Working with Seniors: Health, Financial, and Social Issues

Chapter 3: Physiological Changes of Aging

Richard, formerly a research and development officer with a large manufacturing company, is approaching his 74th birthday. Retired for nine years, he enjoys working in his large yard and caring for his flowers. However, some changes in the vertebrae of his lower back have made this increasingly difficult the past three years. Because his gardening is such an enjoyable part of his life, he has designed a way to continue with this activity despite the back pain that accompanies it. He works in small time segments, uses equipment that reduces the amount of kneeling and bending he must do, keeps his back straight, and takes frequent breaks. These strategies, combined with carefully planned medication regimens and regular exercise routines, allow him to continue with the hobby that is so important to him.

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Gretchen is a 63-year-old widow with two grown children. She lives alone in a Northeastern city, where she is a secretary at a large university. Although Gretchen has osteoporosis, she still keeps very active. She rides her bike daily, climbs rocks, and takes frequent walks along the beach. She is aware that osteoporosis places her at greater risk of a fracture if she should be injured during any of these activities. But that is a risk she is prepared to take rather than give up the outdoor exercise she cherishes.

Introduction

As Richard and Gretchen can testify, our bodies change as we grow older. Mention the word aging, and listeners will likely develop images of gray hair, wrinkled skin, stooped posture, and frailty. They may even think of diseases commonly associated with aging, such as stroke, heart attack, and cancer. Further, they may identify a point in life—such as at 60 years of age—when they think this occurs.

But aging is much more complex that that. The outward appearances frequently associated with aging are just that—the manifestations or consequences of much more complex processes going on inside the body. Researchers have developed a number of theories about why the body ages, but there are many unanswered questions.

Just as researchers don’t agree about why we age, they are not in agreement about when we age. Some theorize that aging begins when we are born, others believe that the process doesn’t begin until the body has reached maturity. There is also disagreement about whether aging and disease are synonymous or not.

These differing viewpoints illustrate one thing—that while there have been great strides in developing knowledge about the whole aging process in recent years, there is much more to be learned. Research continues on why we age, when it begins, what affects aging, and what, if anything, we can do to slow down or even reverse the process.

In this chapter, you will be introduced to the current theories of physiological aging and what is believed to affect the aging process. Consequences of physiological aging will be discussed along with lifestyle practices that effectively reduce or overcome those consequences.