Common Health Problems with Aging

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HealthWiki > Where Women Have No Doctor > Chapter 8: Growing Older > Common Health Problems with Aging

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In this chapter:

 

In this chapter:

The following pages describe some of the more common health problems as we age. For other problems, like gallbladder problems, heart trouble, stroke, thyroid gland problems, sores on the legs from poor blood flow, and difficulty sleeping, see Where There Is No Doctor or another general medical book. See information on diabetes.

Anemia

Although many people think that anemia is a problem only of the young, it also affects many older people—most often because of poor nutrition or heavy menstrual bleeding.

Heavy or irregular menstrual bleeding

Between the ages of 40 and 50, many people have changes in their menstrual cycles. Some have heavier bleeding, or bleeding that lasts longer.

Heavy menstrual bleeding that continues for months or years can cause anemia.

The most common causes of heavy or longer-lasting menstrual bleeding are:

• hormone changes
• growths in the womb (fibroids or polyps)

Treatment:

More Information

cancer of the womb

• Eat foods every day that are rich in iron, or take iron pills.
• Take 5 to 10 mg medroxyprogesterone acetate once a day for 5 to 10 days. If bleeding has not stopped at the end of 10 days, see a health worker.
• Try to see a health worker for heavy bleeding that lasts more than 3 months, for bleeding in the middle of your menstrual cycle (halfway between 2 menstrual periods), or for bleeding that happens 12 months or more after menopause. A trained health worker will need to provide care. They may do a biopsy and send the tissue to a laboratory to be checked for cancer.

If you have had pain and heavy menstrual bleeding for years, see Chapter 24, “Cancer and Growths.”

Breast lumps

You may find lumps in your breasts. Most breast lumps are not dangerous, but some can be a sign of cancer. The best way to find lumps in your breasts is to examine your breasts yourself.

High blood pressure

Blood pressure higher than 140/90 can cause many problems, like heart disease, kidney disease, and strokes.

All these signs can also be caused by other diseases. For more information, see Where There Is No Doctor or another general medical book.

Signs of dangerously high blood pressure:

• frequent headaches
• dizziness
• ringing sound in the ears

If you visit a health worker for any reason, try to have your blood pressure checked at the same time.

IMPORTANT! High blood pressure at first causes no signs. It should be lowered before danger signs develop. If you know you are at risk for high blood pressure, or are concerned that you have high blood pressure, get your blood pressure checked regularly.

Treatment and prevention:

More Information

eating for good health

• Do some physical activity, like a brisk walk, every day.
• Avoid foods with a lot of fat, sugar, or salt.
• If you smoke or chew tobacco, try to quit.
• Reduce stress and practice deep breathing.

For very high blood pressure, you may need to take medicine.

Problems passing urine and stool

As you grow older, you may have problems with leaking urine or difficulty passing stool. These may be embarrassing to speak about, but health workers commonly talk about them with older people. Do not suffer alone. See a health worker.

Urine problems are often caused by a weakness in the muscles in the bladder and around the urethra (urine tube). The “squeezing exercise” helps strengthen some of these muscles.

Older people may also have difficulty passing stool because digestion slows as we age. It helps to drink a lot of liquids, to eat foods with a lot of fiber (such as whole grain breads or vegetables), and to exercise. Also, to help push the stool out during a bowel movement, you can put 2 fingers into your vagina and push toward your back.

Fallen womb (prolapsed uterus)

More Information

preventing fallen womb

Sometimes, as a person gets older, the muscles that hold up the womb become weak. The womb falls down into the vagina. Part of it may even stick out between the folds of the vulva. In very bad cases, the whole womb can be pushed out of the body when the person passes stool, coughs, or lifts something heavy.

A fallen womb is usually caused by injury during childbirth— especially if someone has had many babies or babies born close together. Pushing too early during labor, or if the birth attendant pushes on the belly from the outside, can also cause prolapse. But both aging and lifting heavy things can make it worse. The signs often appear after menopause, when muscles become weaker.

Signs:

• You need to pass urine often, or it is difficult to pass urine, or urine leaks out of your body.
• You have pain in your lower back.
• You feel as though something is coming out of your vagina.
• All of the above signs disappear when you lie down.

Treatment:

The “squeezing exercise” can make the muscles around the womb and vagina stronger. If you have been doing this exercise every day for 3 or 4 months and it does not help, talk to a health worker. You may need a vaginal pessary, a piece of rubber shaped like a ring, that you put high up in the vagina to keep the womb in place. If this does not work, you may need an operation.

If pessaries are not available where you live, ask older women in your community what they use for this problem.

Swollen veins in the legs (varicose veins)

Varicose veins are veins that are swollen and sometimes painful. They are more likely in older age, if the person had many pregnancies, if the person is overweight, or if they sit or stand in one place for long amounts of time.

Treatment:

There is no medicine for varicose veins, but the following can help:

This woman is keeping her leg up as she sews.

