The Influence of Rural/Urban Residence on Health in the Oldest-Old

Abstract

Differences between rural (n = 18) and urban (n = 66) centenarians are examined across the following variables: physical health, activities of daily living, mental health, and life satisfaction. Results demonstrate higher levels of morale in rural residents and higher levels of functional health as exhibited by urban elders. Qualitative data support trends of increased degrees of independence among the rural participants. The absence of robust differences in rural and urban centenarians is discussed in terms of a leveling-off effect.

Relationships between the neighborhood environment and depression in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…quasi-experimental studies were found. Sample sizes ranged from 84 (Clayton et al, 1994) to 77,930 (Menec et al, 2010) participants. Only 10 studies (14%) had 300 or fewer participants (considered to be a small sample size), whereas 37% had sample sizes >2,500, allowing detection of very small effects.…”

Relationship between oxidative stress and cognitive impairment in the elderly of rural vs. urban communities

“…Although aging per se is a risk factor for cognitive impairment (CI), there are other risk factors related to lifestyle such as smoking, alcoholism, sedentary habits, sleep deprivation, psychological stress, environmental pollution, lack of socialization and leisure activities; many of these risk factors are frequently linked to urban environments (Akyol et al, 2002;Clayton et al, 1994). Also, environmental pollutants commonly found in urban environments such as ozone (O 3 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), and particulate material or material in suspension (PM) reportedly alter lipids, proteins, and DNA because they are either direct potent oxidants, or they indirectly activate intracellular oxidant pathways.…”

Changes Over Time in Long-Term Care Use, ADL and IADL Among the Oldest-Old Participants of the Aging in Manitoba Longitudinal Study

“…There are many possible explanations for these descriptive messages and the variability in numbers of patterns reported in Tables 3 and 4. Changes in cognition or social support, moves from houses to apartments, or even differences in the activities done by men versus women have accounted for some of the variability in ADL and IADL in previous studies (e.g., Barer, 1994;Bould, Smith, & Longino, 1997;Camacho, Strawbridge, Cohen, & Kaplan, 1993;Clayton et al, 1994). Testing the extent to which these factors actually explain the variability in the observed longitudinal patterns was not the focus of this study, but is work that needs to be pursued to continue to advance knowledge about the oldest-old and their experiences over time.…”

“…While 23 per cent of oldest-old men and 36 per cent of oldest-old women are institutionalized (Norland, 1994), those living in the community tend to live in apartments rather than single family homes . They also tend to aggregate in urban communities (Clayton, Dudley, Patterson, & Lawhorn, 1994;. Oldestold women in Canada are more likely than men to be living alone and renting their accommodation .…”