Growing Old in a New Age Growing Old in a New Age
Program Lesson 3 Maximizing Physical Potential of Older Adults
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The Danvers Walkers enjoy their exercise |
Cataracts change color perception -- surgery can restore clear vision |
A good fit between person and environment promotes physical well-being |
A National Institute on Aging study aims to reduce the effects of osteoporosis |
Learning Objectives
Explain the value of physical fitness and good nutrition over the life span
Summary of the Video and Text
Video
The video is comprised of five segments. The first segment presents the benefits of exercise and good nutrition for older adults. The second segment, on preventing illness, discusses the importance of early detection and treatment of real and potential health problems, for example, cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, and adverse drug interactions. The third segment presents information on compensating for age changes in vision, hearing, and sleep. The fourth segment focuses on the concept of person-environment interaction. Experts discuss the importance of environmental modifications, technological advancements, and social services in helping older adults compensate for physical, mental, and social losses that occur with age. The fifth and final segment of the video discusses societal effects on health. Experts discredit our tendency to "blame the victim" for poor health, citing evidence that gender, racial, and socio-economic status also affect health. In some cases, biases in health care and health research hinder the ability of some groups of older adults to optimize their health.
Text
Chapter 4, "Managing Chronic Diseases and Promoting Well-Being in Old Age," contains information on defining health, quality of life in health and illness, effects of stress on health, and health promotion with older people that is assigned for this lesson.
Video Quote: Jerome Fleg, Ph.D., discusses the importance of exercise in maintaining health
Jerome Fleg: "We think that regular exercise certainly puts more life in your years, and there are some suggestive data that it may even put more years in your life. And, certainly, most muscular systems are kind of in a use or lose type of situation where if you don't exercise the particular muscle set regularly, you tend to lose, you know, some of the capacity of that system. I think that in terms of--for instance cardiovascular fitness, regular exercise may actually increase ones maximal oxygen consumption anywhere from ten to twenty-five percent...but, an older fit individual may actually have an aerobic capacity or an oxygen consumption that's as high as that of a person twenty or twenty-five years younger."
Chapter 11, "Living Arrangements and Social Interactions," contains a section on person-environment theories of aging.
Donald McClure: "Many people walk around with diabetes; they don't know they have it. And of course that's the most dangerous kind, because you're not doing anything for it. So I found that out here, and I kind of took control, got--went right into not only medication but the physical workout and the weights and all of this type of thing. And that has been very beneficial."
Chapter 14, "The Resiliency of Elders of Color," provides information about the special conditions of older African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and Pacific Asian Americans. In general, older Americans of these ethnicities live fewer years and are at higher risk or poverty and poor health than are older Caucasian Americans. Implications for service providers are presented.
E. Percil Stanford: "If we look at our health status, and the health status of older people across groups, we're going to find that there are some very, very broad differences. The actuarial tables, for example, tell us that the American Indian is still dying at a much younger age than most other persons. Forty-nine, fifty, fifty-one is still somewhat the average. The black male, for example, is still dying at a younger age than the average expectation. What are the health implications? We need to have some better understanding of whether it's just environmental or whether it's somehow social, or whether there are some political implications in terms of whether or not we can do some things to prevent the environmental situations. To bring about longer life for some of these groups."
In Chapter 15, "The Resiliency of Older Women," presents information about the health, social, and economic status of older women. This group is of special interest because older women outnumber older men, especially among the old-old, and are at higher risk of poverty and poor health.
Features of the Study and Faculty Guides
Study Guide (MySocKit)
Key points of the lesson, integrating video and text, are elucidated under the learning objective topics. Self-study questions help students prepare for exams. Descriptions of discussion and essay/research topics provide instructions for a variety of activities that may be assigned by the instructor. The Study Guide also provides a glossary of key terms and concepts covered in the telecourse and a listing of participants in the video.
Faculty Guide
The descriptions of discussion and essay/research topics presented in the Study Guide are reprinted in the Faculty Guide with tips for assigning the activities effectively. In addition, in-class activity suggestions and exam questions/answers are included. The Guide offers options appropriate for faculty using the telecourse in different settings, e.g., in-class, distance learning, interactive television, or a combination of formats. A Video Index helps instructors find segments of the video by time code and topic.
Telecourse Team
Copyright © 1998 -2008 [Center on Aging, University of Hawai'i]. All rights reserved.
