Given a strong family history in aerospace, news in the field tends to catch my eye. Last Sunday, Ed Dwight, a 90 year-old retired AirForce pilot broke records as America’s first black astronaut and the oldest to go to space, beating William Shatner’s age by a few months.
He was recommended by the Air Force for the 1963 astronaut class and despite being championed by President John Kennedy, Blacks were not allowed into the program until 1978. His comment on his 2024 flight, “…. I am ecstatic.”
While also a commentary on the slowness of our march to equality, in this instance I was more taken by his age and passion.
There are so many people of inspiration. Nola Ochs achieved her dream of a college education, receiving her Bachelors at age 95 and Master’s at 98. Her comment, “There are so many things out there we don’t know about”. In 2022, Mathea Allensmith, a retired ophthalmologist from Hawaii, became the oldest person to finish a marathon at age 92. Yoga instructor Phyllis Sues published her book, 20 Tips to Change Your Life” before passing at 98. Her primary tip, “love what you do”.
Willie Nelson and James Earl Jones, both in their 90s, continue to inspire. Jones comments, “I feel young at heart, and I love to work and will continue to act for as long as I can.” Clint Eastwood’s comment at 91 says it all, “I don’t look like I did at 20, so what?” “That just means there are more interesting guys you can play.”
Why bring this up? There are so many inspiring people, yet ageism persists and this election is not helping with two candidates close in age and both parties mongering fear of advanced age.
The nation’s 90-and-older population nearly tripled over the past three decades, reaching 1.9 million in 2010, according to a report by the U.S. Census Bureau and supported by the National Institute on Aging. Over the next four decades, this population is projected to more than quadruple.
We seem to think long life means cognitive impairment. Not necessarily.
A nationally representative Health and Retirement Study from researchers at the University of Columbia working with University of Michigan scientists mapped dementia and mild cognitive impairment levels across the age decades. While incidence of these conditions increases with age, it showed that if we’re fortunate enough to live to our 90’s, 65% will show no impairment.
Among those developing dementia and mild cognitive impairment, prevalence was stronger in persons with lower levels of education, and those of Black or Hispanic origin; likely attributable to systemic inequities in access to health and education.
“The really important thing to keep in mind is that the older brain’s a wiser brain,” said Earl Miller, a professor of neuroscience at MIT, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Laura Carstensen, a professor of psychology and director of the Stanford Center on Longevity agrees and points out that when you look at persons of advanced age as a group, you find more emotional stability and a decline in negative emotions. While of course there are outliers, she adds her dismay at the tenor of the national discussion about aging political leaders. She laments, “The ageism that underlies these discussions is remarkable.”
We’ve had many political leaders serving with strength and integrity well into their 80’s and some 90’s. Ruth Bader Ginsberg was a respected force until she passed in office at age 87. Senator Claude Pepper, a pioneer of aging services, stayed vigilant until passing at age 88. Senator Charles Grassley was re-elected to a 6-year term at age 89. Now 91, he epitomizes the strength of age.
Short term memory loss, occasionally misspeaking or loss of words, and struggling to identify a point in time across the decades, are common normality’s of age and not signs of cognition deficit.
“Use it or lose it” is sound advice on many things, including brain function. Seems our leaders get lots of brain exercise, whether you agree with them or not.
Lynn Kellogg is former CEO of Region IV Area Agency on Aging in Southwest Michigan. Questions on age or independence services? Call the Info-Line for Aging & Disability at 800-654-2810 or visit areaagencyonaging.org. The Generations column appears each weekend in The Herald-Palladium.