Late Adulthood: PHYSICAL

Question 1

What is the scientific study of aging called?

Answer 1

gerontology

Question 2

How did Canadian researchers study the changes that occur in peoples lives over time?

Answer 2

Canadian researchers have embarked on a project called the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA).

Question 3

what are the subgroups of late adulthood ages?

Answer 3

• Young-old (60 to 75)
• Old-old (75 to 85)
• Oldest-old (85 and up) (fastest-growing group)

Question 4

Which subgroup is the fast growing

Answer 4

oldest-old (85 and up)

Question 5

What is life expectancy like in late adulthood?

Answer 5

• increases as adults gets older
• A 65-year-old man is likely to live to be 84
• An 85-year-man old is likely to live to be 91
• A 65-year-old woman is likely to live to be 87
• A woman in her mid-80s can expect to live to 94

Question 6

What is the maximum life span?

Answer 6

measure of the maximum amount of time one or more members of a population have been observed to survive between birth and death

Question 7

What is the hayflick limit?

Answer 7

the theoretical proposal that each species is subject to a genetically programmed time limit after which cells no longer have any capacity to replicate themselves accurately

Question 8

What is a telomere?

Answer 8

string of repetitive DNA at the tip of each chromosome in the body that appears to serve as a kind of timekeeping mechanism

Question 9

what are some characteristics of a telomere?

Answer 9

• The length of telomeres decreases each time a cell divides
• There is a crucial minimum telomere length. Below this threshold, disease or death may come quickly
• Telomere shortening is associated with lifetime stress

Question 10

What is cellular damage?

Answer 10

The organism’s inability to repair breaks in DNA strands results in a loss of cellular function, leading to aging

Question 11

What is cross-linking?

Answer 11

occurs when undesirable chemical bonds form between proteins or fats.

Question 12

What are free radicals?

Answer 12

molecules or atoms that possess an unpaired electron, are a normal by-product of body metabolism and can arise, for example, as a result of exposure to certain substances in foods, sunlight, X-rays, and air pollution.

Question 13

what are stem cells?

Answer 13

• In the absence of stem cells, an organism would waste away once the existing adult cells had reached the Hayflick limit.
• Over time, stem cells gradually lose their ability to effectively sustain the body’s cells.

Question 14

What is the difference between genotype and variation?

Answer 14

The genotype determines the maximum lifespan of different species, whereas the variation in longevity of individuals within a species seems to be affected by the accumulation over time of epigenetic errors that compromise adult stem cell function

Question 15

Is poor health higher in younger or older groups?

Answer 15

• Poor health is proportionately higher than in younger groups
• Fair or poor health is self-reported by 21% of those over 65 years of age

Question 16

What is the single largest factor that determines the trajectory of an adult’s physical or mental status over 65 years of age?

Answer 16

Health

Question 17

What happens if you have a chronic illness at age 65?

Answer 17

Chronic illness at age 65 is predictive of more rapid declines in later life

Question 18

What is functional status?

Answer 18

a measure of an individual’s ability to perform certain roles and tasks, particularly self-help tasks and other chores of daily living

Question 19

What is BADLs?

Answer 19

• basic activities of daily living

- self-help tasks such as bathing, dressing, and using the toilet

Question 20

What is IADLs?

Answer 20

• instrumental activities of daily living

- more complex daily living tasks such as doing housework, cooking, and managing money

Question 21

What are the two physical problems and diseases that are most likely to contribute to functional disability in late adulthood?

Answer 21

arthritis and hypertension

Question 22

what is frail elderly?

Answer 22

seniors whose physical and/or mental impairments are so extensive that they cannot care for themselves

Question 23

What is the best way to prevent the decline in physical and maybe cognitive function?

Answer 23

improved lifestyle (especially exercise)

Question 24

What is physical exercise linked to?

Answer 24

• greater longevity and lower rates of diseases such as heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, gastrointestinal problems, and arthritis

• even more important in later years than in youth

• Improves strength and motor skills after only 12 weeks of exercise
• Those who exercise lose less height over a 30-year period than did those who do not exercise

Question 25

What are the 4 main changes that occur in the brain?

Answer 25

- a reduction of brain weight - a loss of grey matter - a decline in the density of dendrites (connectivity) - slower synaptic speed (slower processing)

Question 26

What else is loss of dendrites linked to?

Answer 26

- Loss of dendrites is not only primary aging, but is linked to education: less cerebral cortex atrophy occurs in those with more education - Loss of dendrites results in slowing synaptic speed, and therefore slowing in reaction time

Question 27

What are possible vision defects in late adulthood?

Answer 27

- Presbyopia (farsightedness) increases - An enlarged "blind spot" on the retina reduces field of vision - The pupil does not widen or narrow as much or as quickly, resulting in more difficulty seeing at night and responding to rapid changes in brightness - Diseases of the eye (in a minority of people), such as cataracts, glaucoma or macular degeneration, further diminish visual acuity and adaptability - Vision loss has a greater impact on an senior’s sense of well-being

Question 28

What are the possible changes in hearing for late adulthood?

Answer 28

- Presbycusis (hearing loss) isn’t usually functionally limiting until late adulthood - Men lose more hearing than women do, likely due to more occupational exposure - The ability to hear high-frequency sounds (part of human speech) is diminished - Word discrimination becomes problematic, especially under noisy conditions - Tinnitus, a persistent ringing in the ears, increases - Severe hearing loss is associated with social and psychological problems

Question 29

What happens to taste, during late adulthood?

Answer 29

- The ability to taste the five basic flavours does not seem to decline over the years of adulthood - Other changes in the taste system do affect taste: • Less saliva - Flavours seem blander, but this may be a result of a loss of the sense of smell

Question 30

What happens to smell during late adulthood?

Answer 30

The sense of smell clearly deteriorates in old age

Question 31

What is an issue with loss of smell and taste?

Answer 31

result in nutrition problems

Question 32

What is an issue with loss of sensitivity to touch, cold, and heat?

Answer 32

can have safety implications