Q&A Hero

Q: Critics point out that studies on the effectiveness of antioxidants in slowing the aging process thus far have been so-called population studies that are _____ in nature. A. hypothetical B. longitudinal C. experimental D.

Q: Although there are differences in the quality of care in nursing homes and other extended-care facilities in the United States, more than _____ are considered to be seriously deficient. A. one-quarter B. one-third C. one-half D.

Q: In a classic study, Judith Rodin and Ellen Langer found that an important factor related to health, and even survival, in a nursing home is the: A. provision of emergency geriatric care. B. availability of trained staff to care for the oldest-olds. C. patient's feelings of control and self-determination. D.

Q: _____ are theorized to act much like a fire extinguisher, helping to neutralize free-radical activity and reduce stress caused by damage to cells. A. Ketone bodies B. Antihistamines C. Antibiotics D.

Q: Which of the following contributes to harmful weight loss, especially in women? A. Decrease in the use of protein supplements B. Use of calorie supplements between meals C. Decrease in snacking between meals D.

Q: Which of the following observations about the connection between weight and mortality is true? A. Men who were underweight lived longer. B. Women who were 20 pounds overweight did not present increased risk of mortality. C. Women who were 20 or more pounds underweight lived longer. D.

Q: Which of the following is NOT part of the group of vitamin supplements called antioxidants? A. Vitamin C B. Vitamin E C. Beta-carotene D.

Q: Which of the following best describes the action of antioxidants? A. They generate more WBC to fight off pathogens. B. They counteract the cell damage caused by free radicals. C. They increase the hemoglobin count in the circulatory system. D.

Q: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2003) has identified _____ among older adults as the "invisible epidemic" in the United States. A. substance abuse B. clinical depression C. bipolar disorder D.

Q: Stuart is 67 years old, widowed, and lives alone. Recently, he has started drinking too much and frequently engages in binge drinking. Stuart's example presents a case of _____. A. geriatric alcoholism B. manic depressive alcoholism C. late-onset alcoholism D.

Q: Which of the following is true about substance abuse? A. In 2010, the percentage of individuals who engaged in binge drinking increased considerably in the middle and late adulthood years. B. Substance abuse among older adults is an "invisible epidemic" in the United States. C. The frequency of binge drinking (defined as four or more drinks for women and five or more drinks for men on one occasion in the past 30 days) was lowest among older adults. D.

Q: Evidence is increasing that _____ plays a key role in red wine's health benefits. A. resperidol B. rohypnol C. resveratrol D.

Q: Exercise can reduce the risk of all of the following conditions EXCEPT: A. type 1 diabetes. B. stroke. C. osteoporosis. D.

Q: A recent study of 70- to 75-year-olds revealed that a higher body mass index (BMI) was associated with all-cause mortality risk, with the greatest risk occurring for death due to: A. kidney disease. B. cardiovascular disease. C. cancer. D.

Q: Selena walks with a marked stoop now that she is old. This is most likely due to _____. A. bursitis B. osteoporosis C. arthritis D.

Q: Women are especially vulnerable to _____, which is the leading cause of broken bones in women. A. osteoporosis B. arthritis C. osteomalacia D.

Q: All of the following are the recommendations for preventing osteoporosis in middle-aged women EXCEPT: A. eating foods rich in calcium. B. avoiding smoking. C. taking a drug such as Fosamax. D.

Q: _____ are the ninth leading cause of death among older adults. A. Suicides B. Homicides C. Unintended accidents D.

Q: _____ are the leading cause of injury deaths among adults who are 65 years and older. A. Household fires B. Falls C. Motor vehicle accidents D.

Q: _____ involves an extensive loss of bone tissue. A. Arteriosclerosis B. Diabetes C. Arthritis D.

Q: Which of the following is the leading cause of death in the 75 to 84 and 85 and over age groups? A. Cardiovascular disease B. Kidney disease C. Cancer D.

Q: Among ethnic groups in the United States, _____ have high death rates for stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, and female breast cancer. A. African Americans B. Asian Americans C. Latinos D.

Q: Mrs. Hernandez has considerable pain and swelling in her wrists, fingers, and knees. It is becoming very difficult for her to maintain her usual routines as her stiffness increases. Mrs. Hernandez has _____. A. arteriosclerosis B. diabetes C. arthritis D.

Q: Which of the following statements about arthritis is NOT true? A. There is no known cure for arthritis. B. Exercise is not beneficial for people with arthritis. C. Symptoms of arthritis can be reduced with medications. D.

Q: _____ diseases have a slow onset and a long duration, and are rare in early adulthood. A. Acute B. Chronic C. Terminal D.

Q: Compared with elderly men, elderly women are less likely to have: A. arthritis. B. hypertension. C. visual problems. D.

