M.Cauch
SageHealth Network
December 10, 2007
Young singles are used to being bombarded with the glam advertising of online dating sites and social networking tools. Looking for a mate in our high tech, fast paced world is no longer like looking for a needle in a haystack. Everything is accelerated and much more convenient than it ever was before.
For seniors, re-entering the dating world can be a scary prospect. Many may be divorced or recently widowed after decades of marriage. Yet, an instinctual aspect of being human is our need to create social networks and ultimately establish a romantic connection. For some, the last dating experience was perhaps sitting in the ice cream parlor holding hands after school. It can be very difficult to establish new relationships, either romantic partnerships or friendships as people age. People experience many losses as they enter later life and social support networks could diminish leaving many seniors, particularly men, isolated.
Online dating is one avenue to finding friendship and romance. Online dating is an easy, cost effective method to meeting a world of people, specifically targeting age and socioeconomic background. Online dating can be fun but as always, but advice for everyone is to exercise caution. Approach cyber socialization with care and intelligence. Popular sites include Senior Friend Finder, eHarmony and Lava Life.
Recently, I came across an article on speeddating for seniors and was fascinated. Speeddating is a new way to meet people. It is an efficient, fast-to-face way to establishing a connection with others quickly. In-person chemistry rather than the Jane Austen tradition of correspondence.
Here’s how speeddating works: You spend 5 minutes with each person and decide if you would like to see them again. And really, 5 minutes is enough time to know if you’re compatible with someone. You check their name off on your list. If they check your name off their list, you have a match. Afterwards, your contact information is forwarded to your matches and the rest is up to you.
It’s great news that speeddating events have been organized for seniors (although only Florida and Colorado as of writing this blog). Unfortunately, nothing like this exists in Toronto yet.
There are lots of other ways to meet people: You can join an online social networking site like meetup.com. Meetup.com lists a variety of interest groups narrowed down by geographic location. Language groups, cooking, age-specific social groups—practically any interest, hobby or activity is listed on meetup.com.
Volunteering is another way to be socially active and give back to the community by doing good works. Taking a special interest class through a seniors’ centre, religious organization or college will increase your knowledge base and introduce you to a whole host of people. And let’s not forget—recruit your friends. You could meet someone through six degrees of separation. Be pro active and let friends know that you’re interested in meeting new people.
Let’s be honest…..Getting back into the dating world can be frightening and overwhelming. However, dating can also be a wonderful tool to make new friends, expand your social networks and have fun. And remember… you’re never too old to make friends.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Seniors Try Shortcut to Romance, Friendship
By Jerilee Bennett, The Gazette
October 27, 2007
Lili Skinner and Elmer Gerardo had a quick conversation at a speed-dating event at Colorado Springs Senior Center this month. Skinner hoped to find someone to go dancing with. Other daters’ motives for showing up included friendship and sex.
Single female seeks tall, older man for friendship, possible romance. Must play bridge and tennis. Poor dancers need not apply.
Lili Skinner has met Mr. Two Left Feet. Now she needs Mr. Right. But if you think finding romance is hard at age 20, try doing it (again) at 81.
“I really have no trouble meeting people,” she said. “To meet eligible people is hard.”
Women complain that they outnumber men. Men complain that the women are too aggressive. Everyone complains that there aren’t enough places to go or things to do to ferret out that special someone.
Apparently dating in the golden years isn’t all that golden.
“Even at church there’s nobody that wants to do something,” said 65-year-old Jonnie Price. “There are a lot of us out there that are looking. You just want somebody to talk to.”
Well, Jonnie, the Colorado Springs Senior Center can do you one better: It has started hosting senior speed dating to maximize meet-up opportunities. Speed dating, which one sex for an evening while the other switches seats about every five minutes to “date” around the room, has become a popular approach to meeting as many people as possible, as quickly as possible.
And for those in their later years, time is precious.
“When you’re a senior, you’re not on borrowed time, but you don’t have 30 years to waste,” said Sid Hackman, a 65-year-old speed dater.
The center held its first speed-dating night Oct. 10, the first of its kind in the area for the older generations. Organizers were overwhelmed by the response: The event attracted 85 singles ranging in age from 54 to 88 (although more than twice as many women signed up as men). It’s likely to be held again in a few months, said Mendy Putman, director at the senior center.
