Chapter 9: Late Adulthood

alzheimer's timeline

1. Early brain changes 2. Subtle decline in thinking 3. Memory changes, confusion 4. Inability to bathe, dress, or eat without help 5. Loss of ability to communicate and recognize loved ones

Changes in Attention in Late Adulthood

Changes in sensory functioning and speed of processing information in late adulthood often translates into changes in attention. Research has shown that older adults are less able to selectively focus on information while ignoring distractors, although Jefferies and her colleagues found that when given double time, older adults could perform at young adult levels. Other studies have also found that older adults have greater difficulty shifting their attention between objects or locations

Nutrition

A healthy diet is necessary for older adults to increase mental acuteness, resistance to illness and disease, boost energy levels, improve immune system strength, recuperation speed, and have greater effectiveness in the management of chronic health problems

Centenarians

A segment of the oldest-old are centenarians, that is, 100 and older, and some are also referred to as supercentarians, those 110 and older (Wilcox, Wilcox & Ferrucci, 2008). In 2015 there were nearly half a million centenarians worldwide, and it is estimated that this age group will grow to almost 3.7 million by 2050. The U. S. has the most centenarians, but Japan and Italy have the most per capita. Most centenarians tended to be healthier than many of their peers as they were growing older, and often there was a delay in the onset of any serious disease or disability until their 90s

Causes of Sexual Problems

According to the National Institute on Aging (2013), chronic illnesses including arthritis (joint pain), diabetes (erectile dysfunction), heart disease (difficulty achieving orgasm for both sexes), stroke (paralysis), and dementia (inappropriate sexual behavior) can all adversely affect sexual functioning. Hormonal changes, physical disabilities, surgeries, and medicines can also affect a senior's ability to participate in and enjoy sex. How one feels about sex can also affect performance.

Common Signs of Hearing Loss

Have trouble hearing over the telephone Find it hard to follow conversations when two or more people are talking Often ask people to repeat what they are saying Need to turn up the TV volume so loud that others complain Have a problem hearing because of background noise Think that others seem to mumble Can't understand when women and children speak to you

The Healthy Life Expectancy

This age takes into account current age-specific mortality, morbidity, and disability risks.

presbyosmia

This loss of smell due to aging.

Pragmatics of intelligence

are cultural exposure to facts and procedures that are maintained as one ages and are similar to crystalized intelligence

inhibition theory

argues that older adults have difficulty with inhibitory functioning, or the ability to focus on certain information while suppressing attention to less pertinent information tasks

Periodic limb movement disorder

causes people to jerk and kick their legs every 20 to 40 seconds during sleep.

Biological Explanations

Biological differences in sex chromosomes and different pattern of gene expression is theorized as one reason why females live longer (Chmielewski, Boryslawski, & Strzelec, 2016). Males are heterogametic (XY), whereas females are homogametic (XX) with respect to the sex chromosomes. Males can only express their X chromosome genes that come from the mother, while females have an advantage by selecting the "better" X chromosome from their mother or father, while inactivating the "worse" X chromosome. This process of selection for "better" genes is impossible in males and results in the greater genetic and developmental stability of females.

Rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder

occurs when one's muscles can move during REM sleep and sleep is disrupted.

Sexuality

older men and women are often viewed as genderless and asexual. There is a stereotype that elderly individuals no longer engage in sexual activity and when they do, they are perceived to have committed some kind of offense. These ageist myths can become internalized, and older people have a more difficult time accepting their sexuality. Additionally, some older women indicate that they no longer worry about sexual concerns anymore once they are past the child bearing years.

Priming

refers to changes in behavior as a result of frequent or recent experiences. If you were shown pictures of food and asked to rate their appearance and then later were asked to complete words such as s_ _ p, you may be more likely to write soup than soap, or ship. The images of food "primed" your memory for words connected to food. Does this type of memory and learning change with age? The answer is typically "no" for most older adults

time-based prospective memories

such as having to remember to do something at a future time

age-related macular degeneration

which is the loss of clarity in the center field of vision, due to the deterioration of the macula, the center of the retina. Macular degeneration does not usually cause total vision loss, but the loss of the central field of vision can greatly impair day-to-day functioning. There are two types of macular degeneration: dry and wet. The dry type is the most common form and occurs when tiny pieces of a fatty protein called drusen form beneath the retina.

glaucoma

which is the loss of peripheral vision, frequently due to a buildup of fluid in eye that damages the optic nerve. As you age the pressure in the eye may increase causing damage to the optic nerve. The exterior of the optic nerve receives input from retinal cells on the periphery, and as glaucoma progresses more and more of the peripheral visual field deteriorates toward the central field of vision.

