Lifespan Development in Late Adults

During late adulthood, which begins around 65, many changes will take place. Death, sickness, and aging are some of the things you go through. Everyone is affected at some point. Individuals deal with these changes differently. Gerontology is the science that deals with the aging process. Vision can show impairment as people age. One of the changes in vision is the loss of accommodation of the lens. Most people 65 and older have hardened eye lens and have lost elasticity if the lens. Cataracts can form and vision becomes cloudy and is significantly impaired. Glaucoma is a serious condition that causes pressure to increase within the eye and it can result in blindness. Often hearing decreases with age. The hair cells in the Corti (inner ear) can cause a decrease in hearing frequencies. The ossicles and eardrum have a decrease in the transmittance of mechanical sound waves. Due to aging many elderly people have hearing impairment. Loss of appetite from connective tissue cells replacing taste buds. Skin can become thin, dry, and inelastic as it ages and the skin can fold and wrinkle from sagging.

Heredity plays a prominent part in health and longevity. A person cannot change heredity, but much can be done to strengthen the body's resistance and ward off disease. There include nutrition, plenty of rest, regular exercise, and social supports wards of disease and also increases longevity. In fact, diets high in calcium can promote better digestion, as well as leading to higher vitality and better growth that delays the onset of old age. For most, as people age, they tend to exercise less and their metabolism becomes slower. As people age, proper weight control is also necessary. As well, rest is as important as proper nutr...

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Becoming older is a natural progression of life. Late adulthood is the period of life in every individual that follows the period of his or her life after he/she turns 60 years of age. Being active, eating healthy foods and handling stress have been shown to greatly improve the quality of life for senior citizens.

Works Cited

http://www.cliffsnotes.com/sciences/psychology/psychology/developmental-psychology-age-13-to-65/development-in-late-adulthood

http://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/helping-older-adults-who-are-grieving

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/487213/Late-Adulthood-Cognitive-and-Physical-Development

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/004023.htm

http://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/Life-stages

http://www.unm.edu/~lkravitz/Article%20folder/olderadult.html

http://endoflife.northwestern.edu/social_considerations/why.cfm