Putman said the event addresses the notion that it’s hard for older singles to get back “out there.” Whether widowed or divorced, many seniors haven’t dated in years, she said.
“You’ve been in this comfortable zone with this one person for 40 years or more,” Putman said. “I see that being the hardest thing, just taking that first step.”
Even then, ambivalence can get in the way.
“I think there’s this stigma that they think exists — that they aren’t supposed to have these feelings,” Putman said. “I know that these people long to have those relationships.”
Speed dating is just one of many ways seniors have found companionship — or at least tried to find companionship. There are always those wellmeaning friends who try to play matchmaker, and groups that center on an activity such as bridge. And thousands have gone online: Match.com, eHarmony and SeniorFriendFinder. com, three popular dating Web sites, have all reported boosts in membership with the 50-and-older crowd.
But some seniors aren’t interested in matches found online. Many still prefer good ol’ person-to-person contact, said Hackman, who tried Match. com and began the 436-question profile quiz at eHarmony.
The problem was, eHarmony didn’t nail his personality, he said. And the woman he met on Match.com turned out to be less compatible than he thought.
“I don’t trust it,” he said. “I like to talk to people, not write notes to them. I like to hear their voice.”
And some seniors, such as Skinner, are downright scared of it. “They can say anything they want to, and you have no real way of knowing,” she said. “It’s not for me.”
But senior dating has a big silver lining. Older people tend to know who they are and what they want — a serious leg up on their younger counterparts. Older women also say they worry less about horndog men and ulterior motives than they did when they were younger. (Their guards can’t be down entirely, though, with about 30 percent of speed-daters at the senior center naming sex as their reason for signing up. Some things never change.)
The majority of the speed daters, however, pegged friendship as their reason for signing up, and many said they were looking for companionship, not love. They’ve done the marriage thing. They’ve done the kid thing. Now it’s time for fun.
Seniors mingled with plastic cups of wine, slightly nervous but armed with a list of questions to ask one another. They had only three minutes (time was cut short by organizing glitches), so they had to get right down to business.
As women created a circle of chairs around a smaller circle of men, one guy leaned to another guy and whispered, “I got your back.”
Seniors were split by age into three groups, and women outnumbered men more than 2-to-1 in every group except the 76-and-older crowd. Thirtythree women surrounded nine men in the 55 to 65 group, prompting Putman’s warning: “You may have to throw up a red flag if you need to go to the bathroom because you’re going to be here awhile.”
Most daters said they’d come back. Many women spent as much time talking to other women as to men, exchanging phone numbers and setting coffee dates.
The day after the event, the organizers gave numbers to couples who both listed an interest in each other. Then it was up to the couple to arrange a date.
That’s where Skinner got stuck. There’s a dance she wants to go to, but she’s too nervous to call her match.
George, call her!
Source: Global Aging http://www.globalaging.org/elderrights/us/2007/speedating.htm
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Aging and Gay, and Facing Prejudice in Twilight
By Jane Gross, The New York Times
October 9, 2007
Even now, at 81 and with her memory beginning to fade, Gloria Donadello recalls her painful brush with bigotry at an assisted-living center in Santa Fe, N.M. Sitting with those she considered friends, “people were laughing and making certain kinds of comments, and I told them, ‘Please don’t do that, because I’m gay.’”
The result of her outspokenness, Ms. Donadello said, was swift and merciless. “Everyone looked horrified,” she said. No longer included in conversation or welcome at meals, she plunged into depression. Medication did not help. With her emotional health deteriorating, Ms. Donadello moved into an adult community nearby that caters to gay men and lesbians.
“I felt like I was a pariah,” she said, settled in her new home. “For me, it was a choice between life and death.”
Elderly gay people like Ms. Donadello, living in nursing homes or assisted-living centers or receiving home care, increasingly report that they have been disrespected, shunned or mistreated in ways that range from hurtful to deadly, even leading some to commit suicide.
Some have seen their partners and friends insulted or isolated. Others live in fear of the day when they are dependent on strangers for the most personal care. That dread alone can be damaging, physically and emotionally, say geriatric doctors, psychiatrists and social workers.
