INTRODUCTION
People above the age of 60 are generally considered as elderly people. It is a last stage of a human being. Old age is also recognized as the chronological age. Old age is sub divided into two stages: early old age, and advanced old age. The early old age extends from sixty to seventy years. The advanced old age begins at seventy years and extends till the end of the life. During this stage of life the old people undergo changes in the physical and psychological aspects. In this state the elderly people do not earn and are mostly dependent on their children to live their life.
DEFINITION OF OLD AGE
"The ageing process is of course a biological reality which has its own dynamic, largely beyond human control. However, it …show more content…
“Old age is the last period of human life, now often considered to be the years after 65” – the free dictionary.
CHANGES IN OLD AGE:
CHANGES IN THE PHYSICAL APPEARANCE AND PHYSICAL FUNCTIONING:
• The changes in the skin cell contributes to the development of wrinkles which occur in all the layers of the skin.
• Altered pigmentation is another feature of aging skin.
• The majority of changes in the appearance is due to photo aging.
• The visible changes in the hair include graying and becoming …show more content…
Social, iv. Emotional, and
v. Financial.
1. Physiological Problems:
Old age is a period of physical decline. Due to the loss of teeth, the jaw becomes smaller and they find it very difficult to chew and there is a problem in speech due to which the matter is not conveyed properly. The eyes seem dull and lusterless and they often have a watery look due to the poor functioning of the tear glands. There is slow functioning of organs which leads them to do their work very slowly. The ears and eyes are greatly affected by the changes in the nervous system. Due to their age they have a dull vision and also the eyes seems to be tearful.
2. Psychological Problems:
Mental disorders are very much associated with old age. Older people are susceptible to psychotic depressions. The two major psychotic disorders of older people are senile dementia (associated with cerebral atrophy and degeneration) and psychosis with cerebral arterio sclerosis (associated with either blocking or ruptures in the cerebral arteries). It has been observed that these two disorders account for approximately 80% of the psychotic disorders among older people in the civilized societies.
(1) Senile