Adult Health & Aging

1. Adult Health & Aging

2. Normal Physical Development in Early & Middle Adulthood • Early Adulthood, peak muscle tone & joint function • Middle Adulthood – gradual changes, lose height, gain weight, in 40s & 50s skin sags, wrinkles, age spots, hair thins, thicker finger- and toenails, yellow teeth

3. Changes in Middle Adulthood (continued) • Sarcopenia – age-related loss of muscle mass & strength • Lose 1-2% per year starting at age 50 • Exercise can help to reduce this loss • Also lose bone from the late 30’s; this accelerates in the 50’s

4. Changes in Middle Adulthood -Cardiovascular • Cholesterol increases • LDL – leads to atherosclerosis • Blood Pressure increases; sharply for women at menopause • Metabolic disorder – hypertension, obesity, insulin resistance, high cholesterol, low HDL, weight gain (Part of normal aging?) • Weight loss & exercise help • Lungs become less elastic

5. Adult Health - Reproductive System • The 20’s are ideal for reproduction. Risks of miscarriage and chromosomal disorders are reduced. • First births to women in their 30’s have increased in the past two decades • Dramatic rise in fertility problems in the mid-thirties (14 to 26%)

6. Changes in Middle Adulthood - Sexuality • Climacteric – loss of fertility • Menopause – ceasing of menstrual cycles (average age 52) • Drop in estrogen, hot flashes, nausea, fatigue, rapid heartbeat • Gradual decline for men (no andropause)

7. Middle Adulthood: Illness & Disability • Cancer & cardiovascular disease are the leading causes of death. Cancer alone among women. • Motor vehicle collisions decline, falls resulting in fractures & death nearly double. • Personality traits that magnify stress, especially hostility and anger, are serious threats to health.

8. Cardiovascular Disease • First detected factors may be high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and atherosclerosis (a buildup of plaque in the coronary arteries). • Heart attack: blockage of blood supply to an area of the heart (50% die before reaching the hospital, 15% during treatment) • Other conditions include arrhythmias and angina pectoris

9. Cancer – Middle Adulthood • The death rate multiplies tenfold from early to middle adulthood. • Lung cancer has dropped in men (fewer smoke) and increased in women. • Cancer occurs when a cell‘s genetic program is disrupted, leading to uncontrolled growth. • Damage to the p53 gene is involved in 60% of cancers. This gene stops defective DNA from multiplying. • Having the BRCA1 or BRCA2 tumor-suppressing gene is protection against breast cancer.

10. Cancer • 40% of people with cancer are cured. • Breast cancer is most prevalent for women, prostate cancer for men. • Lung cancer is next, followed by colon/rectal cancer.

11. Adult-Onset Diabetes • Causes abnormally high levels of blood glucose • Incidence doubles from middle to late adulthood • Effects 10% of the elderly • Inactivity and abdominal fat deposits greatly increase risks • Treated with controlled diet, exercise, and weight loss

12. Arthritis • Osteoarthritis: most common and involves deteriorating cartilage on the ends of bones of frequently used joints • Rheumatoid arthritis: an autoimmune response leading to inflammation of connective tissue, especially the membranes that line the joints • Effects 45% of American men and 52% of women over 65. Rises to 70% in women at age 85.

13. SUBSTANCE ABUSE & ADDICTION • Smoking is related to many deaths • 30% of cancer deaths • 21% of heart disease deaths • 82% of chronic pulmonary disease deaths • 13 million people in the U.S. are alcoholics • Yearly 25.000 people are killed and 1.5 million injured by drunk drivers • Alcohol is implicated in 65% of aggressive acts by males against females

14. Substance Abuse: Alcohol • Chronic alcohol use is associated with: • Liver, cardiovascular, and pancreatic diseases. • Inflammation of the intestinal tract • Bone marrow problems • Blood and joint disorders • Brain damage

15. Substance Abuse among Older Adults • May be an invisible epidemic. • Probably involves prescription drugs. • Frequent falls, inadequate nutrition, excessive sedation, depression, congestive heart failure may be drug-related

16. Health & Disease in Older Adulthood • Generally a continuation and intensification of problems that began in middle adulthood.

17. Physical Disabilities • Cardiovascular illness and cancer increase dramatically and remain the leading causes of death • Respiratory diseases also rise sharply • Emphysema, mostly from smoking • Pneumonia, 50 types • Stroke is the 4th most common killer • Hemmorage or blockage of blood flow in the brain

18. Chronic Conditions of Older Adulthood Arthritis Hypertension Hearing impairment Heart disease Diabetes Asthma Osteoporosis

19. Osteoporosis • Major age-related bone loss • 12 to 20 % of patients die within a year of a major break such as a hip • Patients are advised to: • Take calcium and vitamin D • Engage in weight-bearing exercise • Take HRT/ERT • Take bone-strengthening medications

20. Unintentional Injury • At age 65 and older, the death rate from unintentional injuries is at an all-time high • Due to MV accidents and falls • Older adults have higher rates of traffic violations, accidents, and fatalities per mile driven than any other age group • 30% of people over 65 and 40% of those over 80 have experienced a fall in the last year • Declines in vision, hearing and mobility make it harder to avoid hazards and keep one‘s balance