Introduction
Aging is a natural process that begins at birth and ends at death. Society often identifies aging with disease, disability, loss of mental capacity, and the final stages of life. However, the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) demonstrated that the previously assumed “natural decline associated with aging” is not inevitable; increased activity and other health‐promoting behaviors may prevent and even reverse these effects.
Therefore, it is essential to distinguish between the true effects of aging and those processes, including disease, that may appear or become more pronounced with time but are biologically irrelevant to the underlying mechanisms of human aging. The fact that chronic debilitating conditions may be in part preventable, demands that rehabilitation specialists, and particularly rehabilitation researchers, focus their efforts on the restoration, maintenance, and promotion of a healthy lifestyle. Key elements of a healthy lifestyle may well be the...
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Souare, G.E., Lloyd, L.S. (2008). The History and Demography of Aging in the United States. In: Loue, S.J., Sajatovic, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Aging and Public Health. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-33754-8_457
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-33754-8_457
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-33753-1
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