Scaffolding Theory of Aging and Cognition

which states that the brain adapts to neural atrophy (dying of brain cells) by building alternative connections, referred to as scaffolding. This scaffolding allows older brains to retain high levels of performance. Brain compensation is especially noted in the additional neural effort demonstrated by those individuals who are aging well. For example, older adults who performed just as well as younger adults on a memory task used both prefrontal areas, while only the right prefrontal cortex was used in younger participants.

Mitochondrial Damage

Damage to mitochondrial DNA can lead to a decaying of the mitochondria, which is a cell organelle that uses oxygen to produce energy from food. The mitochondria convert oxygen to adenosine triphosphate (ATP) which provides the energy for the cell. When damaged, mitochondria become less efficient and generate less energy for the cell and can lead to cellular death

Body Changes

Everyone's body shape changes naturally as they age. According to the National Library of Medicine (2014) after age 30 people tend to lose lean tissue, and some of the cells of the muscles, liver, kidney, and other organs are lost. Tissue loss reduces the amount of water in your body and bones may lose some of their minerals and become less dense (a condition called osteopenia in the early stages and osteoporosis in the later stages). The amount of body fat goes up steadily after age 30, and older individuals may have almost one third more fat compared to when they were younger. Fat tissue builds up toward the center of the body, including around the internal organs.

Evolutionary Theory

Evolutionary psychology emphasizes the importance of natural selection; that is, those genes that allow one to survive and reproduce will be more likely to be transmitted to offspring. Genes associated with aging, such as Alzheimer Disease, do not appear until after the individual has passed their main reproductive years. Consequently, natural selection has not eliminated these damaging disorders from the gene pool. If these detrimental disorders occurred earlier in the development cycle, they may have been eliminated already

apoptosis

It can stop replicating by dying

cellular senescence

It can stop replicating by turning itself off

Late Adulthood in America

Late adulthood, which includes those aged 65 years and above, is the fastest growing age division of the United States population. Currently, one in seven Americans is 65 years of age or older. The first of the baby boomers (born from 1946-1964) turned 65 in 2011, and approximately 10,000 baby boomers turn 65 every day. By the year 2050, almost one in four Americans will be over 65, and will bed expected to live longer than previous generations.

When to retire

Laws often influence when someone decides to retire. In 1986 the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) was amended, and mandatory retirement was eliminated for most workers. Pilots, air traffic controllers, federal law enforcement, national park rangers, and fire fighters continue to have enforced retirement ages. Consequently, for most workers they can continue to work if they choose and are able. Social security benefits also play a role.

Genetics

One's genetic make-up certainly plays a role in longevity, but scientists are still attempting to identify which genes are responsible. Based on animal models, some genes promote longer life, while other genes limit longevity. Specifically, longevity may be due to genes that better equip someone to survive a disease. For others, some genes may accelerate the rate of aging, while others decrease the rate.

Taste and Smell

Our sense of taste and smell are part of our chemical sensing system. Our sense of taste, or gustation, appears to age well. Normal taste occurs when molecules that are released by chewing food stimulate taste buds along the tongue, the roof of the mouth, and in the lining of the throat.

Neurocognitive Disorder with Lewy bodies

Lewy bodies are microscopic protein deposits found in neurons seen postmortem. They affect chemicals in the brain that can lead to difficulties in thinking, movement, behavior and mood. Neurocognitive Disorder with Lewy bodies is the third most common form and affects more than 1 million Americans. It typically begins at age 50 or older, and appears to affect slightly more men than women. The disease lasts approximately 5 to 7 years from the time of diagnosis to death, but can range from 2 to 20 years depending on the individual's age, health, and severity of symptoms. Lewy bodies can occur in both the cortex and brain stem which results in cognitive as well as motor symptoms

