scholarly journals Prevention of loneliness and social isolation as a factor determining the health of a senior

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 41-46
Author(s):  
Joanna Girzelska ◽  
Magdalena Głowacka ◽  
Dorota Wilk-Jeziorska ◽  
Agnieszka Malikowska ◽  
Jolanta Dziewulska ◽  
...  

AbstractIntroduction. Loneliness is considered a disease of affluence. It is a mixture of lack of acceptance, rejection and unpleasant experiences. It is accompanied by disappointment, unhappiness and pessimism. The consequences of loneliness can be seen in the psyche and physical ailments.Aim. Demonstrating the impact of loneliness on the health of the elderly and possible interventions for entertainment in the prevention of loneliness of the elderly.Methodology. Literature was classified into the analysis, from which the content regarding the influence of loneliness on health of elderly and selected preventive interventions of the discussing phenomena.Conclusions. Loneliness results in the deterioration of the condition of the elderly, increases stress level in the body and the risk of depression. The ways of fighting with loneliness include education, participation in the Universities of the Third Age and activity in the senior clubs.

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-29
Author(s):  
Magdalena Pracka ◽  
Marcin Dziedziński ◽  
Przemysław Łukasz Kowalczewski

AbstractIn recent years have seen increasing percentage of the elderly in the overall population. This has driven the attention to the lifestyle factors that influence the health and quality of life of this social group, including their nutrition and physical activity. Universities of the Third Age (U3A) are a valuable platform for the dissemination and broadening of the knowledge related to these topics. The nutritional habits of 61 U3A students in Poznań were evaluated on the basis of a modified KomPAN questionnaire. Their nutritional status was determined using the body mass index (BMI) and waist to hip ratio (WHR) indices. Nearly half of the respondents were overweight and 16% had first degree obesity. The WHR index in women was on average 0.8, while in men it was 1.01. Only 13% of the students declared regular eating, with 60% consuming 4-5 meals a day. Women were found to eat snacks between meals more often than men. It was also found that the majority of the elderly do not add salt to ready meals or sweeten beverages with sugars. Taking into account the observed nutritional problems and the occurrence of improper eating habits of the elderly, it is recommended to continue the education on the prevention of common diet-related diseased.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. a4en
Author(s):  
Luiz Sinésio Silva Neto ◽  
Neila Barbosa Osório ◽  
Fábio Santos Metódio ◽  
Maria Helena Paulo

The world begins the year 2020 in the midst of a crisis, with socioeconomic impacts and in the way of life in general, caused by a pandemic resulting from the new coronavirus COVID-19. Among the recommendations of health organizations, there is social isolation, especially the risk groups that include the elderly. In social isolation, the elderly are subject to depression, anxiety, in addition to the difficulty in practicing physical activities, one of the essential elements to keep the body and mind in healthy conditions. Thus, the present article brings an experience report developed with elderly people between 53 and 71 years old, who digitally participate in a group that promotes the interaction and encouragement of physical activities directed to the elderly.


PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e2028
Author(s):  
Mateusz Cybulski ◽  
Elzbieta Krajewska-Kulak

Skin diseases constitute an essential health and aesthetic problem in the elderly. The aim of the study was to evaluate the knowledge of the elderly residents of public nursing homes and participants of the University of the Third Age in Bialystok, Poland surrounding the factors influencing skin ageing, the awareness of skin conditions in agening skin, and the impact of skin ageing on the volunteers. The study was performed from April to June 2015 in Bialystok, in two groups: among 100 public nursing home residents (PNH) and 100 members of University of the Third Age (U3A), (all over 60 years old). The study made use of a diagnostic survey conducted via a questionnaire prepared by the authors. Nearly half of those surveyed (42.5%;n= 85) sunbathed in the past, while 28.0% (n= 56) of those surveyed now take part in this type of leisure activity. More than half of respondents (53.0%;n= 106) protected their skin using special protective preparations. A majority of Bialystok inhabitants surveyed (80.5%;n= 161) noticed the features of skin ageing. They reported birthmarks, fungal infections and bedsores as the main skin problems of the old age. Nearly half (40%) of respondents assessed their knowledge as average and 26.0% as poor. The study showed some statistical differences in the knowledge and awareness between the residents of public nursing homes and the students of the University of the Third Age, e.g., the use of the Internet by the U3A group for finding out information. There is a desire to receive education in the field of the agening skin conditions/diseases among the elderly because their level of knowledge is relatively poor. Education of seniors in this area can increase their awareness of the basic principles of skin care and prevention marking of skin ageing. The benefits of greater knowledge of seniors about the conditions of agening skin can help reduce the medical burden and reduce the incidence on certain skin diseases. Furthermore, there is a need for educating of the younger population on the factors of skin ageing to prevent certain skin conditions as they become older. Seniors should be professionally educated by qualified specialists; for example, dermatologists or cosmeticians, so that the information they receive is in line with evidence-based medicine.


