Studies have shown that older folks tend to have better social skills, a higher tolerance level, and more empathy than their younger counterparts. A research study done at the University of Michigan found that people in their 60s provided more empathetic and effective responses to “Dear Abby” letters.
A recent study from AARP found that 77% of adults 50-years old and older prefer to age in place. Multiple studies advertise the benefits of aging in place, such as the comfort of home, family, pets, social engagement in the community, cost-effectiveness, and the ability to maintain dignity and independence.
What three changes will you see when you grow older in life?
As we grow older, we experience an increasing number of major life changes, including career transitions and retirement, children leaving home, the loss of loved ones, physical and health challenges—and even a loss of independence. How we handle and grow from these changes is often the key to healthy aging.
Is it important to learn new things as we get older?
It's important to keep the brain active as we get older. Learning new skills or about new subjects is a great way to keep the mind sharp. Continued learning can improve memory by maintaining brain cells and making sure those cells properly communicate with each other.
What is the greatest challenge you expect to face in old age?
The greatest challenge facing us as we age is the prevention of physical disability and the extension of "active life expectancy." Fortunately, recent studies suggest that healthy ("successful") aging is achievable, with sound planning for old age.
What's happening. With age, bones tend to shrink in size and density, weakening them and making them more susceptible to fracture. You might even become a bit shorter. Muscles generally lose strength, endurance and flexibility — factors that can affect your coordination, stability and balance.
Take a language course. Aside from the fun of it, learning a new language is always great since you never know when you might encounter the need for such. ...
Although some things come harder to our brains as we age, there are also things that older brains do better. ... Here are some things you might improve at with age:
You are never too old to learn new things, and learning might even increase your life expectancy. According to a study led by the Yale School of Medicine and University of Alabama-Birmingham on life expectancy, those who were more educated tend to live longer.
The driving intrinsic motivation for adults to learn is a general sense of accomplishment. In order to feed their personal passions about subjects that they have limited knowledge or experience, adults want solutions to their real-world problems and issues.
(13, 14), successful ageing is defined by the domains of health and activities of daily living (ADL), physical and cognitive functioning, social participation and engagement, and also positive affect and control, when the definition by Baltes et colleagues (15, 16) is also considered. Kok et al.
They also identify “seven pillars” of aging, intertwined processes driving the aging process. They are: adaption to stress, epigenetics, inflammation, macromolecular damage, metabolism, proteostasis, and stem cells and regeneration. Through study of these processes, experts hope to find ways to slow down aging.
The three Ds of geriatric psychiatry—delirium, dementia, and depression are common and challenging diagnoses among elderly. Delirium is often difficult to diagnose and is an independent risk factor for morbidity and mortality in older adults.
As important as physical exercise is to aging well, by far the most important determinant to healthy aging is the quality of our relationships, he said. “Loving relationships are key to thriving longevity.” "Loving relationships are key to thriving longevity."
