A problem that concerns older adults more than the rest of the population is falls. Some of the reasons that falling is riskier for an older person are changes in both soft tissue like the organs, and hard tissue like bone. My Girl Scout troop is tired of me harping on the issue but I tell them frequently that they only have till age twenty-five to build their bone bank. After that they start to withdraw calcium and lose bone strength. For an earlier generation that may have avoided whole milk for weight control, had a cultural avoidance of high impact athletics for girls, and have other risk factors for osteoporosis, a fall can mean broken bones that require joint replacement or extended healing time. Another complication is the loss of water in soft tissue causes the organs, including the brain to lose volume. I don’t mean your intelligence shrinks, but the brain doesn’t fit as tightly in the skull anymore. If you bounce the skull, the brain has more room to bounce around in. There may be slow bleeding, sometimes related to medication to prevent strokes and heart attacks. I’ve known of older adults with a head injury to get symptoms weeks after a fall because it took that long for the bleeding to cause problems. Early medical treatment is the best way to prevent long term problems.
There are some steps you can take to avoid falls. The Academy of Family Physicians recommends removing hazards like cords and rugs and keeping things lit at night. Elder friendly design like low shelves and hand rails help too. An often-overlooked risk is new eyeglasses, especially bifocals that can confuse the depth perception on stairs and uneven surfaces.
If you know an older adult try to offer to change light bulbs, air conditioner filters and do other chores that require climbing and reaching to prevent this kind of problem. If you are an older adult and have been told to use a cane or other assistive device, it’s a good idea to follow the advice. And a nice walking stick can be a very dapper accessory.