DNA Damage

Over time DNA, which contains the genetic code for all organisms, accumulates damage. This is usually not a concern as our cells are capable of repairing damage throughout our life. Further, some damage is harmless. However, some damage cannot be repaired and remains in our DNA. Scientists believe that this damage, and the body's inability to fix itself, is an important part of aging. As DNA damage accumulates with increasing age, it can cause cells to deteriorate and malfunction. Factors that can damage DNA include ultraviolet radiation, cigarette smoking, and exposure to hydrocarbons, such as auto exhaust and coal

Work and Retirement

Older adults are just as capable as younger adults at the workplace. In fact, jobs that require social skills, accumulated knowledge, and relevant experiences favor older adults. Older adults also demonstrate lower rates of absenteeism and greater investment in their work. In 2015, 8.8 million adults aged 65 or older were employed or actively seeking employment. This constitute about 5.6% of the U.S. labor force

Young-old

Older adults between the ages of 65 and 84 comprise the young-old category (Ortman et al., 2014). This time-period has also been identified by Laslett (1989) as the "third age" because it follows childhood (the first age) and work and parenting (the second age). According to Barnes (2011a), this age category spans the post-employment years until approximately 80-85 years when age-related limitations occur in the areas of physical, emotional, and cognitive development

Height and Weight

The tendency to become shorter as one ages occurs among all races and both sexes. Height loss is related to aging changes in the bones, muscles, and joints. People typically lose almost one-half inch every 10 years after age 40, and height loss is even more rapid after age 70. A total of 1 to 3 inches in height is lost with aging. Changes in body weight vary for men and woman.

Heart Disease

There are changes to the heart that happen with age, and some may increase a person's risk of heart disease. These include stiffening blood vessels and valves, which may result in leaks or problems pumping blood out of the heart (NIA, 2012). As previously stated, heart disease is the leading cause of death for those in late adulthood (CDC, 2016b). There are different types of heart disease, and as already discussed in chapter 8, the most common is atherosclerosis, the buildup of fatty deposits or plaques in the walls of arteries. As plaque builds up, blood is unable to flow normally and bring oxygen throughout the body, including to the heart. Depending on where the buildup is, atherosclerosis can cause a heart attack, leg pain, or a stroke. However, Atherosclerosis is not part of normal aging.

tinnitus

a ringing, hissing, or roaring sound in the ears. The exact cause of tinnitus is unknown, although it can be related to hypertension and allergies.

Cataracts

are a clouding of the lens of the eye. The lens of the eye is made up of mostly water and protein. The protein is precisely arranged to keep the lens clear, but with age some of the protein starts to clump. As more of the protein clumps together the clarity of the lens is reduced. While some adults in middle adulthood may show signs of cloudiness in the lens, the area affected is usually small enough to not interfere with vision. More people have problems with cataracts after age 60

Mechanics of intelligence

are dependent on brain functioning and decline with age, similar to fluid intelligence. Baltes indicated that pragmatics of intelligence show little decline and typically increase with age.

Chronic illnesses

are illnesses that are ongoing, generally incurable conditions that require continuing medical attention and affect daily life. As individuals live longer, diseases that affect older individuals will become more prevalent, and the burden of chronic illness grows with age

free radicals

are missing an electron and create instability in surrounding molecules by taking electrons from them. There is a snowball effect. Some free radicals are helpful as they can destroy bacteria and other harmful organisms, but for the most part they cause damage in our cells and tissue. Free radicals are identified with disorders seen in those of advanced age, including cancer, atherosclerosis, cataracts, and neurodegeneration.

The Age Advantage

ewer age differences are observed when memory cues are available, such as for recognition memory tasks, or when individuals can draw upon acquired knowledge or experience. For example, older adults often perform as well if not better than young adults on tests of word knowledge or vocabulary. With age often comes expertise, and research has pointed to areas where aging experts perform quite well. For example, older typists were found to compensate for age related declines in speed by looking farther ahead at printed text . Compared to younger players, older chess experts focus on a smaller set of possible moves, leading to greater cognitive efficiency. Accrued knowledge of everyday tasks, such as grocery prices, can help older adults to make better decisions than young adults

Restless legs syndrome

feels like there is tingling, crawling, or pins and needles in one or both legs, and this feeling is worse at night.

