ASU Chapter 17: Physical Development in Late Adulthood Flashcards
Maximum number of years an individual can live (between 120-125 years)
Life span
Number of years that the average person born in a particular year will probably live
Life expectancy
- Individuals 100 years and older
- Increasing at the rate of seven percent each year in industrialized countries because of diet, low-stress lifestyle, caring community, activity, and spirituality
Centenarians
Person’s actual ability to function
Functional age
Natural selection has not eliminated many harmful conditions and nonadaptive characteristics in older adults
Evolutionary theory
- Cells can divide a maximum of 75 to 80 times
- Age makes cells less capable of dividing
Cellular clock theory
- Tips of chromosomes
- DNA sequences that cap chromosomes
Telomeres
People age because normal metabolic processes within cells produce unstable oxygen molecules that ricochet around inside cells damaging DNA and cellular structures
Free-radical theory
Aging is caused by the decay of mitochondria
Mitochondrial theory
Aging in the body’s hormonal system can lower resistance to stress and increase the likelihood of disease
Hormonal stress theory
Brain loses __ to __ percent of its weight between the ages of __ and __ years
- 5 to 10 percent
- 20 and 90 years
Brain volume decreases due to:
- Shrinkage of neurons
- Lower numbers of synapses
- Reduced length of axon
Slowing of function in the brain and spinal cord begins in __________ and accelerates in __________, affecting physical coordination and intellectual performance
- Middle adulthood
- Late adulthood
Aging is linked to:
- Reduction in synaptic functioning
- Production of neurotransmitters
Generation of new neurons
Neurogenesis
_______ percent of older adults complain of having difficulty sleeping
Fifty
Most noticeable changes in physical appearance
Wrinkles and age spots
Physical appearance and movement
- Shorter with aging due to bone loss in their vertebrae
- Weight drops after age 60
- Muscle loss
- Older adults move slowly than young adults
Thickening of the lens of the eye that causes vision to become cloudy, opaque, and distorted
Cataracts
Damage to the optic nerve because of pressure created by a buildup of fluid in the eye
Glaucoma
Deterioration of the macula of the retina, which corresponds to the focal center of the visual field
Macular degeneration
Losses of smell and taste begin at about age _________
60 years
VISION:
- Loss of acuity even with corrective lenses
- Less transmission of light occurs through the retina
- Greater susceptibility to glare
- Color discrimination ability decreases
65 to 74 years
VISION:
- Significant loss of visual acuity and color discrimination
- Decrease in the size of the perceived visual field
- Significant risk for visual dysfunction from cataracts and glaucoma
75 years and older