Q: _____ is the most common chronic disorder in late adulthood. A. Glaucoma B. Diabetes C. Arthritis D.

Q: Which of the following chronic conditions has been associated with the greatest limitations on work? A. Asthma B. Diabetes C. Arthritis D.

Q: Felicia is an American between 65 and 74 years of age. Her doctor should be most concerned about her developing _____, the leading cause of death for her age group. A. cancer B. influenza C. lung disease D.

Q: Lung capacity drops _____ between the ages of 20 and 80, even when disease is not present. A. 20 percent B. 40 percent C. 50 percent D.

Q: Which of the following is observed in older adults? A. Lung capacity increases B. Lungs become more elastic C. The diaphragm strengthens D.

Q: For older adults, with a partner who reported not having sex, the main reason was: A. poor physical health. B. depression. C. lack of privacy. D.

Q: Which of the following is a major challenge for sexually interested older women (70 years or older)? A. Male partner's physical health B. Lack of sex education C. Physical health of older women D.

Q: Which of the following is true of the effects of aging on human sexual performance? A. Orgasm becomes less frequent in females with age, occurring in every second to third attempt rather than every time. B. More direct stimulation usually is needed to produce an erection. C. A large-scale study of individuals from 57 to 85 years of age revealed that sexually active life expectancy was longer for women than men. D.

Q: Which of the following statements is true of smell and taste in the elderly? A. There is no sign of decline in these senses as we age. B. Older adults show a greater decline in their sense of taste than in their sense of smell. C. Smell and taste decline less in healthy older adults than in their less healthy counterparts. D.

Q: Which of the following areas will be less sensitive to touch in older adults? A. Wrists B. Ankles C. Shoulder D.

Q: A recent national survey revealed that 63 percent of adults _____ had a hearing loss defined as an inability to hear sounds at frequencies higher than 25 dB with their better ear. A. 70 years and older B. 65 years and older C. 105 years and older D.

Q: Which of the following is NOT true of older adults' response to hearing loss? A. Older adults often don't recognize that they have a hearing problem. B. Older adults deny that they have a hearing problem. C. Older adults accept loss of hearing as a part of growing old. D.

Q: A study revealed that hearing loss was associated with a reduction in cognitive function in _____. A. infants B. older adults C. young women D.

Q: What is the leading cause of blindness in older adults? A. Glaucoma B. Cataracts C. Macular degeneration D.

Q: Cigarette smoking contributes to _____, a condition in which individuals may have relatively normal peripheral vision but may be unable to see clearly what is right in front of them. A. glaucoma B. cataracts C. macular degeneration D.

Q: Lydia has been diagnosed with early macular degeneration. Which of the following treatments is her doctor most likely to recommend? A. Eye drops B. Removal of the lens of her eye C. Prescription for glasses D.

Q: A recent national survey revealed that _____ of adults 70 years and older had a hearing loss defined as an inability to hear sounds at frequencies higher than 25 dB with their better ear. A. 15 percent B. 28 percent C. 50 percent D.

Q: Which of the following is linked to more rapid onset of hearing difficulties in older adults? A. Defects in mitochondria and declining levels of testosterone B. Inadequate nourishment and a lifetime of smoking C. High blood pressure and resistant hypertension D.

Q: The vision of older adults can be affected by age-related changes. One of these changes, which can make steps or street curbs difficult to manage, is a decline in: A. eye-hand coordination. B. depth perception. C. ocular elasticity. D.

Q: Which of the following is NOT one of the three major diseases that can impair the vision of older adults? A. Myopia B. Cataract C. Glaucoma D.

Q: Gisela is suffering from a condition that involves thickening of the lenses of her eyes. This causes her vision to become cloudy or distorted. Identify the condition that Gisela is suffering from. A. Glaucoma B. Nearsightedness C. Macular degeneration D.

Q: Which of the following is a risk factor in the development of cataracts? A. Cardiovascular disease B. Diabetes C. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease D.

Q: Jake has been diagnosed with a condition characterized by damage to the optic nerve due to buildup of fluid in the eye. So Jake is suffering from _____. A. glaucoma B. cataracts C. retinopathy D.

Q: Cynthia is 91 years old. Doctors have found that Cynthiss optic nerves have been damaged due to accumulation of fluid in the eye. Cynthia is worried that she will lose her vision, but the doctor has told her that her condition can be treated with eye drops. The disease that has marred Cynthia's vision is: A. glaucoma. B. cataracts. C. retinopathy. D.

Q: In which part of the color spectrum is the loss of color vision most likely to occur? A. Red-orange-yellow B. Green-blue-violet C. Yellow-violet-indigo D.

Q: Which of the following is a result of declining color vision in the green-blue-violet part of the color spectrum? A. Difficulty in accurately matching closely related colors. B. Difficulty in distinguishing between contrasting colors. C. Difficulty in seeing colored objects at a distance. D.