• Try to walk or move your legs at least 20 minutes every day.
• Try not to spend much time standing or sitting with your feet down, or with your legs crossed.
• If you have to sit or stand for a long time, try to take breaks to lie down with your feet above the level of your heart. Do this as often as possible during the day.
• When you have to stand for a long time, try to walk in place.
• Sleep with your feet up on pillows or on a bundle of cloth.
• To help hold in the veins, use elastic stockings, elastic bandages, or cloth that is not wrapped too tightly. Be sure to take them off at night.

Back pain

More Information

back exercises

Back pain is often caused by a lifetime of heavy lifting and carrying.

It can often be helped by:

• Exercising every day to strengthen and stretch the muscles in the back. Organizing people to dance or exercise together can be fun.
• Asking younger members of your family to help you, if you must continue to do hard work.

Joint pain (Arthritis)

You may have joint pain caused by arthritis. Usually it cannot be cured completely, but the following treatment may help.

More Information

exercises to prevent contractures

More Information

medicine for pain

Treatment:

• Rest the part of your body that hurts.
• Soak cloths in hot water and place them on the painful areas. Be careful not to burn your skin. (Some people with joint pain lose their sense of feeling in the skin on the painful areas.)
• Keep your joints moving by gently rubbing and stretching them every day.
• Take a mild pain medicine. Aspirin helps relieve pain. The dose for arthritis is higher than it is for other pain. Take 900 mg 4 times a day (but no more than 4 g per day) with food or a large glass of water. Ibuprofen also works well. Take 400 mg 4 to 6 times a day.

IMPORTANT! If your ears start to ring or you start to bruise easily, take less aspirin. Also, if you are having a lot of bleeding from your vagina, you should not take aspirin.

Weak bones are a major cause of disability for older women.

Both exercise and calcium make the bones stronger.

Weak bones (osteoporosis)

After menopause, your body makes less estrogen, and this weakens your bones. Weak bones break easily and heal slowly.

How you eat and move your body can make a difference.

Strengthen your bones by:

• exercising daily for 20 to 30 minutes. Try yoga or walking.
• eating foods rich in calcium.
• avoiding alcohol

To prevent falls, injury, and broken bones:

• Avoid walking on slippery or wet ground.
• Use handrails wherever possible.
• Use a cane when needed.
• Keep your feet warm and dry in the winter. Damp, cold air can make your pain worse and lead to accidents or inactivity.

Problems with seeing and hearing

As we get older, many of us are not able to see and hear as well as we used to. Problems with seeing or hearing make accidents more likely and make it more difficult to work outside the home and take part in community life.

Problems with seeing

After the age of 40, changes inside your eyes can cause problems in seeing close object clearly. Eye glasses will help.

Watch out for signs of too much pressure from fluid in the eye (glaucoma). This can damage the inside of the eye and lead to blindness. Acute glaucoma starts suddenly, with severe headache or pain in the eye. The eye will also feel hard to the touch. Chronic glaucoma usually is not painful, but a person will begin to notice they cannot see as well and can only see straight ahead. If possible, get your eyes checked at a health center for these problems. For more information, see Where There Is No Doctor or another general medical book.

Problems with hearing

Many people over the age of 50 have hearing loss. A person who cannot hear well may be left out of conversations and social activities.

If you notice that you are losing your hearing, here are some things you can do:

• Sit facing the person you are talking to.
• Ask family members and friends to speak slowly and clearly. But tell them not to shout. Shouting can make words even more difficult to understand.
• Turn off radios or televisions when participating in conversations.
• Ask a health worker if your hearing loss can be treated with medicines or surgery or by using a hearing aid.

Anxiety and depression

Older women may become anxious or depressed because their role in the family and community has changed, because they feel alone or worried about the future, or because they have painful health problems. For more information on anxiety and depression, see Chapter 27, “Mental Health.”

Mental confusion (dementia)

Some older people have difficulty remembering things and thinking clearly. If these problems become severe, it is called dementia.

Signs:

• difficulty remembering or concentrating, or getting lost in the middle of a conversation.
• repeating the same thing over and over. The person will not remember having said the same thing before.
• difficulty remembering how to do daily tasks, such as dressing or preparing food.
• behavior changes. The person may become irritable, angry, or afraid, or do sudden, unexpected things.

These signs are caused by changes in the brain. They usually develop over a long period of time. If the signs begin suddenly, there may be other causes, such as too much medicine in the body (toxicity), a serious infection, malnutrition, severe dehydration, a bladder or kidney infection, or depression. The confusion will often go away if these problems are treated.

When is dinner?

Oh dear, we just ate.

Are you hungry, Mama?

Do not argue with someone who has dementia about things they forget.

Treatment:

There is no cure for dementia. Caring for someone with dementia can be very hard on family members. It helps to share the responsibility of caregiving. Get support from people outside the family when possible.

To help a person with dementia, try to:

• make their surroundings as safe as possible.
• keep daily routines regular.
• keep some familiar objects around the house.
• talk in a calm, slow voice. Give the person plenty of time to answer.
• set clear limits without a lot of choices. Ask questions that can be answered “yes” or “no.”

This page was updated:22 Jan 2024