Author(s):  
Andrii Karkach

The relevance of the study is stipulated by the fact that modern digital technologies are radically changing the economy and lifestyle in general. The information society determines the transformation of social structure, revision of patterns of social activities and stereotypes of behaviour, strategies and tactics of adaptation. Today's information technology and software encourages our society to accelerate in order to learn more and keep up with the scientific and technological progress. Under such conditions, the people of the "third" age appear to be the most vulnerable ones. Without social services and educational services, they are not able to independently master the array of innovative knowledge, including e-technology. Nowadays, a good command of the basics of the personal computer, E-technologies is becoming a necessary condition for orientation in the information flow and successful resocialisation and adaptation of the elderly people in the modern society, for overcoming digital inequality, immersion into the global information flows. The purpose of the study is to determine the features of the mechanisms enabling digital resocialisation of the elderly people within the educational environment of the University of the Third Age. The method of questionnaire survey was used to collect data, as this form of survey has an advantage – it allows respondents to carefully consider their answers without limiting their time. The article characterises and identifies the features of the impact of digital resocialisation mechanisms on the elderly within the educational environment of the University of the Third Age functioning on the platform of the territorial centre of social services (the one which provides social services). Different approaches to the mechanisms of digitalisation are presented, the importance of the University of the Third Age as an institution of digital resocialisation of elderly students is substantiated. The adaptability of the educational environment of the University of the Third Age as a resocialisation space, motivational components of the elderly have been determined, which allows the latter to realise the essential properties of the human personality at a respectable age. A social role of the digital resocialisation is transmitted through its contribution to the improvement of the quality of human life. The use of e-technologies can be considered one of the topical problems of social work with the elderly. There is still no consensus on the extent or impact of digital stratification on the process of resocialisation at an old age, which may be considered the prospect of our further research.


2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 545-555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chadi Emil Adamo ◽  
Marina Tomaz Esper ◽  
Gabriela Cunha Fialho Cantarelli Bastos ◽  
Ivone Félix de Sousa ◽  
Rogério José de Almeida

Abstract Objective: To verify, among elderly participants of the University of the Third Age (UnATI) of PUC Goiás, Goiania, Brazil, whether quality of life was higher or lower among veteran or first-year participants of the UnATI, and to evaluate if there was a statistically significant difference between the quality of life of men and women or first-years and veterans. Method: An observational case-control study with a quantitative approach was performed with 100 elderly individuals from the UnATI. Fifty first-years and fifty veterans were involved. Two questionnaires were applied, one with sociodemographic data and the other using the World Health Organization Quality of Life - Old (WHOQOL-OLD) scale, which evaluates the quality of life of the elderly. Variance analysis (ANOVA) and multivariate variance analysis (MANOVA) were performed, with p≤0.05 applied to the relevant statistics. Result: The vast majority of the sample were women (90%), aged between 60 and 86 years old (average of 68.37±5.28 years old). The overall quality of life score was 3.68±0.50 (first-years) and 3.87±0.55 (veterans). There was a statistically significant difference in the areas: sensory functioning (veterans =4.28±0.65 and first-years =3.95±0.80) (p=0.025) and past, present and future activity (veterans =4.0±0.72 and first-years =3.59±0.79) (p=0.008). Multivariate variance analysis identified that the overall quality of life scores of both men (veterans =3.15 and first-years =4.21) and women (veterans =3.78 and first-years =3.86), were highest after they became veteran students (p=0.007). Conclusion: Veterans had a higher quality of life than first-years. The continuing education provided by UnATI has a positive impact on the quality of life of the elderly.