The plight of the gay elderly has been taken up by a generation of gay men and lesbians, concerned about their own futures, who have begun a national drive to educate care providers about the social isolation, even outright discrimination, that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender clients face.
Several solutions are emerging. In Boston, New York, Chicago, Atlanta and other urban centers, so-called L.G.B.T. Aging Projects are springing up, to train long-term care providers. At the same time, there is a move to separate care, with the comfort of the familiar.
In the Boston suburbs, the Chelsea Jewish Nursing Home will break ground in December for a complex that includes a unit for the gay and lesbian elderly. And Stonewall Communities in Boston has begun selling homes designed for older gay people with support services similar to assisted-living centers. There are also openly gay geriatric case managers who can guide clients to compassionate services.
“Many times gay people avoid seeking help at all because of their fears about how they’ll be treated,” said David Aronstein, president of Stonewall Communities. “Unless they see affirming actions, they’ll assume the worst.”
Homophobia directed at the elderly has many faces.
Home health aides must be reminded not to wear gloves at inappropriate times, for example while opening the front door or making the bed, when there is no evidence of H.I.V. infection, said Joe Collura, a nurse at the largest home care agency in Greenwich Village.
A lesbian checking into a double room at a Chicago rehabilitation center was greeted by a roommate yelling, “Get the man out of here!” The lesbian patient, Renae Ogletree, summoned a friend to take her elsewhere.
Sometimes tragedy results. In one nursing home, an openly gay man, without family or friends, was recently moved off his floor to quiet the protests of other residents and their families. He was given a room among patients with severe disabilities or dementia. The home called upon Amber Hollibaugh, now a senior strategist at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the author of the first training curriculum for nursing homes. Ms. Hollibaugh assured the 79-year-old man that a more humane solution would be found, but he hanged himself, Ms. Hollibaugh said. She was unwilling to identify the nursing home or even its East Coast city, because she still consults there, among other places.
While this outcome is exceedingly rare, moving gay residents to placate others is common, said Dr. Melinda Lantz, chief of geriatric psychiatry at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York, who spent 13 years in a similar post at the Jewish Home and Hospital Lifecare System. “When you’re stuck and have to move someone because they’re being ganged up on, you put them with people who are very confused,” Dr. Lantz said. “That’s a terrible nuts-and-bolts reality.”
The most common reaction, in a generation accustomed to being in the closet, is a retreat back to the invisibility that was necessary for most of their lives, when homosexuality was considered both a crime and a mental illness. A partner is identified as a brother. No pictures or gay-themed books are left around.
Elderly heterosexuals also suffer the indignities of old age, but not to the same extent, Dr. Lantz said. “There is something special about having to hide this part of your identity at a time when your entire identity is threatened,” she said. “That’s a faster pathway to depression, failure to thrive and even premature death.”
The movement to improve conditions for the gay elderly is driven by demographics. There are an estimated 2.4 million gay, lesbian or bisexual Americans over the age of 55, said Gary Gates, a senior research fellow at the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles. That estimate was extrapolated by Dr. Gates using census data that counts only same-sex couples along with other government data that counts both single and coupled gay people. Among those in same-sex couples, the number of gay men and women over 55 has almost doubled from 2000 to 2006, Dr. Gates said, to 416,000, from 222,000.
California is the only state with a law saying the gay elderly have special needs, like other members of minority groups. A new law encourages training for employees and contractors who work with the elderly and permits state financing of projects like gay senior centers.
Federal law provides no antidiscrimination protections to gay people. Twenty states explicitly outlaw such discrimination in housing and public accommodations. But no civil rights claims have been made by gay residents of nursing homes, according to the Lambda Legal Defense Fund, which litigates and monitors such cases. Potential plaintiffs, the organization says, are too frail or frightened to bring action.
The problem is compounded, experts say, because most of the gay elderly do not declare their identity, and institutions rarely make an effort to find out who they are to prepare staff members and residents for what may be an unfamiliar situation.
So that is where Lisa Krinsky, the director of the L.G.B.T. Aging Project in Massachusetts, begins her “cultural competency” training sessions, including one last month at North Shore Elder Services in Danvers.
Admissions forms for long-term care have boxes to check for marital status and next of kin. But none of the boxes match the circumstances of gay men or lesbians. Ms. Krinsky suggested follow-up questions like “Who is important in your life?”
