How Ageism affects Aging in Place (or vice versa)

I have overheard and participated in conversations where inevitably someone says, “Oh, that makes me feel so old.” “I hate birthdays.” We all likely can empathize with the notion and struggle of aging. Physical tasks get a bit harder to tackle and memory recall slows down. These negative views we have on aging can and do affect how we Age in Place.

A little over a year ago, I lost my last surviving grandparent to congestive heart failure. My mother’s mother, who was a fiery 4-foot 10-inch woman, had a few white strands sprinkled in her dark black hair. My grandmother had spent her last 29 years living independently in her farmhouse. The same home she had resided in for over 60 years.

Memories I have from my time spent with her, aren’t those of complaints about the physical changes she endured, but rather the neighbors, weather and boredom. Although she had justification to do so over the last 29 years with her aging body and failing health. We were fortunate to have the choice, due to her ability, to make minor modifications to her home which enabled her to live there for as long as possible; and she did. 

Why is it as we age, we fear getting older? For many people it is having to move from a place they love and a place where they are surrounded by their community of support. But physical and cognitive capabilities that decrease over time, also affect our happiness and self-esteem to do things on-our-own. 

Time magazine recently had an article whose subject caught my attention, “How Ageism Negatively Affects Older People’s Health.” It touches on biases that society has on older persons and their health. The staggering numbers that were most concerning was that 96% of the studies conducted found evidence of adverse effects of ageism on our older population in every single country studied. 

I found the article’s resource from PLOS ONE. PLOS ONE’s research “Global reach of ageism on older person’s health: A systemic review” was published earlier this year. Their findings were categorized into 11 measures and organized into 2 key areas – structural, which are factors beyond our control, and individual, which are our own perceptions and choices.

A couple structural factors were having resources, including medical services rationed due to ones’ age, and limiting work opportunities.

Four of the seven individual factors were (1) compromised social relationships, (2) mental illness, (3) cognitive impairment, and (4) physical illness. All of which, can negatively affect one’s own perception of themselves. Outside factors can also increase those negative perceptions of aging. An intriguing and disappointing study, to which one would ask, cannot all of these factors be avoidable? 

While several factors are societal in nature, some of these can relate to our physical environment. Why is it so expensive to adapt our homes and places we visit for those aging and experiencing decreased physical abilities? It’s a question for any age group. But also, why can’t a home be designed from initial concept up through future life changes? 

We all gladly adapt our homes for the arrival of babies, placing locks on cabinets and door handles. Then removing them once a child knows well enough to leave those dangers alone. And then a couple decades down the road we are changing the cabinet handles and door handles again for our own ease of use and aged physical ability. But, the opportunity of getting older and quite frankly living longer is not met with equal cheer or excitement. It’s met more with disappointment and resistance to change. We have to choose to leave our homes or neighborhoods to find a place that is safer for our changing physical and mental needs.    

It is, without a doubt, important to change our perception of aging and “roll with it” as my Grandmother had, and I think that can happen one attitude at a time. A tangible goal can be to adjust our built environment choices early on to allow for aging in place. There is likely no single ‘catch all’ for individual factors leading to negative perceptions on aging, but perhaps simple changes in standards to relieve some of the factors affecting when, how, and what choices we have to make later on in life. 

In essence, making choices for aging in place a more natural thought process by creating standard features in our everyday environments that reduce the changes we have to make as we age can not only reduce the stress and negative perception but it also can have economic value. Barrier free showers, 36” wide doors, handrails on both sides of each step, and having floor area to maneuver mobility aids within a room are simple, small factors that can be incorporated early on for any home being built today. Aging by no means should be an unhappy journey and removing or alleviating challenges we face down the road within our living environments can make for more physical and cognitive abilities.

Top 5 Items to Consider:

1)     Low- to Zero-threshold height change at Home entry doors and showers

2)     Lever door handles

3)     36-inch wide room doors

4)     Large windows and ample lighting for evening use

5)     Removable cabinets below sinks

Visit these locations for Aging in Place tips: