Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1886-02-21
IEALTIlFUL OLD AGE.
STATISTICS BeARtNG UPON Tx
QUESTION OF LONGEVITY
some Of the Requisites for Long ''LIre'-
Changes Which NORMALLY Occur IN
Old Age-How the Homes Are
Affected over Feeding.


Medical Recorl
With every year the average duration.
{ life is increased and We have more old
people On rur hands Naturally. the
,ursiion becomes of increasing interest
low shal We securc hcalthful old agc
ii how can we prnioug m comfort TIL,
rhility!
Some curious information regarding
his sub Cct though more es, ecialIy re-
,ariing what ma, be called "Centenarian
sm. has been published by gentleman
of Syracuse, \. Y who. we are in
formed has collected the histories of 10
30 people that have passed the age of lnC
years According 10 this authority. the
Inied States leads in centenarian
ION cvity, while Connecticut is aheat
among the states. As 10 sex, women. as
to OCCUPATION soldiers. sailors. aud
farmers are the longest lived Among
the professions, 100 ministers. thirty doc.
tors. and ten lawyers reached their cen
tennal
OF more practical and scientific charac.
ter are the statistics regarding longevity
obtained. by The British Collective Investi-
CATION committee These are based upon
over 800 returns, and relate TO persons
who have reached or assed the age Of 81 y
Professor Humphrey. of Cambridge,
has given some interesting deductions
based upon these returns in an Grafton re
Gently delivered before the Medical SOCi
ETY. Of loHdOn- .......-
The first requisite for longevity must be
All inherent quality Of endurance b some
thing which is Unborn and perhaps inner
tied II is noticea ble that the phthisiCal
taint does not necessarisily lessen the ca,
pacitv for longevity Among 500 aged
persons, phthIsIs appeared in fathers.
mothers, brothers. or sisters Of 81. that is.
in about IL per cent In one case both
father aud mother were phthisical.
\ second requisite for long life is free
dom from exposure to casualties 1t is
on this ground. in part that more women
than men reach extreme aye, Other rea.
sons. however. are. perhaps, q greater
natural vita ity. since even in early life
the mortality is less among females than
males. 1t does not seem 70 be proved by
the data collected that short and small
men and women have any advantage over
those who are taller and larger The
average height of old tnglishmen is five
feet six in hes. that of women five feet
|, three inches
Professor Humphrey would limit quite
sharply the Changes which normally
occur in old age They are quantitative
rather than =. ualitstivc There is a dimI.
mutton in material and force with per,
hapS a sight increase in the oily matter
Of the tissues all other changes are
pathological EHE
Among the most marked of senile
changes are those of the bones These
lose in weight. but not necessarily in size.
indeed. they may even increase in size by
a sub pc pcriosteal ossihcation. The interior
of the bones becomes softened and filled
with marrow the walls become thinned
The nds Of the bones are particularly af
fec in this way and hence the liability
OF the bones 10 fracture at these parts
The alveolsr processes waste away. so
that in men above 80 the number of
teeth is only six. while in women it is but
three The cranium generally becomes
thinner and lighter In some cases, how
ever. the skull walls are actually increased
in density and thickness. by the osseous
deposits On the interior Of the brain case
CONTRARY TO the generally received
view, the cartilages Of healthy old people
do not calcify and harden. but remain
elastic. They. however, undergo some
atrophv. which accounts for the decrease
in height
In the same way Professor Humphrey
believes that Qualification Of arteries is not
a process normal or common at advanced
age Among 1872 returns relating TO the
pulse, 1t was found incumpreSsble in only
seventy two In 1872 returns. the arteries
were found knotty in only forty. We
cannot, however. place very much de-
pendence upon such data
The rate OF the heart beat in old age
has been said by some psychologists to be
increased. by others to be diminished
The Collective Investigation shows that
there is not much change From the age
of % to 80 il averages S74 in men, 1S.S
in women. The Inspirations are little
increased in frequency, especially in
women Urinary troubles are q weS
known source Of discomfort and suffering
among old people. They do not. how
ever, necessarily attend the decline of life
Among 151 males from so to So years OF
age. only six had any disease of the pros.
tate or bladder In the next half decade.
however. the proportion was greater
In old people wounds are known either
to heal rapidly or to slough The re-
parative process is often as rapid as in the
young.
Sir Henry Thompson. in a recent arti-
Gle on diet in Relation to Age. has
called attention to the harm that comes
from attempts to overfeed old people.
They are in jured. he truly says by the
solicitous relatives. who think that in
feeding there is sure help for the waning g
strength The old need a light diet 10
correspond with the lessened work and
slower nutrition and waste of their