Transitioning into Retirement

for most Americans, retirement is a process and not a one-time event (Quinn & Cahill, 2016). Sixty percent of workers transition straight to bridge jobs, which are often part-time, and occur between a career and full retirement. About 15% of workers get another job after being fully retired. This may be due to not having adequate finances after retirement or not enjoying their retirement

insomnia

have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. There are many reasons why older people may have insomnia, including certain medications, being in pain, having a medical or psychiatric condition, and even worrying before bedtime about not being able to sleep. Using over the counter sleep aids or medication may only work when used for a short time. Consequently, sleep problems should be discussed with a health care professional.

adaptive immune system

includes the tonsils, spleen, bone marrow, thymus, circulatory system and the lymphatic system that work to produce and transport T cells. T-cells, or lymphocytes, fight bacteria, viruses, and other foreign threats to the body.

Presbycusis

is a common form of hearing loss in late adulthood that results in a gradual loss of hearing. It runs in families and affects hearing in both ears

shingles

is a disease that affects your nerves. Shingles is caused by the same virus as chicken pox, the varicella-zoster virus (VZV). After you recover from chickenpox, the virus continues to live in some of your nerve cells. It is usually inactive, and most adults live with VZV in their body and never get shingles. A risk factor for shingles includes advanced age as people have a harder time fighting off infections as they get older. About half of all shingles cases are in adults age 60 or older, and the chance of getting shingles becomes much greater by age 70. Other factors that weaken an individual's ability to fight infections, such as cancer, HIV infections, or other medical conditions, can put one at a greater risk for developing shingles. Shingles results in pain, burning, tingling, or itching in the affected area, as well as a rash and blisters. Typically, shingles develops only on one side of the body or face and in a small area rather than all over.

Osteoporosis

is a disease that thins and weakens bones to the point that they become fragile and break easily. After age 50, 1 in 2 women and 1 in 4 men will experience an osteoporosis related fracture in their lifetime, often leading to hip, spine, and wrist fractures. Broken hips are a very serious problem as we age. They greatly increase the risk of death, especially during the year after they break. In the U.S., more than 53 million adults either already have osteoporosis or at a high risk due to low bone mass

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)

is a progressive lung disease in which the airways become damaged making it difficult to breathe. COPD includes problems such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. COPD kills more than 120,000 people every year, making it one of the leading causes of death. Figure 9.20 compares healthy to damaged lungs due to COPD. As COPD develops slowly, people may not notice the early signs, and may attribute the shortness of breath to age or lack of physical exercise.

Parkinson's disease

is characterized by motor tremors, loss of balance, poor coordination, rigidity, and difficulty moving. Parkinson's affects approximately 1% of those over the age of 60, and it appears more frequently in family members in a little less than 10% of cases. Twenty-eight chromosomal areas have been implicated in Parkinson's disease, but environmental factors have also been identified and include brain injury. Being knocked unconscious once increases the risk by 32%, and being knocked out several times increases the risk by 174%

Life Expectancy

is defined as the average number of years that members of a population (or species) live. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) (2016) global life expectancy at birth in 2015 was 71.4 years, with females reaching 73.8 years and males reaching 69.1 years. Women live longer than men around the world, and the gap between the sexes has remained the same since 1990.

Minor Neurocognitive Disorder

is diagnosed as a modest cognitive decline from a previous level of performance in one of more cognitive domains and does not interfere with independent functioning.

Major Neurocognitive Disorder

is diagnosed as a significant cognitive decline from a previous level of performance in one or more cognitive domains and interferes with independent functioning

innate immune system

is made up of the skin, mucous membranes, cough reflex, stomach acid, and specialized cells that alert the body of an impending threat. With age these cells lose their ability to communicate as effectively, making it harder for the body to mobilize its defenses.

Lifespan or Maximum Lifespan

is referred to as the greatest age reached by any member of a given population (or species). For humans, the lifespan is currently between 120 and 125.

Wisdom

is the ability to use the accumulated knowledge about practical matters that allows for sound judgment and decision making. A wise person is insightful and has knowledge that can be used to overcome obstacles in living.

