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A Biblical passage that seeks to explain man’s sinful nature reads, “For the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.”

That same passage may well apply to the elderly who wish to remain sexually active during their advanced years but who now have to curb that and the other pleasures of life because their bodies can no longer take it.

This does not mean that sex can no longer be enjoyed by the elderly. If the man and the woman are willing, sex is possible throughout the years and there are reports of men who have active sex lives at 90. A few males have produced children at 97 while women as old as 57 have given birth to normal kids.

Poor health may account for the gradual deterioration of the sex organs leading to impotence. After all, few people live to a ripe old age and fewer still can claim they enjoy good health in their advanced years. One pathologist, who examined more than 20,000 bodies, managed to pick out only 25 people who died “a natural death” or one that was not caused by disease. Continue reading ‘Sex and Old Age’ »

As a society, we share a complicated history with alcohol. During the later part of the 19th century, politicians, women’s groups, and churches banded together to convince lawmakers to outlaw alcohol. In 1919, the U.S. Congress passed the 18th Amendment, making the sale and distribution of alcohol illegal. Alcohol consumption declined but did not prevent illegal use and distribution. In 1933, Prohibition ended and as a result, millions of Americans have made alcohol an important part of their social activity. In the 1960s, researcher E.M. Jellinek reported that excessive and abusive use of alcohol was a disease. Within 10 years, a public effort was launched in the United States to educate people that alcoholism was an illness.

In 1980, the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 3rd refined the definition of alcoholism by differentiating between alcohol abuse and dependence. However, people continue to use the term “alcoholism” when they discuss all forms of “problem drinking,” when in fact alcoholism and abuse have specific clinical definitions. Alcoholism, also known as alcohol dependence, is a chronic, progressive, and potentially a fatal disease. The symptoms are: drinking excessive amounts frequently, inability to control drinking despite medical, psychological, or social complications, increased tolerance for alcohol, and serious withdrawal symptoms when the person stop drinking. Continue reading ‘Alcohol Abuse and the Elderly: The Hidden Population’ »

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