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Aging and the Aged

Definition

Aging is the process of growing older, a process that includes physical changes and, sometimes, mental changes. "The aged" refers to elderly people, those who have reached an advanced age.

Description

The concept of aging and the aged has changed, as record numbers of people around the world are living longer, a trend expected to continue throughout the twenty-first century and beyond.

The word "elderly" used to refer to an older person, generally someone age 65 or older. At the beginning of the twentieth century, 65 was considered an advanced age. The life expectancy for a baby born in 1900 was 51 years for a girl and 48 years for a boy. That year, approximately one in 25 Americans was over 65.

By the 1930s, legislation set older adults apart from the rest of American society. Social Security laws declared that people had to retire from work by age 65. The ruling affected about 7.5 million people during the 1930s.

At the end of the twentieth century, the older population had increased 10 times since 1900. In 2000, approximately 35 million people age 65 and older accounted for 13% of America's population, according to Older Americans 2000: Key Indicators of Well-Being, a 2000 report from the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging Related Statistics. According to the report, by 2030 70 million Americans will be 65 or older.

Since the late twentieth century, the age group growing fastest in many countries has been the "very old" or the "oldest old." Opinions vary about the age classification for this group. The United States federal government defines this group as people 85 and older. The United Nations (U.N.) classifies people 80 and older in this demographic group.

The oldest age group includes the rapidly increasing number of centenarians, people age 100 or older. In the United States, the number of centenarians is projected to grow from about 60,000 in 2000 to some 2 million by the middle of the twenty-first century.

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