In the last two years, Ms. Krinsky has trained more than 2,000 employees of agencies serving the elderly across Massachusetts. She presents them with common problems and nudges them toward solutions.
A gay man fired his home health aide. Did the case manager ask why? The patient might be receiving unwanted Bible readings from someone who thinks homosexuality is a sin. What about a lesbian at an assisted-living center refusing visitors? Maybe she is afraid that her friends’ appearance will give her away to fellow residents.
“We need to be open and sensitive,” Ms. Krinsky said, “but not wrap them in a rainbow flag and make them march in a parade.”
Some of the gay elderly chose openness as the quickest and most painless way of finding compassionate care. That is the case for Bruce Steiner, 76, of Sudbury, Mass., whose 71-year-old partner, Jim Anthony, has had Alzheimer’s disease for more than a decade and can no longer feed himself or speak.
Mr. Steiner is resisting a nursing home for Mr. Anthony, even after several hospitalizations last year. The care had been uneven, Mr. Steiner said, and it was unclear whether homosexuality was a factor. But Mr. Steiner decided to take no chances and hired a gay case manager who helped him “do some filtering.”
They selected a home care agency with a reputation for treating gay clients well. Preparing for an unknown future, Mr. Steiner also visited several nursing homes, “giving them the opportunity to encourage or discourage me.” His favorite “is one run by the Carmelite sisters, of all things, because they had a sense of humor.”
They are the exception, not the rule.
Jalna Perry, a 77-year-old lesbian and psychiatrist in Boston, is out, she said, but does not broadcast the fact, which would feel unnatural to someone of her generation. Dr. Perry, who uses a wheelchair, has spent time in assisted-living centers and nursing homes. There, she said, her guard was up all the time.
Dr. Perry came out to a few other residents in the assisted-living center — artsy, professional women who she figured would accept her. But even with them, she said, “You don’t talk about gay things.” Mostly, she kept to herself. “You size people up,” Dr. Perry said. “You know the activities person is a lesbian; that’s a quick read.”
Trickier was an aide who was gentle with others but surly and heavy-handed when helping Dr. Perry with personal tasks. Did the aide suspect and disapprove? With a male nurse who was gay, Dr. Perry said she felt “extremely comfortable.”
“Except for that nurse, I was very lonely,” she said. “It would have been nice if someone else was out among the residents.”
Such loneliness is a source of dread to the members of the Prime Timers, a Boston social group for older gay men. Among the regulars, who meet for lunch once a week, are Emile Dufour, 70, a former priest, and Fred Riley, 75, who has a 30-year heterosexual marriage behind him. The pair have been together for two decades and married in 2004. But their default position, should they need nursing care, will be to hide their gayness, as they did for half a lifetime, rather than face slurs and whispers.
“As strong as I am today,” Mr. Riley said, “when I’m at the gate of the nursing home, the closet door is going to slam shut behind me.”
Dan Frosch contributed reporting
Source
http://www.globalaging.org/elderrights/us/2007/aginggay.htm
Seniors and Sexuality: Enjoying Intimacy and a Healthy Lifestyle
By Michele Cauch, Executive Director
SageHealth Network
(Source: Help's Here Magazine: Resources for Seniors & Caregivers, Fall/Winter 2007)
Ageist attitudes have had a strong hold over our collective Western psyche. Moving away from the beginning of life's spectrum, aging has been perceived as a negative process and something that we must tirelessly rail against. Taking this notion of ageism one step further, most people cannot imagine seniors as being sexual into retirement age and beyond. For many young people, it's impossible to associate physical intimacy with older adults. Senior sexuality is an uncomfortable and unbelievable concept to not only young adults but also seniors themselves. There is
the belief that seniors are too old to engage in sexual intimacy or they are undesirable to potential mates. It may be news to many, but it's time we all realized
and rejoiced in the fact that seniors are indeed sexually active well into the
Third Age.
The Good and Bad News
Seniors are sexually active and enjoying all forms of intimacy. A study by the American Association of Retired Persons estimated 62% of men and 27% of women over 60 years old consider sex very important in their lives. Approximately one-third of all respondents of which 49% had regular sexual partners, reported they had sexual intercourse once a week or more often. Slightly more than half engage in sexual touching or caressing, and around two-thirds kiss or hug their partner on a regular basis (AARP Sexuality at Mid Life and Beyond, 2005).
