Articles
The Journal on Active Aging brings articles of value to professionals dedicated to older-adult quality of life. Content sweeps across the active-aging landscape to focus on education and practice. Find articles of interest by searching the article archives in three ways: Enter a keyword in the articles search bar; click on search by topic; or type a keyword or phrase in the general search bar at the top of the page.
Interdependence: Balancing autonomy with connection as we age by Colin Milner
What is the difference between dependence and interdependence as we age? What happens when we don't have family support? And what kinds of models and policies for successful aging and care can be built on these distinctions? The importance of interdependence caught my attention during my participation in the WHO Global Network on Long-Term Care, which first met in September 2020 and again this fall. As a response to changing world demographics and more people living longer, this World Health Organization network advises the agency on ways to create equitable and sustainable long-term care models for older adults. The focus is to optimize functional ability and achieve healthy aging. Interdependence came up as part of network discussions and opened my eyes to its significance, especially for an aging population. In my view, even with all the goals and mandates in the WHO's endorsement of a new "Decade of Healthy Ageing" (2021 - 2030), all the progress towards more integrated and person-centered models of long-term care, and all the efforts by myriad organizations and agencies to foster wellness among older populations, interdependence is the unrecognized umbrella under which so many issues fall. So, I reached out to Karl Pillemer, PhD, the Hazel E. Reed Professor in Cornell University's Department of Human Development and a professor of gerontology in medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine. His decades of research have advanced our understanding of the complicated web of relationships.
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Discerning quality research: How to spot good science by Sally Duplantier, BS
Back in 1998, a physician named Andrew Wakefield published a scientific paper with a finding so startling, it became a media sensation. Never mind that the sample size was small (N=12), or that the design was scientifically flawed, or that the team conducting the research engaged in unethical practices. Thousands of parents still accepted the findings as fact: Vaccines cause autism. Ten years later, The Lancet, the journal that originally published the article, retracted it, and the results of Dr. Wakefield's publication were refuted by the scientific and medical communities. Nonetheless, the damage to public health was done. The vaccination rate of the MMR vaccine (measles, mumps and rubella)--the focus of Wakefield's paper--dropped by 80%. Beyond that impact, the paper created fear and uncertainty in the minds of parents about all vaccines. Wakefield's fabricated publication created a wave of skepticism that lingers to this day, even in a global pandemic. This is not an isolated example. In the quest for the new and novel, the media often sensationalizes research findings in a way that is misleading. In addition, not all scientific research is created equal. The following guidelines will help you wade through the vast array of scientific studies to discern the quality and relevance of their content.
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Dr. Kenneth Cooper promotes living better longer by Julie King, MS
How do you go from an overweight 29-year-old to the "Father of Aerobics"? An unexpected epiphany led Kenneth H. Cooper, MD, MPH, to a life-altering change in career course. While water skiing in 1960, he felt like he was having a heart attack. At the hospital, the doctor determined that Dr. Cooper's heart was healthy, but he was out of shape. He had experienced a temporary irregular heartbeat. Poor nutrition and inactivity during his medical studies and residency had pushed Cooper's weight to 204 lbs., a gain of more than 30 lbs. This physical deconditioning was then compounded by pressures related to his military career and new marriage. His critical wake-up call both humbled and motivated the former high-school basketball All-Star and state track champion, and physician. Cooper started running the next day and, in 1962, completed his first Boston Marathon. Over the six months following his health scare, he shed 40 lbs. by exercising and following a healthy diet. His prediabetes and hypertension disappeared, replaced by his firsthand knowledge that exercise was a critical--and largely ignored--part of healthcare. "My experience," Cooper says, "proved how regular exercise could significantly improve your health. I had to share this revelation." Cooper has been on a mission to change the health of Americans ever since.
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What lifelong learners told ICAA
For two decades, the International Council on Active Aging has reported research about age 50+ adults to help members stay up to date with the changing body of knowledge. The active-aging industry is the primary focus for ICAA research. But, as the association celebrates its 20th anniversary, results of its first consumer survey have arrived. The ICAA Lifestyle Survey of Older Adults shares the perspectives of people assumed to be lifelong learners because they responded to an invitation in a One Day University newsletter. Overall, these individuals are in good, very good or excellent health, appear to be financially stable and engage in lifelong learning. In addition to their views on housing, survey respondents also shared their priorities, satisfaction with areas of their lives, use of technologies and reasons for considering a move out of their current home. Details appear in the full survey report [available at www.icaa.cc in the "Research" ("Reports") section].
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Environment impacts aging at a genetic level
The places we live can change us -- in many cases, down to the molecular level. Exposure to chemicals and other harmful substances in our environment can affect our health in myriad ways over time, aggravating existing health problems, contributing to new disease such as cancer and even impacting how our genes work. Scientists are studying the way our genomic and biological processes change in response to the environment or other external factors in the growing field of epigenetics. In a pair of 2020 studies, [scientists from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)] found that 1) epigenetic changes related to aging and mortality are impacted by the environment, and 2) epigenetic changes may reveal whether a person is more susceptible to health risks in their environment. The studies are among the first to link these biological indicators of accelerated aging, called molecular biomarkers, to both the quality of the environment and environmental health risks. [Reprinted from the US Environmental Protection Agency's Science Matters newsletter, April 19, 2021.]
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Understanding aging: Dr. Eileen Crimmins makes the case for behavioral and social factors by Colin Milner
As an industry and as professionals, the potential of "living better longer" inspires us to dream, innovate and deliver new opportunities that support aging adults in engaging fully in life throughout their years. Our ability to foster the pursuit of aging well grows along with the body of research that reevaluates what we know about aging. To embrace those possibilities requires us--as leaders of the active-aging movement--to rethink aging. Every month in the "Colin Milner Rethinks Aging With ..." podcast, I do just that. As International Council on Active Aging founder/CEO, I interview thought leaders and aging-well disruptors who share innovative strategies and expert advice to help organizations, professionals and clients rethink aging. Social scientist and demographer Eileen Crimmins, PhD, was my recent guest. Her research explores changes over time in health and mortality in adults ages 50 years and older. In a published paper, Dr. Crimmins recently proposed that to truly understand aging, research should include "social hallmarks of aging" as well as biological biomarkers. She and I covered these hallmarks--plus other topics of interest--in our interview. Let's dive in!
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