock affect the view that mid-life is a period of crisis.

7. Defend or refute the view that adult stage theories express a male bias.

8. Explain whether middle age is a universal or culturally-specific concept.

9. Explain the life-events approach in your own terms.

10. What does it mean to say that there is individual variation in adult personality development.

11. Summarize the results of longitudinal studies of adult personality development.

12. Conduct a life review in which you consider at least four different aspects such as family, friends, education, career, travel, financial security, and religious and spiritual concerns.

 

 

Section IX Late Adulthood

Chapter 18 Physical Development in Late Adulthood

Summary

1.0 Images of Life-Span Development: Learning to Age Successfully

The story of Sadie Halperin, an 85-year-old woman, raises intriguing questions about why we age and what can be done to slow down this process.

 

 

2.0 Longevity

 

The late adulthood period is marked by an increase in the physical declines that begin in the early adulthood period. Changes in brain function and sensory functions are accompanied by an increase in chronic illness. Exercise, proper nutrition, and weight control may alleviate or at least postpone some of the more common symptoms associated with increasing age.

 

Life Expectancy and the Life Span. Medical advances and better health habits have led to increases in life expectancy in the last several decades. Life span, however, remains fixed at about 120 years. Among the most important factors in longevity are heredity and family, health, personality characteristics, and life-style. By about age 25 women begin to outnumber men until at about age 75, when women outnumber men three to one. Differences in life expectancies for men and women are probably due to social factors such as differing health habits and work environments as well as biological factors related to the X chromosome.

 

The Young Old, the Old Old, and the Oldest Old. Developmentalists have further subdivided late adulthood. Most demarcations involve two subperiods although agreement on the age ranges of the subperiods has not been achieved. Distinctions include the young old or old age (65-74), the old old or late old age (75 years and older), and the oldest old (85 years and older). The needs, capacities, and resources for the oldest old are often different than for their young old counterparts; however, every period or subperiod of life is heterogenous. Although many of the oldest old have some type of impairment, many others do not. Significant numbers of the oldest old function effectively and are in good health.

 

Biological Theories of Aging. Biological theories of aging are divided into two camps. Microbiological theories focus on the cell and include a cellular garbage theory, a cross-linkage theory, and a cellular clock theory. Macrobiological theories focus on physiological systems and include an immune system theory, a theory involving the hypothalamus and pituitary gland, and a organ reserve theory involving homeostatic systems. Rudman's study of human growth hormone indicates that more than one aging clock exists. Although a dock in the genes may determine longevity, another clock in the neuroendocrine system also influences aging via an adrenal hormone, DHEA.

 

3.0 The Course of Physical Changes in Late Adulthood

 

The Brain and Nervous System. The brain undergoes predictable changes as it ages. Neurons die, and unlike other cells in the body, are not replaced. Estimates of neuron loss range from 5 percent to 50 percent with most of the evidence suggesting between 5 and 10 percent. Neuronal loss appears to be accompanied by a decrease in function. In people under the age of 70 neuronal loss appears to be accompanied by dendritic spread that may account for the lack of functional impairment. Old negative myths about the aging brain are being replaced by more optimistic portrayals.

 

Sensory Development. The senses all show some decline during later adulthood. Difficulties with glare and dark adaptation are accompanied by a smaller visual field and a decrease in the amount of light hitting the retina. Corrective lenses can help with some of the problems. Hearing loss continues to decline throughout adulthood; about 75 percent of the people over the age of 75 have a hearing problem. Taste and smell also decline with bitter and sour showing more persistent sensitivity than sweet and salty. Healthier individuals show less of a decline. Although painful illnesses increase with increasing age, pain sensitivity decreases. The decline in perceptual systems is much greater in late old age than in young old age.

 

The Circulatory System. When heart disease is absent, the amount of blood pumped is the same regardless of an adult's age. High blood pressure is no longer just accepted in older adults but is treated with medication. A number of factors contribute to higher blood pressure in older adulthood; however, many can be modified.

 

The Respiratory System. Lung capacity does drop but older adults can improve lung functioning with diaphragm-strengthening exercises.

 

Sexuality. Aging in late adulthood does include some changes in sexual performance, more so for males than for females. Nonetheless, there are no known age limits to sexual activity.

4.0 Health

 

Health Problems. Health problems become a major concern as we age. Most older adults suffer from at least one chronic illness. The most frequent chronic illness is arthritis; followed by hypertension.

 

Causes of Death in Older Adults. The leading causes of death in late adulthood are heart disease, cancer, and cerebrovascular disease (stroke). Life expectancy would increase substantially with the elimination of cardiovascular and kidney diseases.

 

Arthritis. Arthritis is characterized by an inflammation of the joints that produces pain, limited motion, and stiffness. Arthritis is especially common among older adults.

 

Osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is a disorder causing loss of bone tissue and leads to broken bones. It is the main reason that many older adults walk with a stoop. It can be prevented by high calcium diets and estrogen replacement therapy.

 

Accidents. Accidents are the seventh leading cause of death among older adults. Although accident rates are lower for older adults, their effects are more severe than they are for younger adults.