As encouraging as this revelation is, it also presents cause for concern - ndividuals
50 and over are at greater risk for contracting sexually transmitted infections (STIs), such as genital herpes, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, hepatitis B, and HIV/AIDS. There are a variety of reasons why older adults are at risk for contracting STIs: lack of education and awareness campaigns targeting older adults, reliance on outdated information, and common misconceptions about seniors' sexuality on the part of health care providers. Many seniors have assumptions and beliefs about sexuality that are difficult to change. Very few sexually active older adults use condoms as a form of safe sex. They may not use condoms because they associate condoms with preventing pregnancy - something that is not a concern when in your 70s or 80s. Many seniors may believe that HIV/AIDS is a disease that affects young people or gay men and could not possibly affect them at their age. Some older adults are perhaps newly single, widowed or divorced after long term monogamous relationships years of marriage and do not know of the sexual health dangers that exist nowadays. These individuals are seeking new partners and are in a vulnerable situation due to lack of information and awareness of sexually transmitted infections
and the facts about HIV/AIDS.
The Viagra craze has contributed a lot to the increase in STIs in older adults also.
More seniors are having more sex; however, drug companies have not provided sufficient education on sexual health risks nor safer sexual practices.
Protecting Your Sexual Health
If you've recently begun dating and are thinking about becoming sexually active,
you should discuss sexual health and safe sex practices with your partner. You should never feel pressured to engage in sex if you're not ready. When you do
decide to initiate physical intimacy, you have to be cautious about protecting your
sexual health. If you're sexually active, speak to your partner about your concerns
for both of you getting tested for certain sexually transmitted infections and HIV. It may be an uncomfortable subject to discuss, but remember; ultimately it's you that must make informed decisions about your own health.
Additionally, some healthcare providers assume that their older patients are not sexually active and may not routinely test older patients for STIs or ask them questions about their sexual practices or history. They don't want to be perceived as prying into the private lives of their older patients. Don't wait for your physician to talk to you about sexual health. If your doctor doesn't ask, you have to break the silence. You and your doctor need to have a frank and open conversation about your sexual health and assessing your level of risk.
Sexual intimacy brings physical and emotional pleasure, increases feelings of self esteem, and heightens feelings of closeness in partners. Knowing that your sexual health and that of your partner is a priority, will only serve to strengthen your relationship. Everyone, regardless of age, has the right to sexual expression,
the right to information on how to protect their sexual health and the responsibility
to make informed health decisions. Age is no barrier against sexually transmitted infections.
Enjoy life and intimacy, but be sexually responsible.
What are STIs?
~STIs are sexually transmitted infections.
You can be infected without showing
symptoms.
~STIs can be transmitted through sexual
contact and some can be transmitted
through skin to skin contact.
~Most STIs, particularly HIV, are passed
through body fluids: blood, semen,
vaginal fluid.
~STIs do not always show symptoms.
If you are sexually active, speak to your
doctor about STIs and getting tested.
Condoms 101
~Always use a latex or polyurethane
condom
~Never use a condom more than once
~Use personal lubricants
~Be responsible - men AND women
should carry condoms
This material is designed for information purposes only. It should not be used in place of medical advice, instruction and/or treatment. If you have specific questions, please consult your doctor or appropriate health care professional.
Michele Cauch, Executive Director, SageHealth Network. SageHealth Network is an organization dedicated to promoting sexual health awareness and sexual health educationin older adults and care providers.
For more information: www.sagehealth network.com or email: info@sagehealthnetwork.com
Older African-American Men with HIV Often Have Sex Without Condoms
By Annette Whibey, Journal of Advanced Nursing
October 16, 2007
As many as four out of ten HIV positive African-American men could be putting their partners at risk by not using condoms, according to research in the Journal of Advanced Nursing 60.4.
A study of 130 middle-aged and older men in the USA found that many of the 40 to 65 year-olds were engaging in high-risk sexual practices.
38 per cent didn’t use condoms during oral sex, with 25 per cent having unprotected vaginal sex and 22 per cent having unsafe anal sex. The research also showed that men who were single and displayed fewer HIV symptoms were least likely to use condoms during sex.
