Understanding Aging: Demographics, Health, and Myths

1. Gerontological Concepts Pat Mezinskis April 2008

2. Terms • Geriatrics • Gerontology

3. Chronologic Categories • young-old 65-74 years (53%) • middle-old 75-84 years (35%) • old-old 85 years and older (12%)

5. Demographics of Aging • Major demographic shifts have occurred in the U.S. in the 20th century Population over 65: • 1900 4% (3.1million) • 2004 12.4% (36.3 million) Projected: • 2030 20% (71.5 million)

6. Demographics of Aging

7. Demographics of Aging Population 85 and older: • 2000 2% (4 million) Projected: • 2050 5% (19 million)

8. Demographics of Aging Population 100 and older: • 1990                   37,306 centenarians • 2003                   50,639 centenarians Projected: • 2030 381,000 centenarians

9. Demographics of Aging Life Expectancy: • 1900 47 years • 2004 77.9 years For those reaching 65, they have a life expectancy of an additional 18.5 years

10. Demographics of Aging Gender • 2004 • Women 21.2 million • Men 15.2 million • Ratio 139 women/100 men

11. Demographics of Aging Race • 2006-19% minorities • 8.3% African Americans • 6.4% Hispanics • 3.1% Asian or Pacific Islanders • < 1% American Indian or Native Alaskan

12. Demographics of Aging Marital Status • 2006 • 72% of older men married • 42% of older women married • 43% of older women widows • over 4 times as many widows as widowers • 11.8% of the older population divorced

13. Demographics of Aging Living Arrangements • 2006 • over half of non-institutionalized older adults lived with a spouse • 30% of non-institutionalized older adults lived alone • in women over 75, half lived alone

14. Demographics of Aging Living Arrangements • Nursing Home Population • 65-74 years 1% • 75-84 years 4.4% • over 85 15.4%

15. California Florida New York Texas Pennsylvania Ohio Illinois Michigan New Jersey Demographics of Aging Geographic Distribution in 2006 51 % of the population lived in 9 states:

16. Demographics of Aging Employment • 2006 • 15.4% (5.5 million) Americans 65 and over were in the labor force • 3.1 million men, 2.4 million women

17. Demographics of Aging Education • 1970-2006 • high school grads increased from 28% to 77.5% • 2006 • 19% had a bachelor’s degree or more

18. Demographics of Aging Computer and internet access: 2000 & 2003

19. Health Care • 80% of older adults have at least one chronic illness • Older adults spent $4,331 in out-of-pocket expenses in contrast to the total population- $2,766 • Older adults spent 12.4% of total expenditures on health vs. 5.7% for all consumers

20. Most Common Chronic Illnesses in those over 65, as of 2005 • Hypertension 48% • Arthritis 47% • Heart disease 29% • Cancer 20% • Diabetes 16%

21. Sensory Changes • Skin • Decreased subcutaneous fat >fragile skin • Decreased sebaceous gland activity>dry skin • Decreased vascularity of dermis>decreased body temperature regulation

22. Sensory Changes • Vision • Decreased elasticity of lens>presbyopia (diminished ability to focus on near objects) • Decrease in pupil size>slower responses to changes in light • Atrophy of photoreceptor cells, ciliary muscle>diminished depth perception, sensitivity to glare • Thinning of retinal blood vessels>altered color perception

23. Sensory Changes • Vision (Pathologic Conditions) • Cataracts: Leading cause of visual impairment in older adults- due to opacity of the lens. Vision becomes blurred • Macular Degeneration: damage to the macula, causing gradual loss of central vision • Glaucoma: damage to optic nerve leading to loss of peripheral vision

24. Sensory Changes • Hearing • Hardened ossicles, stiff muscles> impaired sound conduction • Loss of cochlear neurons, decreased blood supply>presbycusis (diminished ability to hear high-pitched sounds, especially in the presence of background noise

25. Sensory Changes • Smell • Atrophy of olfactory bulbs>diminished sense of smell • Taste • Reduction in taste buds>reduced taste sensation

26. Ageism • Term coined by Robert Butler in 1968 • Wrote Why Survive? Being Old in America (1975)

27. Myths about Aging “To be old is to be sick” • Facts • Only 4-5% of older adults live in nursing homes • Only 23% of elderly claim to have disability

28. Myths about Aging “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” • Facts • The less people are challenged, the less they perform • Conditions of successful learning are different for older people than for the young

29. Myths about Aging “The horse is out of the barn” • Facts • Bad habits do not produce irreparable damage • It is never too late to start good lifestyle habits of diet, exercise

30. Myths about Aging “The secret to successful aging is to choose your parents wisely” • Fact • Heredity is a factor but environment and behavior strongly influence how well an elderly person functions

31. Myths about Aging “The elderly don’t pull their own weight” • Facts • The belief that the elderly are unproductive is changing

33. Myths about Aging “Ageism is endemic to all societies” • Facts • Many eastern cultures revere their older adults

34. Myths about Aging “In today’s society, families can no longer care for older adults” • Facts • In the US, 70-80% of the in-home care of older adults is provided by families

35. Myths about Aging “Dementia is a normal part of aging” • Facts • Dementia is a syndrome characterized by pathologic changes in the brain • Alzheimer’s Disease accounts for 50-70% of all dementias

36. Statistical data compiled from