Sarcopenia

is the loss of muscle tissue as a natural part of aging. Sarcopenia is most noticeable in men, and physically inactive people can lose as much as 3% to 5% of their muscle mass each decade after age 30, but even when active muscle loss still occurs. Symptoms include a loss of stamina and weakness, which can decrease physical activity and subsequently further shrink muscles

Vascular Neurocognitive Disorder

is the second most common neurocognitive disorder affecting 0.2% in the 65-70 years age group and 16% of individuals 80 years and older. Vascular neurocognitive disorder is associated with a blockage of cerebral blood vessels that affects one part of the brain rather than a general loss of brain cells seen with Alzheimer's disease. Personality is not as affected in vascular neurocognitive disorder, and more males are diagnosed than females

directed forgetting

people are asked to forget or ignore some information, but not other information. For example, you might be asked to memorize a list of words, but are then told that the researcher made a mistake and gave you the wrong list, and asks you to "forget" this list. You are then given a second list to memorize.

processing speed theory

proposed by Salthouse (1996, 2004), suggests that as the nervous system slows with advanced age our ability to process information declines. This slowing of processing speed may explain age differences on many different cognitive tasks. For instance, as we age, working memory becomes less efficient

Prospective memory

refers to remembering things we need to do in the future, such as remembering a doctor's appointment next week, or to take medication before bedtime. It has been described as "the flip-side of episodic memory"

Sleep apnea

refers to repeated short pauses in breathing, while an individual sleeps, that can lead to reduced oxygen in the blood. Snoring is a common symptom of sleep apnea and it often worsens with age. Untreated sleep apnea can lead to impaired daytime functioning, high blood pressure, headaches, stroke, and memory loss.

event-based prospective memories

such as having to remember to do something when a certain event occurs.

Hormonal Stress Theory also known as Neuroendocrine Theory of Aging

suggests that as we age the ability of the hypothalamus to regulate hormones in the body begins to decline leading to metabolic problems. This decline is linked to excess of the stress hormone cortisol. While many of the body's hormones decrease with age, cortisol does not.

Programmed Theories

that follow a biological timetable, possibly a continuation of childhood development. This timetable would depend on "changes in gene expression that affect the systems responsible for maintenance, repair, and defense responses,"

phonological loop

that maintains information about auditory stimuli,

visuospatial sketchpad

that maintains information about visual stimuli

central executive

that oversees working memory, allocating resources where needed and monitoring whether cognitive strategies are being effective

metabolic stress

the life sustaining activities of the body, such as circulating the blood, eliminating waste, controlling body temperature, and neuronal firing in the brain. In other words, all the activities that keep the body alive also create biological stress.

Pain

According to Molton and Terrill (2014), approximately 60%-75% of people over the age of 65 report at least some chronic pain, and this rate is even higher for those individuals living in nursing homes. Although the presence of pain increases with age, older adults are less sensitive to pain than younger adults

Cancer

Advancing age is a significant risk factor for cancer, with persons over 65 accounting for 60% of newly diagnosed cancer and 70% of all cancer deaths (Berger et al., 2006). Additionally, more than 70% of the mortality associated with many cancers, including prostate, bladder, colon, uterus, pancreas, stomach, rectum and lung occur in patients 65 and older. Other conditions that affect the elderly can occur with cancer, including anemia, coronary artery diseases, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, renal insufficiency, cerebrovascular diseases, neurovascular complications of diabetes mellitus, and arthritis that restricts mobility

Arthritis

Arthritis and other rheumatic conditions are the most common cause of disability among US adults, and have been the most common cause of disability among US adults for the past 15 years. According to the NIH, approximately 62% of adults with arthritis are 65 years old and up. Almost 1 in 2 older adults with arthritis have some degree of mobility limitations, such as climbing stairs, walking, and grasping objects. The pain and other limitations of arthritis can also increase the risk of depression and other forms of mental distress. Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis. "When the cartilage, the slick, cushioning surface on the ends of bones wears away, bone rubs against bone, causing pain, swelling and stiffness. Over time, joints can lose strength and pain may become chronic" . Common risk factors for osteoarthritis include genetics, obesity, age, previous injury, and other medical conditions.

Kyphosis

As bones weaken in the spine, adults gradually lose height and their posture becomes hunched over. Over time a bent spine can make it hard to walk or even sit up. Adults can prevent the loss of bone mass by eating a healthy diet with enough calcium and vitamin D, regularly exercising, limiting alcohol, and not smoking.