“Despite the worrying number of men not using condoms, 78 per cent of those who took part in the study were able to answer questions about HIV and AIDS correctly and 25 per cent claimed to be knowledgeable about the subject but still engaged in risky sex” says Dr Christopher Lance Coleman from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing in Philadelphia.
“These findings are of particular concern as HIV and AIDS rates among black (non-Hispanic men) in the USA and in people over 50 have risen considerably in recent years. In fact, AIDS prevalence statistics for minority men in the USA are staggering.”
For example:
• In 2005, 127.6 per 100,000 cases of HIV/AIDS were African-American men compared to 18.5 for White men, according to data for 33 US states using confidential name-based reporting. The US Center for Disease Control suggests that this ethnic group is eight times as likely to develop AIDS as white males.
• Figures for 2005 also show that 44 per cent of all new cases of HIV were black (non-Hispanic) males, based on the latest data from 50 US states.
• AIDS rates are also rising in people over 50. In 2006, 27 per cent of adults living with AIDS in the USA were over 50.
77 per cent of the 130 African-American men who completed the questionnaire for this study, after responding to advertisements posted in two infectious disease clinics, were single. The average age of the participants was 46.
60 per cent were homosexual and 40 per cent were heterosexual. 32 per cent had received mental health treatment during the last year and the majority earned less than $10,000.
“While we think that our findings are compelling, it would be unwise to conclude that - as with any study - they are representative of all older African-American men who are HIV positive” stresses Dr Coleman.
“However, the findings of this study are worrying, particularly in view of rising HIV and AIDS rates in both ethnic communities and the over 50s. They definitely point to the need for further research into why older African-American men with HIV don’t use condoms.”
In 2006 UNAIDS - the joint United Nations programme on HIV and AIDS – estimated that there are now 39.5 million cases of HIV and AIDS worldwide. And they called for an international response to curb the stigma experienced by homosexual men who are HIV positive.
“We welcome this move as we believe it is essential to break down barriers to condom use among all people with AIDS and HIV” says Dr Coleman. “Some studies have even suggested that homosexual men have sex with women to hide their sexuality and HIV status.”
The authors hope that their findings will add to the ongoing debate about safe sex and condom use and highlight the need for more tailored initiatives to be developed for older African-American men.
“Health promotion messages have traditionally been targeted at young people” says Dr Coleman. “But the increased prevalence of older ethnic males with HIV and AIDS makes it essential for health professionals to promote safe sex and increase condom use to this target audience.”
Source
http://www.globalaging.org/health/us/2007/africanamericanhiv.htm
October 16, 2007
As many as four out of ten HIV positive African-American men could be putting their partners at risk by not using condoms, according to research in the Journal of Advanced Nursing 60.4.
A study of 130 middle-aged and older men in the USA found that many of the 40 to 65 year-olds were engaging in high-risk sexual practices.
38 per cent didn’t use condoms during oral sex, with 25 per cent having unprotected vaginal sex and 22 per cent having unsafe anal sex. The research also showed that men who were single and displayed fewer HIV symptoms were least likely to use condoms during sex.
“Despite the worrying number of men not using condoms, 78 per cent of those who took part in the study were able to answer questions about HIV and AIDS correctly and 25 per cent claimed to be knowledgeable about the subject but still engaged in risky sex” says Dr Christopher Lance Coleman from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing in Philadelphia.
“These findings are of particular concern as HIV and AIDS rates among black (non-Hispanic men) in the USA and in people over 50 have risen considerably in recent years. In fact, AIDS prevalence statistics for minority men in the USA are staggering.”
For example:
• In 2005, 127.6 per 100,000 cases of HIV/AIDS were African-American men compared to 18.5 for White men, according to data for 33 US states using confidential name-based reporting. The US Center for Disease Control suggests that this ethnic group is eight times as likely to develop AIDS as white males.
• Figures for 2005 also show that 44 per cent of all new cases of HIV were black (non-Hispanic) males, based on the latest data from 50 US states.
• AIDS rates are also rising in people over 50. In 2006, 27 per cent of adults living with AIDS in the USA were over 50.