Q: The greatest decline in visual perception beyond 75, and especially beyond 85, involves: A. tolerance for glare. B. dark adaptation. C. area of the visual field. D.

Q: Color vision declines with age due to: A. the yellowing of the lens of the eye. B. a decline in the effectiveness of the cones to discriminate colors. C. cataracts preventing certain parts of the light spectrum from entering the lens of the eye. D.

Q: In late adulthood: A. both men and women get shorter. B. men get shorter, but women do not get shorter. C. women get shorter, but men do not get shorter. D.

Q: Data from the Nun Study have pointed all of the following EXCEPT: A. positive emotions in early adulthood that were associated to longevity. B. stimulating the brain with intellectual activity that keeps neurons healthy and alive. C. negative emotions in early adulthood that were linked to longevity. D.

Q: In terms of percentage of total weight, which of following increases as a person reaches late adulthood? A. Muscle B. Bone density C. Fat D.

Q: Regular _____ has been shown to decrease the onset of physical disability in older adults. A. weight training B. walking C. massage D.

Q: Why does night driving become especially difficult in late adulthood? A. Due to diminishing sensitivity to contrasts and reduced tolerance for glare. B. Due to the decline in color vision. C. Due to increased tolerance for glare and increased sensitivity to contrasts. D.

Q: At 60 years of age, the retina receives only about _____ as much light as it did at 20 years of age. A. one-half B. one-third C. one-quarter D.

Q: The _____ is involved in memory. A. hippocampus B. amygdala C. prefrontal cortex D.

Q: The _____ is involved in smell. A. hippocampus B. amygdala C. olfactory bulb D.

Q: According to a study by Coleman that compared the brains of adults at various ages, from the forties through the seventies, the: A. growth of dendrites increased. B. growth of dendrites decreased. C. number of axons increased. D.

Q: Because of a decline in the functioning of the immune systems, vaccination against _____ is especially important in older adults. A. acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) B. influenza C. osteoarthritis D.

Q: _____ are the most noticeable changes in physical appearance in late adulthood. A. Loss of hair and brittle nails B. Osteoporosis and osteoarthritis C. Reduction in height and weight D.

Q: The neurotransmitter _____, which helps to control the preciseness of the signal sent from one neuron to another, decreases with aging. A. serotonin B. dopamine C. GABA D.

Q: Which of the following is a region of the adult human brain where neurogenesis has been documented? A. Amygdala B. Hippocampus C. Prefrontal cortex D.

Q: Identify the region of the human brain in which neurogenesis has been documented in adults. A. Amygdala B. Hypothalamus C. Prefrontal cortex D.

Q: Reductions in _____ have been linked to small declines in memory functioning and to the severe memory loss associated with Alzheimer disease. A. gamma-aminobutyric acid B. dopamine C. acetylcholine D.

Q: Severe reductions in the production of dopamine have been linked with: A. Parkinson disease. B. Alzheimer disease. C. dementia other than Alzheimer disease. D.

Q: Prolonged, elevated levels of stress-related hormones have been associated with all of the following conditions EXCEPT _____. A. hypertension B. cancer C. diabetes D.

Q: On average, the adult brain loses _____ percent of its weight between the ages of 20 and 90. A. 1 to 5 B. 5 to 10 C. 10 to 20 D.

Q: A study by Shan & others found that the volume of the brain was _____ in older adults than younger adults. A. 20 percent more B. 15 percent less C. 25 percent less D.

Q: With age: A. brain weight decreases; brain volume does not decrease. B. brain volume decreases; brain weight does not decrease. C. both brain weight and brain volume decrease. D.

Q: Which of the following is NOT a primary reason for the lowered brain volume of older adults compared to that of younger adults? A. Shrinkage of neurons B. Reduced length of axons C. Lower numbers of synapses D.

Q: The _____ is one area that shrinks more than others with aging. A. prefrontal cortex B. amygdala C. hypothalamus D.

Q: Defects in mitochondria have been linked with all of the following conditions EXCEPT: A. cardiovascular disease. B. arthritis. C. decline in liver function. D.

Q: Which of the following is a similarity among the cellular clock, free-radical, and mitochondrial theories? A. They attribute the process of aging to hormonal changes. B. They attempt to explain aging at the cellular level. C. They discount the role of genetics in aging. D.

Q: When faced with external challenges such as stressful situations, the human body adapts by altering internal physiological processes in a process known as _____. A. allostasis B. homeostasis C. peristalsis D.

Q: Continuous accommodation of physiological systems in response to stressors may result in _____, a wearing down of body systems due to constant activity. A. reverse peristalsis B. homeostatic load C. allostatic load D.