Hearing

As you read in Chapter 8, our hearing declines both in terms of the frequencies of sound we can detect and the intensity of sound needed to hear as we age. These changes continue in late adulthood. Almost 1 in 4 adults aged 65 to 74 and 1 in 2 aged 75 and older have disabling hearing loss (NIH, 2016). Table 9.4 lists some common signs of hearing loss.

Changes in Long-term Memory

As you should recall, long-term memory is divided into semantic (knowledge of facts), episodic (events), and implicit (procedural skills, classical conditioning and priming) memories. Semantic and episodic memory are part of the explicit memory system, which requires conscious effort to create and retrieve. Several studies consistently reveal that episodic memory shows greater age-related declines than semantic memory

telomere

At the end of each chromosomal strand is a sequence of DNA that does not code for any particular protein, but protects the rest of the chromosome

Lifestyle Factors

Certainly not all the reasons women live longer than men are biological. As previously mentioned, male behavioral patterns and lifestyle play a significant role in the shorter lifespans for males. One significant factor is that males work in more dangerous jobs, including police, fire fighters, and construction, and they are more exposed to violence.

Immune and Hormonal Stress Theories

Ever notice how quickly U.S. presidents seem to age? Before and after photos reveal how stress can play a role in the aging process. When gerontologists study stress, they are not just considering major life events, such as unemployment, death of a loved one, or the birth of a child.

tip-of the-tongue (TOT)

However, older adults do find that they experience more "blocks" at retrieving information that they know

Vision

In late adulthood, all the senses show signs of decline, especially among the oldest-old. In the last chapter, you read about the visual changes that were beginning in middle adulthood, such as presbyopia, dry eyes, and problems seeing in dimmer light. By later adulthood these changes are much more common. Three serious eyes diseases are more common in older adults: Cataracts, macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Only the first can be effectively cured in most people.

Life Expectancy in America

In the United States the overall life expectancy is 79.7 years, however, life expectancies vary by sex, race, and ethnicity. Table 9.3 shows the life expectancy of three demographic groups for males and females for a child born in 2012. As can be seen, females enjoy a longer life expectancy, and overall Hispanics have the highest life expectancy.

Retirement age changes

Looking at retirement data, the average age of retirement declined from more than 70 in 1910 to age 63 in the early 1980s. However, this trend has reversed and the current average age is now 65. Additionally, 18.5% of those over the age of 65 continue to work compared with only 12% in 1990. With individuals living longer, once retired the average amount of time a retired worker collects social security is approximately 17-18 years

Can we improve brain functioning?

Many training programs have been created to improve brain functioning. ACTIVE (Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly), a study conducted between 1999 and 2001 in which 2,802 individuals age 65 to 94, suggests that the answer is "yes". These racially diverse participants received 10 group training sessions and 4 follow up sessions to work on tasks of memory, reasoning, and speed of processing. These mental workouts improved cognitive functioning even 5 years later. Many of the participants believed that this improvement could be seen in everyday tasks as well

Recall versus Recognition

Memory performance often depends on whether older adults are asked to simply recognize previously learned material or recall material on their own. Generally, for all humans, recognition tasks are easier because they require less cognitive energy. Older adults show roughly equivalent memory to young adults when assessed with a recognition task. With recall measures, older adults show memory deficits in comparison to younger adults. While the effect is initially not that large, starting at age 40 adults begin to show declines in recall memory compared to younger adults

Types of Smell Disorders

Presbyosmia Smell loss due to aging Hyposmia Loss of only certain odors Anosmia Total loss of smell Dysosmia Change in the perception of odors. Familiar odors are distorted. Phantosmia Smell odors that are not present

Alzheimer's disease

Probably the most well-known and most common neurocognitive disorder for older individuals is Alzheimer's disease. In 2016 an estimated 5.4 million Americans were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease has a gradual onset with subtle personality changes and memory loss that differs from normal age-related memory problems occurring first. Confusion, difficulty with change, and deterioration in language, problem-solving skills, and personality become evident next. In the later stages, the individual loses physical coordination and is unable to complete everyday tasks, including self-care and personal hygiene

