Older Adults Articles

Balance and gait disorders in older adults may be directly related to changes in the brain, according to a research report published in the March 18 issue of Neurology (2008; [70], 935–42). The 3-year study involved 639 men and women aged 65–84 who were given brain scans and balance and walking tests. The scans revealed age-related, white-matter changes in all the participants. The changes were mild in 284 subjects, moderate in 197 subjects and severe in the remaining 158

As we age, our hearts beat more slowly and pump less blood. Our lung capacity also decreases. These changes result in decreased maximal oxygen consumption, which causes less oxygen to reach muscles. Oxygen is the life fuel for muscles; without it, they simply cannot work. The decrease in muscle oxygen consumption is one of the main reasons why we slow down, grow weak and lose stamina as we age. Without speed, strength and stamina, we cannot do the basic activities of daily living that allow us to enjoy life, maintain health and remain independent.

Falls can be disastrous for older adults, possibly leading to long-term immobility and loss of independence. To help prevent falls, the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (www.aaos.org) recommends that seniors participate in an exercise program designed to improve strength, balance, agility and coordination.

Here’s yet another carrot to offer to your older-adult clients. According to a recent review of studies from the Netherlands, cardiovascular exercise may offer people over 55 a boost in brainpower. Around age 50, even healthy older adults begin to experience mild declines in cognition, such as sporadic memory lapses and decreased ability to pay attention. Evidence shows that regular exercise contributes to healthy aging, but could the type of exercise a person performs influence cognitive fitness?

AARP and the International Council on Active Aging (ICAA) have joined forces to educate each other’s members. ICAA will help improve knowledge about active aging among the more than 35 million Americans who are AARP members. In return, AARP will enlighten ICAA members with the latest information and research about aging and aging issues. “AARP offers a wide range of ...

Older men who walk more than 2 miles a day are less likely to experience dementia than those who are more sedentary, according to a study in the September 22/29 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (2004; 292 [12], 1447–53). A group of 2,257 physically capable men ages 71–93 participated in the Honolulu–Asia Aging Study. Researchers logged the d...

Silver Age Yoga is a unique yoga discipline designed for seniors that combines hatha yoga and principles of gerontology. The program was developed by seasoned yoga instructors in cooperation with scientists—many of them yoga practitioners—from the University of California at San Diego (UCSD); the Stein Institute for Research on Aging, a department of UCSD; and physicians affiliated with Scripps...

Yang charted happiness across age and racial groups and found that among 18-year-olds, white women are the happiest, with a 33% probability of being very happy, followed by white men (28%), black women (18%) and black men (15%). Differences vanish over time, however, as happiness increases. Black men and black women have just more than a 50% chance of being very happy by their late 80s, while white men and white women are close behind.