77 per cent of the 130 African-American men who completed the questionnaire for this study, after responding to advertisements posted in two infectious disease clinics, were single. The average age of the participants was 46.
60 per cent were homosexual and 40 per cent were heterosexual. 32 per cent had received mental health treatment during the last year and the majority earned less than $10,000.
“While we think that our findings are compelling, it would be unwise to conclude that - as with any study - they are representative of all older African-American men who are HIV positive” stresses Dr Coleman.
“However, the findings of this study are worrying, particularly in view of rising HIV and AIDS rates in both ethnic communities and the over 50s. They definitely point to the need for further research into why older African-American men with HIV don’t use condoms.”
In 2006 UNAIDS - the joint United Nations programme on HIV and AIDS – estimated that there are now 39.5 million cases of HIV and AIDS worldwide. And they called for an international response to curb the stigma experienced by homosexual men who are HIV positive.
“We welcome this move as we believe it is essential to break down barriers to condom use among all people with AIDS and HIV” says Dr Coleman. “Some studies have even suggested that homosexual men have sex with women to hide their sexuality and HIV status.”
The authors hope that their findings will add to the ongoing debate about safe sex and condom use and highlight the need for more tailored initiatives to be developed for older African-American men.
“Health promotion messages have traditionally been targeted at young people” says Dr Coleman. “But the increased prevalence of older ethnic males with HIV and AIDS makes it essential for health professionals to promote safe sex and increase condom use to this target audience.”
Source
http://www.globalaging.org/health/us/2007/africanamericanhiv.htm
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Doctors Silent on Senior Sexuality
By MCauch
SageHealth Network
Last month, the New England Journal of Medicine caused quite a stir and media buzz with its extensive study on senior sexuality. Everyone was surprised, delighted and shocked by the statistics of seniors’ sexual activity, frequency of activity and types of behaviour:
• 73% reported being sexually active
• 2/3 had sex at least twice a month
• More than half had sex at least twice a month into their 80s
• More than half of those aged 57 to 75 and 1/3 or 75-85 year olds said they gave or received oral sex
However, there was another statistic on doctor-patient communication was not so much titillating as it was cause for concern:
Only 22% of women and 38% of men had discussed sex with a doctor since age 50 (NEJM, 2007).
The high rates of sexual activity compared with low rates of how many seniors talk to their physicians about sex shows a huge disparity. Withholding information may put many individuals at risk. This absence of open communication is a barrier to health education and results in major societal consequences. Older adults are embarrassed to broach the subject with their doctors and doctors are embarrassed to discuss sex with their older patients.
"Sex is an important indicator of health," Georgeanne Patmios of the National Institute on Aging, remarked in the NEJM study. Sexual problems can be a warning sign of diabetes, infections, cancer or other health woes. Untreated sex issues can lead to depression and social withdrawal; emotional stress; extra marital affairs and divorce; low self esteem and poor body image. “This subject has been taboo for so long that many older people haven’t even talked to their spouses about their sexual problems, let alone a physician,” said the lead author, Dr. Stacy Tesser Lindau, a University of Chicago gynecologist(NEJM, 2007).
Another problem stemming from this doctor-patient silence is that older adults may be at increased risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections. Many doctors perhaps are simply ignorant of the fact that their older patients are sexually active or could even be injection drug users.
Dr. Marianne J. Legato of Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons in New York stated, “Physicians need to detoxify the sexual subject for themselves and learn more about the physiology of normal sexual experiences. This should be taught in medical schools,” (Sexual Health Network, July, 1999).
It’s simply not enough to acknowledge the fact that many physicians are mum on sex when it comes to their older patients. Action must be taken to educate medical interns and make them aware of and counter their subconscious ageist attitudes. Physicians need sensitivity training and learn to be comfortable in assessing older patients lifestyles and health care issues. This includes being at ease with such topics as sexuality throughout the lifespan, risky sexual behaviours and querying about drug use.
This direct approach is imperative in providing holistic healthcare to seniors regardless of averted eye contact and blushing for both parties. Health care workers and medical professionals should not make the topic taboo, but should approach the discussion very matter-of-factly and as part of a normal health history.
