HLTH 380 Week 1 Discussion Board Forum 1 Example

Discussion Board Forum 1: Gerontology, Aging and Ageism

HLTH 380 Health Promotion for Aging Populations, Discussion Board Forum 1

Thread by [Student Name]

The classmates are composites; the textbook, Scripture and the peer-reviewed studies cited are real.

Many people assume that getting older simply means getting sicker, weaker and less useful. That assumption is common even among health workers, and it shapes how older adults are treated in clinics, workplaces and families. This week's chapters introduce gerontology, the study of aging, and show that aging is far more varied than that assumption suggests. Robnett and Chop (2015) emphasize that older adults differ enormously from one another and that health professionals must understand aging as a normal part of life, not a disease.

Research suggests that how people think about aging can change how they age. Levy et al. (2002) followed 660 adults aged 50 and older in Ohio for up to 23 years. Participants who held more hopeful views of their own aging survived about 7.5 years longer, on average, than those whose views were bleak, and the gap held up after the researchers allowed for differences in age, sex, income, loneliness and physical function. Part of the effect worked through the will to live. On a larger scale, Chang et al. (2020) reviewed 422 studies from 45 countries and found that ageism, whether from society's institutions or from older people's own internalized beliefs, led to significantly worse health in 95.5% of the studies. A society that tells people their later years are worthless does not just hurt their feelings; it shortens their lives.

These findings touch all five dimensions of health that this course examines. Physically, negative beliefs may discourage exercise and preventive care. Emotionally, they can lead to hopelessness and depression. Socially, they can push older adults into isolation. Intellectually, they may discourage learning new skills, and spiritually, they can rob people of a sense of purpose.

Scripture offers a different view. Proverbs 16:31 describes white hair as a crown of splendor that comes from a life lived rightly (English Standard Version Bible, 2001/2016). Health professionals who see older adults this way can help them age with dignity and purpose.

Reply to Natalie

Natalie, your thread described a grandmother whose doctor dismissed her fatigue as "just old age," and I think your example shows how ageism can enter health care. Chang et al. (2020) found that ageism affected health across many domains and that the people perpetrating it included health providers as well as society in general. When a symptom is blamed on age, a treatable condition such as anemia, thyroid disease or depression may be missed. Older adults may also internalize the message and stop reporting symptoms because they assume nothing can be done. Robnett and Chop (2015) stress that health professionals should understand the difference between normal aging and disease, which is exactly what your grandmother's doctor failed to do. I wonder whether training that brings students into contact with healthy, active older adults could reduce these assumptions, since many health workers mostly see older people when they are sick. Volunteering at a senior center or interviewing older adults about their lives, as this course asks us to do later, could give students a fuller picture of aging than hospital rotations alone. Your grandmother's experience is a good reminder that advocacy is part of caring for older adults, and that family members can help by asking for an explanation when a symptom is dismissed.

Reply to Gabe

Gabe, you argued that the goal of health promotion should be "successful aging," staying active and free of disease as long as possible. I agree that prevention matters, and the evidence from Levy et al. (2002) shows that a hopeful outlook can extend life. But I wonder whether the language of success could make older adults with chronic illness or disability feel that they have failed. Many people live well with arthritis, heart disease or memory loss, finding meaning in family, faith and service. Robnett and Chop (2015) describe aging as diverse, and health promotion should meet people where they are rather than measuring them against an ideal. Perhaps a better goal is aging with purpose and as much independence as possible, adjusted to each person's circumstances. That view also fits the spiritual dimension of health, since a person's sense of worth does not depend on how well their body works. In 2 Corinthians 4:16, Paul admits that the body wears out but insists that the inner person is made new each day (English Standard Version Bible, 2001/2016), which offers hope to older adults whose bodies are changing. Health promotion that honors the inner self as well as the body may be the most complete kind of care we can offer.

References

Chang, E., Kannoth, S., Levy, S., Wang, S., Lee, J. E., & Levy, B. R. (2020). Global reach of ageism on older persons' health: A systematic review. PLOS ONE, 15(1), e0220857. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0220857

English Standard Version Bible. (2016). Crossway. (Original work published 2001)

Levy, B. R., Slade, M. D., Kunkel, S. R., & Kasl, S. V. (2002). Longevity increased by positive self-perceptions of aging. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(2), 261-270. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.83.2.261

Robnett, R. H., & Chop, W. C. (2015). Gerontology for the health care professional (3rd ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.