More Than What Meets the Eye

Since my birthday’s coming up soon, one thing that has been bothering me is getting older. I’m not going to deny it. Gone are the times when I could be completely carefree. For me, this fear of aging stems from my impression that the elderly have monotonous lives. I decided to further research on the topic and came across surprising facts that agree with my thoughts. But at the same time I found solutions to the problem.

Nearly 20% of the older population experience depression. Even more troubling, only half of seniors with mental health problems get treatment of any kind, and less than 3% get treated by a psychologist. There are several health complications related to depression. However, suicide is the most feared complication, and it hits older adults harder than any other age group. In 2004, people aged 65 years and older accounted for 16% of all suicide deaths in the United States even though they comprised only 12% of the population. The reasons for delay or denial of treatment of depression could be numerous. First of all, depression symptoms are mistaken for a variety of other common health disorders in this age group. Secondly many seniors may exhibit symptoms of depression differently than the general population.

There are ways to counter this problem. Anti-depressive medications are quite helpful in many cases. However, exercising three times a week could be more effective than medication in relieving the symptoms of major depression in elderly people and may also decrease the chances that the condition will return over time. Seniors should be encouraged to lead an active and physical social life and intermingle actively amongst family and community members. Social interaction can go a long way in avoiding many cases of depression and emotional troubles resulting from loneliness.

References:

Andrew Rosenzweig, MD, MPH, Holly Prigerson, PhD, Mark D. Miller, MD, and Charles F. Reynolds III, MD, “BEREAVEMENT AND LATE-LIFE DEPRESSION: Grief and Its Complications in the Elderly”, Vol. 48: 421-428 (Volume publication date February 1997)

http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.med.48.1.421

Jaakko Valvanne, Kati Juva, Timo Erkinjuntti and Reijo Tilvis, “International Psychogeriatrics”, International Psychogeriatrics (1996), 8 : pp 437-443

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=272394

E Murphy, “Social origins of depression in old age”

http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/141/2/135.short

Mark La Gory “The Effects of Environmental Context on Elderly Depression”, Journal of Aging and Health

http://jah.sagepub.com/content/4/4/459.short

AA: Aged Alcoholism

More than 10,000 baby boomers a day are turning 65 years old. Although alcohol problems are often underreported, alcohol use remains common among older persons. As the older population grows, increasing numbers of older alcoholics will require health care.  In a study of community-dwelling persons 60 to 94 years of age, 62 percent of the subjects were found to drink alcohol, and heavy drinking was reported in 13 percent of men and 2 percent of women.

Older adults who have alcohol dependence problems drink significantly more than younger adults who have similar problems. The findings suggest that older problem drinkers may have developed a tolerance for alcohol and need to drink even more than younger abusers to achieve the effects they seek. When considering this, an important factor that comes into play is the fact that alcohol's effects vary with age.  As the body ages, how it interacts with and reacts to alcohol also changes. Slower reaction times, problems with hearing and seeing, and a lower tolerance to alcohol's effects put older people at higher risk for falls, car crashes, and other types of injuries that may result from drinking. According to the National Institutes of Health, alcohol is a factor in 60 percent of fatal burn injuries, drownings and homicides and in 40 percent of fatal motor vehicle crashes, suicides and fatal falls.

Aged people also tend to take more medications than younger people. Mixing alcohol with over-the-counter or prescription medications can be very dangerous, even fatal. At the same time, alcohol may worsen the effectiveness of medications and even worsen symptoms.


References:

Lawrence Schonfeld, Larry W. Dupree, “Antecedents of Drinking for Early- and Late-Onset Elderly Alcohol Abusers”, Volume 52, 1991 > Issue 6: November 1991

http://www.jsad.com/jsad/article/Antecedents_of_Drinking_for_Early_and_LateOnset_Elderly_Alcohol_Abusers_/1757.html

Larry W. Dupree, “Aging and Alcohol Use Disorders: Diagnostic Issues in the Elderly”, Table of Contents - 1990 - Volume 2, Issue 01  

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=271886

A Gurnack and Jeanne L. Thomas, Behavioral Factors Related to Elderly Alcohol Abuse: Research and Policy Issues, 1989, Vol. 24, No. 7 , Pages 641-654
http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/10826088909047304

SALLY K. RIGLER, “Alcoholism in the Elderly”, Am Fam Physician. 2000 Mar 15;61(6):1710-1716

http://www.aafp.org/afp/2000/0315/p1710.html