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Changing demographics and description of today’s aging population
American population aging
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Another older adult observation I came across was during my walks in the park. I try my best to spend quality time with my little sister every other Friday after public health class. We go to Bethesda park because it has a very long trail. During our walks, I got to observe the older adults and I came to comprehend that this population tries hard to stay physically active. I saw them walking their dogs or walking with their grandchildren. Every time I had eye contact with one of them, they were well-mannered and always said “good afternoon, or good evening” and I don’t hear that from people my age. I observed the older adult population for about 2 hours in the past two times I took my little sister to the park on Fridays. Additionally, my
Understanding these topics has helped me realize that my viewpoints of elder adults and the process of aging are shaped by stereotypes embedded in my culture, which have affected the way I, as well as my family, communicate with one another. The Communication Predicament Model of Aging (Ryan, Giles, Bartolucci & Henwood, 1986, as cited in Giles, Oct. 21, 2014) proposed that these negative characteristics listed in exercise one can act as triggers for age stereotypes and lead to negative speech between the two groups (younger and older adults). This restricts communication opportunities between said groups, encouraging less social interaction with older adults. Thus, older adults can lose a vast amount of self-esteem, creating physiological and psychological problems.
It is blatantly evident that America is a country in which youth is king. Everyone wants to look young, feel young, and possess that youthful vigor and dynamism that is so highly respected by both the media and by the public. Our shelves are stocked with products to make us appear younger in any way, shape, or form; our most popular reality TV shows revolve around the lives of the young and beautiful. It seems that America’s population has forgotten that with luck, some day we will all become older. We will become those wrinkly, slow, and uncannily wise beings that hover in the background of today’s society. And what kind of life will we find once we reach that invisible point? Today’s elderly are treated with resentment and antagonism that is in appalling opposition to the respect that they deserve.
As the decades have passed, the life expectancy has increased rapidly. This means people are living longer lives and becoming much older than the average life expectancy. Along with living a longer life, ageism may start to appear in older adult’s everyday routines. Ageism can be seen in many places, for instance,: the grocery store, on billboards, in doctor’s offices, on commercials, etc. This seems to be a growing complication and may even hurt the feelings of some people reaching retirement age. Although some advertisements may not seem like they are trying to show any kind of bias, but in some cases they are.
The Social Security Act of 1935 was established in order to help Americans receive benefits when they retire or in the event that they are not able to work anymore. All Americans who work pay taxes, which in turn are put into the Social Security system. When this act was passed, it was meant to supplement a person's income, when reaching the age of retirement. This money would add to their pensions or savings. Many retirees now depend on it as their only source of income. In the past, the majority of jobs had pensions and the employee contributed to it. In modern society, pensions are no longer the norm in jobs as they were 50 years ago. Blue collar jobs are more than likely to not have any sort of pension plan as opposed to white collar jobs. Not all people receive the same amount of money when they retire. Depending on the salary you earned when working, that will determine how much you will receive in your monthly Social Security check. A person who has worked at low paying jobs in their lifetime will barely receive enough in Social Security. Many of our elderly in the United States barely receive enough money that many elderly live below or just barely above the poverty level.
Many issues, both genetic and environmental, affect how we age. A 2014 Census Bureau report, “65+ in the United States: 2010,” present some statistics regarding people over 65 years old in the United States. Laura Skarnulis publishes her study titled “7 Health Challenges Of Aging” where she explains seven of the most common heath issues senior citizens face. Obesity, arthritis, osteoporosis and cancer are among the most common challenges senior citizens have to face. Skarnulis mentions that we should take care of ourselves while we are young. Some of these health issues can be prevented if the respective precautions are taken on
For this observation assignment I chose to observe Doris. Doris is a seventy-six year old volunteer at the day care I work at. I have been observing Doris over a course of ten weeks and have spoken with her on many occasions. Doris lost her husband fourteen years ago after a short illness. The anniversary of his passing is coming up within a few days of Thanksgiving. When we began speaking of him, I observed the change in Doris’ demeanor. She is still grieving over this loss.
