Health Promotion and the Ederly

Health Promotion and the Ederly - Ford's lifestyle is right on target. One the chief focuses of recent health promotion efforts has been the elderly. At one time, prejudiced beliefs that such health promotion efforst would be wasted in the old age limited this emphasis, however, policy makers now recognize that a healthy elderly population is essential for controlling health care spending and insuring that country's re sources can sustain the increasingly elderly population that will develop over the next decades (Maddox & Clark, 1992; Schaie, Blazer, & House, 1992).

Among the elderly, health habits are major determinant of whether
 an individual will have a vigorous or an infirmed old age

Health promotion efforts with elderly have focused on several behaviors: maintaining a healthy, balanced diet; developing a regular exercise regimen; taking steps to reduce accidents; controlling alcohol consumptions; eliminating smoking; reducing the inappropiate use of prescription drugs; and obtaining vaccinations againts influenza (Facts of Life, Oktober 2002; kahana et.al., 2002; Nichol et al.,2003).

Exercise is one of the most important health behaviors because  exercise helps keep people mobile and able to care for themselves. Even just keeping active also has health benefits. Participating in social activities, running errands, and engaging in other normal activities that probably have little effect on overall fitness nonetheless reduce the risk of mortality, perhaps by providing social support or a general sense of self-efficacy (T. A. Glass, deLeon, Marottoli, & Berkman, 1999). Among the very old, exercise has particularly beneficial long-term benefits, substantially increasing the likelihood that the elderly can maintain the basic activities of daily living (Kahana et al., 2002).

Controlling alcohol consumption is an important target for good health among the elderly as well. Some elderly people develop drinking problems in response to age-related issues, such as retirement or loneliness (Brennan & Moos, 1995). Others may try to maintain the drinking habits they had throunghout their lives, which become more risky in old age. For example, metabolic chenges related to age may reduce the capacity for alcohol. Moreover, many older people are on medications that may interact dangerously with alcohol. Alcohol consumption increases the risk of accidents, which, in conjuction with oesteoporosis, can produce broken bones, which limit mobility, creating further health problems (Sheahan et al., 1995). Drunk driving among the elderly represents a problem, inasmuch as diminished driving capacities may be further impaired by alcohol. The elderly are at risk for depression, commonly thought of as a mental health problem, can have effects on physical health as well (Wrosch, Schulz, & Heckhausen, 2002).