2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 419-427
Author(s):  
Adriana Nancy Medeiros dos Santos ◽  
Dulcinéia Rebecca Cappelletti Nogueira ◽  
Caroline Ribeiro de Borja-Oliveira

Abstract Objective: to identify the prevalence of self-medication, the therapeutic classes used without medical prescription, the symptoms treated with such medication and associated factors among participants of an Open University of the Third Age (OU3A). Method: a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study was carried out, the sample of which was composed of 138 OU3A attendees. To estimate the association between the variables, prevalence ratios (PR), confidence intervals (95% CI), the chi-squared test and Fisher's exact test were used. Results: the majority were aged 60-69 years (61.6%), were female (75.4%), had a health plan (63%) and claimed to self-medicate (59.4%, 95% CI, 0-64.8). The most frequently mentioned therapeutic classes were analgesics (31.9%), muscle relaxants (13.8%), anti-inflammatories (13.0%) and first-generation antihistamines (7.2%). The most commonly reported self-medication symptoms were muscle and joint pain (21.0%), headaches (10.1%) and colds and flu (8.7%). There was a significant association (p = 0.049) among those who self-medicated more frequently and anti-inflammatory use (PR = 1.46, 95% CI = 1.10-1.99). The complaint of muscular and articular pain exhibited a significant association with the diagnosis of arthrosis (p = 0.003, RP = 3.75, 95% CI = 2.07-6.76) and hypothyroidism (p = 0.002, RP = 2.77 ; 95% CI = 1.50-5.10). Conclusion: the most frequently mentioned reasons for self-medicating were previous experience using the drug and the certainty that it is safe. Most of the above medications are potentially inappropriate for the elderly. However, the elderly consider them safe and are unaware of the risks to which they expose them. They may also be unaware that pain treated by self-medication may be related to pre-existing diseases, which require the appropriate professional and treatment.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhengran Yu ◽  
Zemin Ling ◽  
Lin Lu ◽  
Jin Zhao ◽  
Xiang Chen ◽  
...  

Osteoporosis and neurodegenerative diseases are two kinds of common disorders of the elderly, which often co-occur. Previous studies have shown the skeletal and central nervous systems are closely related to pathophysiology. As the main structural scaffold of the body, the bone is also a reservoir for stem cells, a primary lymphoid organ, and an important endocrine organ. It can interact with the brain through various bone-derived cells, mostly the mesenchymal and hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). The bone marrow is also a place for generating immune cells, which could greatly influence brain functions. Finally, the proteins secreted by bones (osteokines) also play important roles in the growth and function of the brain. This article reviews the latest research studying the impact of bone-derived cells, bone-controlled immune system, and bone-secreted proteins on the brain, and evaluates how these factors are implicated in the progress of neurodegenerative diseases and their potential use in the diagnosis and treatment of these diseases.


2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (7) ◽  
pp. 643-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika Timmer ◽  
Marja Aartsen

In the present study we examined the associations between beliefs of mastery and 2 important kinds of productive activities in the third age: participation in education, and volunteering. Within the broad concept of mastery beliefs, differential aspects of self-regulatory cognitions were studied, that is, self-esteem, control beliefs, effort to complete behavior, persistence in the face of adversity, and willingness to initiate behavior. Effects of these aspects on carrying out activities were investigated and controlled for the impact of some situational and demographic factors. Findings suggest that a general sense of mastery, as reflected in self-esteem and control beliefs, is not a precondition for study and volunteering work in the third age. However, special components of self-efficacy turned out to play a part. Willingness to initiate behavior emerged as a strong predictor for taking on educational activities, as was persistence in the face of adversity for being active as a volunteer. In the discussion possibilities were looked at fpr how better to match productive activities in later life to personal dispositions.


Author(s):  
Regina Duarte Benevides de Barros ◽  
Adriana Miranda de Castro

Resumo: O presente trabalho objetiva desnaturalizar a categoria da terceira idade. A partir da revisão bibliográfica de alguns autores importantes no campo da Gerontologia e no diálogo com Foucault, Deleuze e Guattari argumentamos que a produção desta subjetividade "novo velho" articula-se a outros vetores de existencialização presentes no contemporâneo. Palavras-chave: Subjetividade. Modos de existir. Terceira Idade. Velho. Gerontologia. Abstract: This paper argues the third age cathegory like a natural stage of life and shows that it is a historical product. After a bibliographyc revision of some important Gerontology’s authors and using the work of Foucault, Deleuze and Guattari we be able to say that "new old people" represent an artificial form to designate the elderly people which is a production of many factors on contemporary society. Keywords: Subjectification Forces. Life Style. Third Age. Elderly People. Gerontology.


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