Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Alzheimer’s Turning Point pp 151–168Cite as

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Advanced Aging

  • Chapter
  • First Online:

  • 1065 Accesses

Abstract

A recent news item buried on page 12 of the Daily Mail in London tells of a 75-year-old British nurse who travelled to Basel, Switzerland, seeking assisted suicide which is legal in that country. The news story would not be news if the explanation for this lady’s choice of ending her life had not been so bizarre. Although this nurse was in relatively good health for her age, it turns out that her former occupation was in geriatric care and she believed she was better off dead than eventually becoming one of her frail elderly patients. This story is an extreme view of how many people view their so-called golden years, a stage of life loosely connected with retirement from active work. Very little can be drawn from an event where a healthy, elderly individual wishes to die, especially in this case since the nurse in question probably had access to scheduled drugs that could have easily ended her life without having to travel to Switzerland. But therein may lie the clue.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   79.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD   99.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD   109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Andrieu S, Coley N, Lovestone S, Aisen PS, Vellas B. Prevention of sporadic Alzheimer’s disease: lessons learned from clinical trials and future directions. Lancet Neurol. 2015. pii: S1474-4422(15)00153-2.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Ambrose C. Muscle weakness during aging: a deficiency state involving declining angiogenesis. Ageing Res Rev. 2015. pii: S1568-1637(15)00033-1.

    Google Scholar 

  3. James PA, Oparil S, Carter BL, Cushman WC, Dennison-Himmelfarb C, Handler J, Lackland DT, LeFevre ML, MacKenzie TD, Ogedegbe O, Smith SC Jr, Svetkey LP, Taler SJ, Townsend RR, Wright JT Jr, Narva AS, Ortiz E. 2014 evidence-based guideline for the management of high blood pressure in adults: report from the panel members appointed to the eighth joint national committee (JNC 8). JAMA. 2014;311(5):507–20.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Qiu C, von Strauss E, Fastbom J, Winblad B, Fratiglioni L. Low blood pressure and risk of dementia in the Kungsholmen project: a 6-year follow-up study. Arch Neurol. 2003;60(2):223–8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Sando SB, Melquist S, Cannon A, Hutton M, Sletvold O, Saltvedt I, White LR, Lydersen S, Aasly J. Risk-reducing effect of education in Alzheimer’s disease. Int J of Geriatr Psychiatry. 2008;23:1156–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Kliegel M, Zimprich D, Rott C. Life-long intellectual activities mediate the predictive effect of early education on cognitive impairment in centenarians: a retrospective study. Aging Ment Health. 2004;8:430–7.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Christensen H, Hofer SM, Mackinnon AJ, Korten AE, Jorm AF, Henderson AS. Age is no kinder to the better educated: absence of an association investigated using latent growth techniques in a community sample. Psychol Med. 2001;31(1):15–28.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Mackinnon A, Christensen H, Hofer SM, Korten A, Jorm AF. Use it and still lose it? The association between activity and cognitive performance established using latent growth techniques in a community sample. Aging Neuropsychol Cognition. 2003;10:215–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. de la Torre JC. Is Alzheimer’s disease a neurodegenerative or a vascular disorder? Data, dogma, and dialectics. Lancet Neurol. 2004;3(3):184–90.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Vemuri P, Lesnick TG, Przybelski SA, Machulda M, Knopman DS, Mielke MM, Roberts RO, Geda YE, Rocca WA, Petersen RC, Jack CR Jr. Association of lifetime intellectual enrichment with cognitive decline in the older population. JAMA Neurol. 2014;71(8):1017–24.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  11. Wilson RS, Segawa E, Boyle PA, Bennett DA. Influence of late-life cognitive activity on cognitive health. Neurology. 2012;78(15):1123–9.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  12. Lachman ME, Agrigoroaei S, Murphy C, Tun PA. Frequent cognitive activity compensates for education differences in episodic memory. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2010;18(1):4–10.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Aaslid R. Visually evoked dynamic blood flow response of the human cerebral circulation. Stroke. 1987;18:771–5.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Roland PE, Eriksson L, Stone-Elander S, Widen L. Does mental activity change the oxidative metabolism of the brain? J Neurosci. 1987;7(8):2373–89.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Selye H. The Stress of Life. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1956.

    Google Scholar 

  16. de la Torre JC. Alzheimer’s disease is incurable but preventable. J Alzheimers Dis. 2010;20:861–70.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Gomez-Isla T, Price JL, McKeel DW Jr, Morris JC, Growdon JH, Hyman BT. Profound loss of layer II entorhinal cortex neurons occurs in very mild Alzheimer’s disease. J Neurosci. 1996;16:4491–500.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Grafman J, Salazar AM. The ebb and flow of traumatic brain injury research. Handb Clin Neurol. 2015;128:795–802.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Humphry D. FinalExit. 3rd ed. New York: Dell Publishing; 2002.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA

    Jack C. de la Torre

Authors
  1. Jack C. de la Torre
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jack C. de la Torre .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

de la Torre, J.C. (2016). The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Advanced Aging. In: Alzheimer’s Turning Point. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-34057-9_13

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-34057-9_13

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-34056-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-34057-9

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation