Average life expectancy may soon reach 85 years or more, but will the additional years be satisfying, or will old age be a degraded time of life?. In some ways, that is up to the individual.
Just like everyone else, older Americans could do more to optimize their own health and quality of life. As shown on the chart, about 10% of Americans aged 65+ are still smoking (1999). More than one-fifth of men and 41.3% of women aged 65-74 had high serum cholesterol (1988-94). In that same age group, 68.5% of men and 60.3% of women were overweight, while 24.1% of men and 26.9% of women were obese (1988-94). Among all people aged 65+, only a little over half had seen a dentist in the last year (1999). Among women 65-74 years old, 69.4% had a mammogram within the past 2 years, and only 57.2% of women aged 75+ had their mammogram (not shown) (1998). Women's risk of breast cancer increases as they age.
More than a third of people aged 65+ had not seen a doctor within the last year (1997). Screening older adults for the treatable chronic conditions that are the major causes of death for this population (e.g., cardiovascular disease and cancer) might help prolong life and improve its quality.24 In addition to vaccinations and breast cancer screening, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends screening for colorectal cancer. In 1999, fewer than a third of people aged 55+ had received a simple screening test for colorectal cancer — their lives may be shortened or they may be living their last years with poor quality of life.
In 1999 CDC identified three specific areas in which older Americans are falling down, prevention-wise. They don't eat enough fruits and vegetables, they smoke too much, and they don't get enough exercise. More than 30% of people aged 65+ are not eating five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day — easier said than done, since the elderly are often housebound, lack access to transportation, reside in a long-term care facility, or are unwilling/unable to attempt excursions to the market. About a third of 55-74-year- olds are physically inactive, and 46.% of those aged 74+ report no physical activity whatsoever. Exercise might help prevent falls, the most common cause of injuries and injury deaths among older Americans(nearly 10,000 seniors die each year because of fall injuries). Special exercise programs have been developed for the frail elderly. The Administration on Aging suggests that people think ahead about their probable future need for the modifications that make a home safer. AoA recommends that the frail elderly use as role models younger people with disabilities who refuse to be relegated to the sidelines.
CDC reports that too little is known about quality of life issues of the elderly. The government funds Prevention Research Centers and has established partnerships with states to move research findings into communities. An example of this initiative is the Northwest Prevention Effectiveness Center at the University of Washington, which works with senior centers to help older adults exercise, eat well, and preserve their independence.
The elderly can improve the quality of their dying by executing living wills (a.k.a. advance directives), documents that state what limits a person wishes to place on the treatment (s)he would receive at the end of life. We have looked at quality of life; next we will look at the quality of dying in America.
Sources: Chart: Healthy People 2000, Final Review, Table 20; Health, United States, 2001, Tables 60, 68, 69, 80, 82; Primary sources: (Smoking data) CDC, National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), National Health Interview Survey; (Cholesterol, smoking, obesity data) CDC, NCHS, Division of Health Examination Statistics. Unpublished data. (Dental and mammogram data) CDC, NCHS, National Health Interview Survey.
User Comments Add a comment…