Aging and Old Age: Health and Ethics
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Aging and Old Age: Health and Ethical Aspects
Health Aspects
Most Frequent Subjective Complaints of Older Adults:
- Pains
- Insomnia
- Lack of appetite
- Dizziness (vertigo)
- Breathlessness (dyspnea)
Most Frequent Diseases of Older Adults:
Diseases of the Circulatory System:
- Hypertension
- Coronary Ischemic Heart Disease (CIHD)
- Pulmonary emboli
- Strokes
Diseases of the Respiratory System:
- Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs)
- Influenza
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Diseases of the Gastrointestinal Tract (GIT):
- Gastric ulcers
- Cholelithiasis
Diseases of the Genitourinary System:
- Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs)
- Prostatic hyperplasia
Ophthalmologic Diseases:
- Senile cataracts
ENT Diseases:
- Hearing loss
Diseases of the Musculoskeletal System:
- Osteoporosis
- Polyarthrosis
- Arthrosis of the hip and/or knee (decreased mobility)
Injuries:
- Frequent falls
Older adults have an increased incidence of disease, a natural consequence of aging:
- Co-existence and interplay of diseases
- Diseases often progress to a chronic state
Health Promotion:
Regular Physical Activity:
- Greatly reduces the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and colon cancer.
- Contributes to healthy bones, muscles, and joints.
- Reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression.
- Decreases the need for physician visits and medication consumption.
Proper Nutrition:
- Diet low in saturated lipids
- Fruits and vegetables reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, some types of cancer, and diabetes.
Harmful Behaviors (These must be eliminated):
- Tobacco use
- Alcohol use (increased with loneliness)
- Lack of physical activity
- Poor eating habits (e.g., preparing a meal to last a long time, leading to decreased variety)
Ethical Aspects:
- Western society has described population aging as a "problem" and a "burden" since the beginning of the 20th century.
- Concurrently, older people frequently hold negative ideas about themselves.
- Four widely accepted general ethical principles:
- Autonomy: Respecting the choices and wishes of individuals with decisional capacity while protecting those who lack it.
- Beneficence: A doctor's obligation to promote the patient's welfare. This is particularly challenging in elderly care medicine due to the complex interplay of multiple comorbidities, making outcome prediction difficult.
- Non-maleficence
- Justice