Senior citizens are an important part of our society. At an older age, they need special care and affection from the family members. Here we discuss why we need to take care of our older:
Reasons why we need to take care of elder people:
Sacrifices of our parents:
- Our parents spent their time, energy, and money on bringing up and wellbeing. They worked hard to give us the life we have today.
Unconditional love and support:
- Parents are the only ones who love us unconditionally. They are the ones who want us to see more success and happier in our lives.
Prayers and blessings of parents:
- In the times of hardships and sufferings that we face in our daily lives, there are lots of prayers elders that save us from falling into darkness.
Quality time:
- Older people become more sensitive at this stage. they need special care and affection from us. They want to spend some quality life with family. Old age above 65 years desired a friendly environment with children and grandchildren.
Giving them affection and sympathy:
This is the golden time we can show affection and sympathy to elders by understanding their needs and emotions. As we are also going older one day, we should set a good example of treating elders compassionately that we can expect from our children treated in the same way at an older age.
Role of older people in our lives:
Older are the pillars of the family;
Elders are the pillars of the family. They share a special bond with each member of the family. They play an important role to make the family members connected.
Emotional support and guidance:
- They provide us emotional support and guidance in every step of life. Their counseling keeps us motivated in achieving our goals.
Experiences and skills of older people:
- We can learn from their experiences, skills, and life events because they have spent a big part of their lives achieving and polishing these skills
Importance of knowledge and wisdom of elders:
- Many types of research have proven that wisdom comes with experience so that elders are wiser because of their knowledge
- Elders have better financial understandings as they exhibit greater patience in dealings
- They have rich procedural and factual knowledge.
- Elder people show sympathetic and compassionate behaviors to others.
The population of elder people around the world:
About 703 million persons aged 65 years or above in the world were in 2019. this population is expected to be double in 2050.
In eastern and southeastern Asia Latin America and the Caribbean, population aging has been fastest.
Prospective old-age dependency is rising more slowly than the old-age dependency ratio in all regions of the world.
The statistic shows the total population in Japan from 2014 to 2017, with projections up until 2024. In 2017, the total population of Japan amounted to around 126.75 million inhabitants. See the figures for the population of South Korea for comparison.
This statistic presents the results of a survey on the perceived percentage of the population over 65 years old by 2050 in South Korea as of 2018. According to data published by Ipsos, South Korean respondents overestimated the proportion of their population who will be over 65 in 2050. On average, the respondents thought that around 46 out of every 100 people in South Korea will be over 65 years old in 2050, when the actual share of the elderly population, according to projections by the World Bank, will be around 35 percent in South Korea.
This statistic presents the results of a survey on the perceived percentage of the population over 65 years old by 2050 in China as of 2018. According to data published by, Chinese respondents overestimated the proportion of their population who will be over 65 in 2050. On average, the respondents thought that around 42 out of every 100 people in China will be over 65 years old in 2050, when the actual share of the elderly population, according to projections by the World Bank, will be around 26 percent in China.
This statistic presents the results of a survey on the perceived percentage of the population over 65 years old by 2050 in Hong Kong as of 2018. According to data published by that around 54 out of every 100 people in Hong Kong will be over 65 years old in 2050, when the actual share of the elderly population, according to projections by the World Bank, will be around 34 percent in Hong Kong.
Problems and issues of the older population:
With the increasing age, older people face many challenges with poor health. They need assistance in doing their house chores. There are such big problems that elder people face in their daily lives:
General health problems:
Common health-related issues include vision loss, hearing loss and cataracts, COPD, memory loss, depression, and low self-esteem, urinary incontinence, and pain.
Falls are one of the common problems in the elderly population
Chronic health-related issues:
The geriatrics population faces many diseases like hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, stroke, and Alzheimer’s disease, and osteoarthritis are also prevalent among the elderly.
Mental health issues:
Elders not only suffer from physical issues but also suffers from mental disorders. Major health issues include dementia, depression, loneliness, anxiety disorders, and psychotic disorders.
Weakness:
With the increasing age, the bone mineral density of bones decreases results in weakness of bones. Osteoporosis and osteoarthritis are the major manifestations of older age. Bone and muscle weakness results in dependence on others.
Low self-esteem and confidence:
As they are dependent on other people for small needs, they develop slow self-esteem. They have poor urine and bladder control that’s why they become uncomfortable in public places.
Family issues:
Family issues include conflicts on small things, insolate behaviors, feelings of isolation and substance abuse, physical abuse, etc. Financial and property issues also keep them tense.
Regards
AMNA KHAN
