1. Should a person ever seriously consider the following questions?

When will I be old?
What am I going to do when I’m old?
What can I do to live longer?
What can I do to live better for longer?
When should I die?
What will I do when my grandparents, parents, sisters or brothers, spouse, close friends, or even my children die?
Everyone should definitely think about these questions. It’s important to adopt a healthy, happy lifestyle now so you can lower the chance of diseases and health problems when you are older. Old age may not be inevitable, but death is- so why not do everything possible to live well?

2. At what age should someone stop pretending all this isn’t going to happen and start living like it is? The sooner the better. Once you’re in your twenties and thirties, you’ve probably had a pretty good bit of experience with death, whether it be someone you knew personally or just hearing about other people your age passing away. Because you don’t know when you will die, it just makes it that much more important to live life to the absolute fullest.

3. Why do you think it is so difficult for some to accept aging, the possible consequences of unhealthy life practices, one’s own death as well as the unavoidable death of those we love and depend? Because death is a scary concept. Knowing that you or someone you love can die at any moment can be terrifying, especially if you dwell on it too long. As for bad habits in regards to health, I feel like many people see others with the same habits or addictions who are seemingly in good/okay health. They know that eventually there may be consequences to their health, but are so set in their ways it becomes difficult to change.

4. What percentage of Americans are over 65? About one in eight Americans; roughly twelve percent of the population.

5. Older Americans generally have one chronic health problem. Women report more what? Arthritis.

Men report more what? Heart disease and cancer.

6. What is the average life span expectancy for men and women in this country? 78.2 years.

7. After age 45 what are we most at risk for relative to death? Cancer. What about after age 65? Heart disease.

8. What are some reasons women out live men? The female hormone estrogen boosts immunity and protects heart, bone, brain, and blood vessels. Estrogen may also protect against distant metastases in some cancers. Men are also three times more likely to die in accidents.

9. What are the factors which help people reach exceptional longevity, (90 years old)? Maintaining a healthy lifestyle and avoiding or delaying chronic illnesses.

10. Mentally, who retain better function in old age, men or women? Men.

11. The closest thing to an anti-aging pill is what and why? The books lists a lot of reasons. Exercise can slow many changes associated with advancing age, like loss of lean muscle tissue, increase in body fat, and decreased work capacity. Regular exercise is associated with a lower mortality rate, improved physical and mental well-being, and better cognitive function.

12. Exercise can significantly slow many of the changes that come with age. List three. Loss of lean muscle tissue, increase in body fat, and decreased work capacity.

13. What is the most common nutritional disorder in older persons? Obesity.

14. Being obese puts older people at higher risk for at least four health problems. They are: Diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and arthritis.

15. What are the 10 main reasons elderly people do not get adequate amounts of nutrition?

1. Limited income
2. Difficulty getting to stores
3. Chronic illness
4. Medications that interfere with the metabolism of nutrients
5. Problems chewing
6. Poor appetite
7. Inactivity
8. Illness
9. Depression
10. Problems digesting

16. The brain can repair itself. When brain cells (neurons) die, the surrounding cells develop fingers to fill the gaps and establish new connections, or synapses, between