Problem Solving

Problem solving tasks that require processing non-meaningful information quickly (a kind of task that might be part of a laboratory experiment on mental processes) declines with age. However, many real-life challenges facing older adults do not rely on speed of processing or making choices on one's own. Older adults resolve everyday problems by relying on input from others, such as family and friends. They are also less likely than younger adults to delay making decisions on important matters, such as medical care

Touch

Research has found that with age, people may experience reduced or changed sensations of vibration, cold, heat, pressure, or pain. Many of these changes are also aligned with a number of medical conditions that are more common among the elderly, such as diabetes. However, there are changes in the touch sensations among healthy older adults. The ability to detect changes in pressure have been shown to decline with age, with it being more pronounced by the 6th decade and diminishing further with advanced age

advanced sleep phase syndrome

Similar to other adults, older adults need between 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night, but they tend to go to sleep earlier and get up earlier than those younger. is based on changes in circadian rhythms

Oldest-old

This age group is sometimes called the "fourth-age" and often includes people who have more serious chronic ailments among the older adult population. In the U.S., the oldest-old represented 14% of the older adult population in 2015 (He, Goodkind, & Kowal, 2016). This age group is one of the fastest growing worldwide and is projected to increase more than 300% over its current levels (NIA, 2015b). The oldest-old are projected to be nearly 18 million by 2050, or about 4.5% of the U. S. population, compared with less than 2% of the population today. Females comprise more than 60% of those 85 and older, but they also suffer from more chronic illnesses and disabilities than older males

Brain Functioning

This decrease in brain volume appears to be due to the shrinkage of neurons, lower number of synapses, and shorter length of axons. According to Garrett (2015), the normal decline in cognitive ability throughout the lifespan has been associated with brain changes, including reduced activity of genes involved in memory storage, synaptic pruning, plasticity, and glutamate and GABA (neurotransmitters) receptors.

Cellular Clock Theory

This theory suggests that biological aging is due to the fact that normal cells cannot divide indefinitely. This is known as the Hayflick limit, and is evidenced in cells studied in test tubes, which divide about 40-60 times before they stop

American Healthy Life Expectancy

To determine the current United States Healthy Life Expectancy (HLE), factors were evaluated in 2007-2009 to determine how long an individual currently at age 65 will continue to experience good health (CDC, 2013). The highest Healthy Life Expectancy (HLE) was observed in Hawaii with 16.2 years of additional good health, and the lowest was in Mississippi with only 10.8 years of additional good health. Overall, the lowest HLE was among southern states. Females had a greater HLE than males at age 65 years in every state and DC. HLE was greater for whites than for blacks in DC and all states from which data were available, except in Nevada and New Mexico

anosmia

Total loss of smell

Cognitive losses exaggerated

While there are information processing losses in late adulthood, overall loss has been exaggerated (Garrett, 2015). One explanation is that the type of tasks that people are tested on tend to be meaningless. For example, older individuals are not motivated to remember a random list of words in a study, but they are motivated for more meaningful material related to their life, and consequently perform better on those tests. Another reason is that the research is often cross-sectional. When age comparisons occur longitudinally, however, the amount of loss diminishes

Skin and Hair

With age skin becomes thinner, less elastic, loses fat, and no longer looks plump and smooth. Veins and bones can be seen more easily and scratches, cuts, and bumps can take longer to heal. Years exposed to the sun may lead to wrinkles, dryness, age spots, and cancer. Older people may bruise more easily, and it can take longer for these bruises to heal. Some medicines or illnesses may also cause bruising. Gravity can cause skin to sag and wrinkle, and smoking can wrinkle the skin. Also, seen in older adults are age spots, previously called "liver spots". They look like flat, brown spots and are often caused by years in the sun. Skin tags are small, usually flesh-colored growths of skin that have a raised surface. They become common as people age, especially for women, but both age spots and skin tags are harmless

Cancer and Major Cardiovascular Disease

cancer and cardiovascular disease are the overall leading causes of death, and they are especially high reasons for death in middle and late adults. Table 9.7 identifies the percentages of deaths due to cancer and cardiovascular disease for selected age groups in 2013; the most recent year for data

Damage or Error Theories

which emphasize environmental factors that cause cumulative damage in organisms.

encore careers

work in a different field from the one in which they retired. Approximately 10% of workers begin phasing into retirement by reducing their hours. However, not all employers will allow this due to pension regulations.