Aging and Adulthood Health 11

True or False? The happiest people are those who have experienced the fewest tragedies. FALSE – those who have lived through one major tragedy are statistically shown to live happier lives.

True or False? The human life span had increased steadily over the past 100 years. FALSE – the human life span has not changed, but the average life expectancy has increased steadily over the past 100 years.

True or False? People should expect to lose their sexuality at around years of age. FALSE – people are sexual throughout their lifetime.

True or False? Most people’s incomes are reduced at retirement. TRUE

True or False? Most people can expect to spend their later years in nursing homes. FALSE – only a fraction live in nursing homes.

What are some things you can do at your age to make the aging process easier?

AGING:

Although many people believe that aging starts around 40 or 45, aging really begins at birth. Until about the age of 20, aging takes place in the form of growth and maturing. After growth is completed, aging brings about the gradual loss of youthful appearance and condition. Organs and cells age too.

Within the different body organs, cells have different aging patterns and life spans. Most nerve cells last a person a lifetime. Some blood cells live only 3 days or so. In a healthy older person, each cell lives on to the end of its normal life span in much the same way as in the person’s younger years. As the person ages though, the cells lose some of their function. They collect products not found in younger peoples cells. Cells lose some of their ability to reproduce.

LIFE EXPECTANCY AND LIFE SPAN

The human life span is the maximum possible length of life that people can reach, conditions being ideal. In the neighborhood of 100 years or more. May people don’t live this long due to disease or accidents. A person’s life expectancy is the average length of life predicted by statistics. Men = 72 Women = 78 Longevity – the actual length of life observed by an individual. Depends on: Genetic inheritance Events of their lives both

People are living longer today than ever before, but the human life span (maximum) has not changed. What has changed is the life expectancy (average), mainly for two reasons: The rate of deaths from diseases and accidents among the very young has declined. Medical advances are prolonging adults’ lives so that they more nearly reach their maximum. Many strategies have been proposed to extend the lengths of human lives, and many do not work. Strategies that help slow down aging have more to do with lifestyle and less to do with pills and shots.

MARRIAGE

GROUP ACTIVITY Things to Know Before Marriage Get into groups of 4. Develop a list of 5 questions that couples should discuss before they marry. Choose a person to record and a person to report the list to the rest of the class. When your group has completed the task, let Ms. Repsher know.

“Men are April when they woo, December when they wed “Men are April when they woo, December when they wed. Maids are May when they are maids, but the sky changes when they are wives.” -Shakespeare