Saratoga News Aging stereotypes often differ dramatically from the reality Attitude, lifestyle tend not to change By Rita Baum Last year 85-year-old record-holding pole vaulter Carol Johnston was pictured in a National Geographic centerfold, against a blue California sky, vaulting gracefully and effortlessly 7 feet 6 inches. Too often, we think of people this age as being in nursing homes. In fact, it's probably easier to imagine an 85-year-old woman shuffling down a nursing home corridor carrying a doll than it is to picture an 85-year-old athlete. But the nursing home scene really is not typical of old age. Perhaps it is time to change our perceptions. What qualifies as "old age"? In 1900, human life expectancy was a mere 47 years. Today it is 77, and increasing all the time. Demographics are also changing. One of every eight Americans is age 65 or older. By the year 2000, more than 50 percent of the population will be over 30 years of age--a first in recorded history. The two fastest growing population groups are those over 85 and those over 100 years old. There are 36,000 Americans alive today who have passed the 100-year mark. By 2080, it is predicted that the number will reach one million. In response to these demographic shifts, the news media has started to focus more attention on our aging population. The stories have not always been about Social Security, long-term care or the newest research on Alzheimer's disease. During this decade, the headlines have often been about the personal lives and accomplishments of older people. People magazine, for instance, named Sean Connery the sexiest man alive at age 59: National Geographic profiled Hal Wright, a 93-year-old pilot who flies his classic aircraft to deliver the Sierra Booster newspaper he produces. In my years of work in aging services I have met many who have quietly made their mark. I remember a retired successful businessman, who for years was driven by the profit motive, the bottom line. He volunteered in the Foster Grandparent Program and touched the lives of many needy children. In another instance, a blind woman living alone in her home of 40 years refused the well-meaning attempts of neighbors to get her into the Meals on Wheels program. She liked being in charge of her own life--comfortable in her familiar surroundings, aging in place, knowing every inch of each room in her house. With the aid of assistive devices, she explained, she was able to adjust to her gradual blindness. She could prepare meals for herself, and occasionally for her grandson, who shared his thoughts and dreams with her over lunch. Why do some people thrive in their older years, while others do not? There is much to learn about aging, but there is a great deal that we already know. For instance, we know that aging is universal, time-related, involuntary, irreversible and biologically detrimental. However, no two people age alike. There is variation in degree, time of onset and pattern. Environment, exercise and lifestyle are factors that impact the process. Social, genetic and economic circumstances also play a role. Aging and illness are not necessarily coincidental. People tend not to change attitudes or lifestyles in late life. Goal setters will continue setting goals for themselves. Couch potatoes will continue living sedentary lives, and optimists and pessimists will not change sides. Perhaps the most universal aging phenomenon is the progressively decreasing ability to adapt to environmental and emotional stress. Take the blind woman who insisted on doing her own cooking: If she had been removed to a nursing home, she would probably have deteriorated rapidly. Her grandson would visit to find her defenseless, dependent, fearful--no longer in charge, no longer an achiever. The good news is that many of the stereotypes about aging are untrue. Senility, for instance is a misused and little understood word. In fact, in spite of what long-term care insurance ads may say, only 5 percent of people over age 65 live in nursing homes due to dementia or because they need 24-hour licensed medical care. Although the Social Security Act made age 65 the demarcation line that separates and defines the "old," aging does not start at age 65. Aging begins as soon as there is cessation of growth and involves a cumulative series of changes throughout our lives. All organs do not age at the same rate, and some begin aging comparatively early in life. Hearing, for example, peaks at age 15. Vision is most acute at around 20. The ability to change and to learn continues in late life. There are many notable figures in the fields of politics, medicine and the arts who made important contributions after age 65. There is no magic formula to guarantee a good and healthy old age but the more we learn about aging, the better prepared we can be to plan for it. What's important is to be proactive. We would all like to have the ideal old age depicted in the song Frank Sinatra sang. His whole life, including the twilight years, were like a good vintage wine: But now the days are short, I'm in the autumn of the year/And I think of my life as vintage wine in fine old kegs/From the brim to the dregs it poured sweet and clear/It was a very good year. Los Gatan Rita Baum has a master's degree in gerontology. [ Back to Contents Page | Saratoga News Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Saratoga News, February 3, 1999. ©1999 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.