The Robust Oldest Old. Although chronic disorders increase in late adulthood, even a substantial portion of the oldest old are robust. Early portraits of the oldest old were too stereotypical. There is cause for optimism in the development of new regimens of prevention and intervention.

 

5.0 Health Treatment

 

Health Costs. Compared with younger adults, older adults spend more days in bed, more days in the hospital, visit their doctors more often, and consume more medication. The price tag for all of this health care is about $5,000 a year for the average person over 65. Medicare and Medicaid pick up some, but not all of the costs. Escalating medical costs have prompted increased discussion about national health insurance programs.

 

Nursing Homes. Only about 5 percent of the population over the age of 65 is in a nursing home. The percentage rises to 23 for people over the age of 85. Three types of nursing homes provide differing levels of care for older adults. Skilled care is the highest level of care, the most expensive, and the most likely to fall under government scrutiny. Intermediate nursing facilities provide a moderate level of care. Residential nursing facilities provide for day-to-day needs. Not all nursing homes provide good care; as many as a third of them have serious problems that prevent them from being accredited. The decision to place an elderly person in a nursing home is often a stressful one. Nursing homes are expensive and alternatives to nursing home placement include home care, day care, and preventative medical practices.

 

Giving Options for Control and Teaching Coping Skills. Within the nursing home, health and survival rates can be improved by providing residents with some control over their lives and teaching them to be more assertive.

 

The Older Adult and Health-Care Providers. The attitudes of both the health-care provider and the older adult patient are important aspects of the older adult's health-care. Too often health-care personnel share society's negative view of older adults. Discussion of psychosocial issues with the older patient and encouragement of the older adult patient's active role in medical care are recommended strategies.

 

6.0 Exercise, Nutrition, and Weight

To prevent or decrease the severity of health problems during late adulthood, experts recommend a regimen of exercise, nutrition, and weight-control.

 

Exercise. Although there may be some need for reduction in exercise in late adulthood, the physical benefits of exercise have been demonstrated. Recently, researchers documented a relation between exercise and longevity, but no evidence exists to show that exercise extended the human life span. Weight lifting is increasingly being recommended in addition to aerobic fitness.

 

Nutrition and Weight. Food restriction in animals can increase the animal's life span, but it is not known whether this is also true for humans. For humans, extreme overweight is associated with an increased mortality rate. A well-balanced diet low in fat appears to be the best nutritional advice available.

 

The Growing Vitamins-and-Aging Controversy. Although experts have previously recommended a healthy, well-balanced diet rather than vitamin supplements for successful aging, accumulating evidence suggests that vitamin supplements in the form of antioxidants (e.g., vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene) may slow the aging process and improve the health of older adults. Critics indicate that experimental studies on vitamins and aging have not been conducted. Furthermore, the free radical theory is only one of several theories of aging rather than a well-established fact.

 

7.0 Contemporary Concerns

 

Sociocultural Worlds of Development 18.1: Aging in Russia, Ecuador, and Kashmir. In some areas of the world, such as Russia, Ecuador, and Kashmir, large numbers of individuals live to be very old. Claims that individuals live more than 120 years are unsubstantiated.

 

Perspectives on Parenting and Education 18.1: Learning How to Deal with Health Care Personnel. The elderly should find medical doctors who will answer questions and discuss the implications of physical and mental symptoms to medications as well as possible side effects. Rules of thumb include speaking up, questioning assertions based solely on age, getting the family involved, and acting immediately.

 

Life-Span Practical Knowledge 18.1: Longevity: The Science of Staying Young. Kathy Keeton reviews recent research and theory about ways to slow the aging process, and suggests ways to live long and healthy lives.

 

Life-Span Practical Knowledge 18.2: Aging Well. James Fries examines the medical and physical dimensions of aging. Fries believes aging well is a challenging task requiring understanding of the aging process, a good plan, work, and persistence.

 

Life-Span Practical Knowledge 18.3: Biomarkers. Research on human nutrition and exercise reveals how 50 minutes a day of aerobic exercise and strength training can slow the aging process. This book provides dietary guidelines, self-tests for evaluating physical fitness, and exercise programs for every fitness level.

 

Life-Span Health and Well-Being: Explorations in the Health Care of the Elderly. Many elderly individuals get shoddy medical care. For example, they are prone to receive undertreatment for heart disease and overtreatment for other illnesses. The elderly need to obtain competent health care advice.

 

Key Terms

1.0 Images of Life-Span Development: Learning to Age Successfully

 

2.0 Longevity      

 longevity

centenarians            

life span                 

life expectancy

young old          

old old                  

oldest old

microbiological theories of aging

macrobiological theories of aging

biological clock                              

thyroxine

human growth hormone (hGH)

dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA)

 

3.0 The Course of Physical Changes in Late Adulthood          

  dark adaptation                                                                                                 

  legal blindness                                           

  blood pressure

 

4.0 Health

chronic disorders

arthritis

osteoporosis

 

5.0 Health Treatment

Medicare               

Medicaid

skilled nursing facility

intermediate or ordinary nursing facility

residential nursing facility                      

geriatrics

self-determination     

transcendental meditation

 

6.0 Exercise, Nutrition, and Weight

aerobic exercise

 

7.0 Contemporary Concerns

Patient Self-Determination Act

biomarkers

 

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