Nursing homes are for people who do not have the ability to take care of themselves in their own home. They are similar to hospitals, they provide medical care, physical care, and speech and occupational therapy. For this assignment I was asked to go to a nursing home and ask the facility questions and make my own observations. I was able to choose a facility easily due to the day my mom has been a CNA at the Gorham house for about two years. She works in the unit where people are mostly in the last stages of their lives, so they require a lot of assistance. After being able to make my quick visit, I was able to ask many questions and made observations on what it is like to work and to live in these facilities.
In his article entitled, The Centenarian, author Henry J. Aaron notes that by the middle of this century, there will be more than one-million people living in the United States who are over 100 years-of-age. In 1960, there were one-million 85 year-olds. At the beginning of the twentieth-cen...
Aging in place refers to remaining in one’s home and community throughout the aging process (Siebert, 2007). Additionally, it can mean living in a supportive environment that allows participation in meaningful activities, and increases quality of life (Siebert, 2007). Home modifications help facilitate participation in meaningful activities, decrease falls, and support aging in place (Siebert, 2007). Home modifications are adaptations to the environment that meet the needs of an individual, and increase safety and independence (Siebert, 2007). Although aging in place is more than home modifications, the focus and the purpose of my project is to research how affordable home modifications can support lower socioeconomic status older adults, with aging in place. There are three objectives to determine if the purpose of this project has been achieved. The first objective is that the educational presentation and booklet were effective in increasing the participant's knowledge of low-cost options and funding sources for implementing home modifications. The second objective is that the
In today’s society, what was once said to be true and taken as fact regarding older people is no longer the whole story. As Laslett states, “At all times before the middle of the twentieth century and all over the globe the greater part of human life potential has been wasted, by people dying before their allotted time was up.” (1989a), and to a great extent a lot
As the life expectancy in the United States rises, the number of elderly in the population has also expanded. These increases have led to the oldest-old (people aged 90 and older) to become the fastest growing age group in the country. The oldest-old face many unique challenges because of their age, one of which is disability. Disability in the elderly has major impact upon society 1 and will continue will be a growing burden in years to come.
According to ("Healthy people 2020,") “Older adults are among the fastest growing age groups, and the first “baby boomers” will turn 65 in 2011. More than 37 million people in this group (60 percent) will manage more than 1 chronic condition by 2030.” With such a staggering number of aging adults comes a large responsibility of managing their aging process. Older adults are high risk for a number of diseases and disabilities.
What do you really know about the lifestyles of aging population? What do you know about aging and its effects? There are more myths about older people than they are of any other stage of people’s lives. Aging in America is a success story for public health policies and socioeconomic development, and as a society it forces us to maximize the health and functional capacity of the ageing American. A portion of Americans 65 years and over will make 13 percent of the U.S. population and is expected to rise in fewer than 25 years, which will increase, to 20 percent by the year 2050. A number of ageing Americans are living longer and staying increasingly active and for older adult’s good health ensures independence. With millions of Americans aging they struggle daily with health challenges, physical changes, psychological problems which all can impact their quality of life.
I interviewed my 92 year old neighbor who, I believe, presents a case of successful aging. As far as I can tell, she has not experienced many limitations due to age. She is spirited, active, and bright. Other neighbors tell me that she has been somewhat physically restrained in the recent past, and she has been using a walker more frequently, but she seems to be fine with that.
Scientists are always coming up with different activities for the elderly to live healthier, longer, and happier lives! People over the age of 65 can prolong their life by doing simple things like going out shopping, church, movies, and playing games like bingo. Senior citizens who are too fragile to exercise can benefit from social activities. Social and productive activities involve little or no enhancement of physical fitness lower the risk of all causes of death as much as exercise does. These are ways that social and physical activity effect and help the elderly.