Discussion
Aging is an inevitable process that happens to all beings. It has enormous influences on an organism and its ability to operate appropriately. The majority of the representatives of general public consider that their quality of life will worsen with the course of time and develop negative attitudes towards their future. For instance, more than 70% of people under the age of 50 believe that their lives will improve in 10 years while the same views are observed in 46% of those under 64, 25% of those under 75, and only 19% of those older than 75 years old (Pew Research Center, 2013). In this way, people tend to become less optimistic, being affected by aging.
Gills (2015) believes that such attitudes can be associated with health issues that become more critical as a part of this process. Poor habits and unhealthy lifestyle seem to be not important in middle age, but it worsens the quality of life in the later years significantly. People’s bodies become unable to cope with adverse influences, which leads to chronic conditions. Moreover, some changes are a part of the developmental process and cannot be overcome even if a person did his/her best to enhance personal health condition. For instance, worsened quality of hair, a poor elasticity of skin, and a decrease of muscle bulk are common for all older adults. Their sensory abilities alter as well so that they hear and see worse. Memory ability also reduces significantly.
Aging makes people vulnerable to various diseases, especially those associated with the physical and mental decline. As a result, many of them suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis, and cancer. Depression is also often observed in the elderly, as they cope with stress poorly because of the alterations in biochemical reactions and lack of support. Regardless of these issues, the quality of life of older adults tends to improve in comparison to previous years, as new care and treatment options are constantly developed.
In the majority of cases, the elderly do not notice any significant changes as the time passes by, as 40% of those who are older than 75 years old believe that their lives have not altered much during the last 10 years (Pew Research Center, 2013). Unfortunately, people of this age group rarely have excellent relations with their children in comparison to those who are younger. Starting with 65 years, they also suffer from poor personal health (Pew Research Center, 2013). Nevertheless, the elderly tend to have the largest number of friends.
Developing negative attitudes associated with aging, people even reveal worsened physical and cognitive abilities regardless of provided treatment and assistance (Trinity College Dublin, 2016). Professionals emphasize that the way the elderly think about aging affects their quality of life and health condition. Thus, positive stereotypes should be spread among the population to avoid such consequences.
Personal Considerations
Personally, I would like to live to 100 years of age, because I will have an opportunity to enlarge my experiences and try everything that interests me. I believe that having positive attitudes towards my future, I can overcome numerous issues associated with aging. Even facing inevitable changes connected with the developmental process, I will still be able to have positive emotions. Moreover, science and technology continue developing rather fast nowadays. As a result, professionals may discover new treatment options to overcome health issues common among the elderly. I would like to see how our world alters with the course of time, so I need to live a long life.
References
Gilles, G. (2015) Improving the quality of life as we age. Web.
Pew Research Center. (2013). Chapter 6: Aging and quality of life.
Trinity College Dublin. (2016). Attitude to aging can have a direct effect on health, researchers confirm.