SageHealth Network
Last month, the New England Journal of Medicine caused quite a stir and media buzz with its extensive study on senior sexuality. Everyone was surprised, delighted and shocked by the statistics of seniors’ sexual activity, frequency of activity and types of behaviour:
• 73% reported being sexually active
• 2/3 had sex at least twice a month
• More than half had sex at least twice a month into their 80s
• More than half of those aged 57 to 75 and 1/3 or 75-85 year olds said they gave or received oral sex
However, there was another statistic on doctor-patient communication was not so much titillating as it was cause for concern:
Only 22% of women and 38% of men had discussed sex with a doctor since age 50 (NEJM, 2007).
The high rates of sexual activity compared with low rates of how many seniors talk to their physicians about sex shows a huge disparity. Withholding information may put many individuals at risk. This absence of open communication is a barrier to health education and results in major societal consequences. Older adults are embarrassed to broach the subject with their doctors and doctors are embarrassed to discuss sex with their older patients.
"Sex is an important indicator of health," Georgeanne Patmios of the National Institute on Aging, remarked in the NEJM study. Sexual problems can be a warning sign of diabetes, infections, cancer or other health woes. Untreated sex issues can lead to depression and social withdrawal; emotional stress; extra marital affairs and divorce; low self esteem and poor body image. “This subject has been taboo for so long that many older people haven’t even talked to their spouses about their sexual problems, let alone a physician,” said the lead author, Dr. Stacy Tesser Lindau, a University of Chicago gynecologist(NEJM, 2007).
Another problem stemming from this doctor-patient silence is that older adults may be at increased risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections. Many doctors perhaps are simply ignorant of the fact that their older patients are sexually active or could even be injection drug users.
Dr. Marianne J. Legato of Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons in New York stated, “Physicians need to detoxify the sexual subject for themselves and learn more about the physiology of normal sexual experiences. This should be taught in medical schools,” (Sexual Health Network, July, 1999).
It’s simply not enough to acknowledge the fact that many physicians are mum on sex when it comes to their older patients. Action must be taken to educate medical interns and make them aware of and counter their subconscious ageist attitudes. Physicians need sensitivity training and learn to be comfortable in assessing older patients lifestyles and health care issues. This includes being at ease with such topics as sexuality throughout the lifespan, risky sexual behaviours and querying about drug use.
This direct approach is imperative in providing holistic healthcare to seniors regardless of averted eye contact and blushing for both parties. Health care workers and medical professionals should not make the topic taboo, but should approach the discussion very matter-of-factly and as part of a normal health history.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Talking about sexuality with older clients
By MCauch
SageHealth Network
I was delighted to receive a question from a social work intern. When approached by elderly clients asking for information on sexuality, she tried to divert the topic because she was embarrassed. She asks how she could have handled the situation.
Response: Thank you for your email. I'm glad you contacted me. Asking for help and becoming aware of older adult sexuality are positive steps in altering society's perspectives on aging.
I think the most important thing we can do when caught off guard in a surprise situation is to stay calm and be completing accepting of the question. Or, if you are speechless, quickly compose yourself and apologize by admitting you were caught off guard and you'd like to try and help. This will help your client feel that they are not being judged and help them feel comfortable. Your client is perhaps also nervous and embarrassed and may have come to you because you are a student rather than a professional and this makes them feel less intimidated.
Thank your client for trusting you with such sensitive information but it's important to remind your client that you are a student intern. Ask if they would prefer to be referred to the social worker who may have more expertise in the area. If they don't want to speak to a social worker or other health care professional, it may be up to you to get them the resources that could help them. Get some basic points from your client so you can direct them to the appropriate person/resource/department, for example, decide whether it is medical (ie resuming sexual activity after a heart attack or sex and disability; physical or biological changes (ie prescription medications to enhance sexual activity or biological changes); emotional (issues with intimacy with a partner or self esteem issues). I need to stress communication with your supervisor is key. Either by referring your client to your supervisor or having your supervisor coach how you deal with the situation--your supervisor is their to guide you.
Being a social worker means we are advocates for change, so... read up on elder sexuality,speak to other healthcare professionals on how THEY would have handled the situation, speak to other interns about your experience and make them aware of elder sexuality.
Because of this experience,you're now more sensitive to the subject and better equipped to handle the next time. You may still be embarrassed when asked, but you will be more in control of your reactions. You will be an invaluable resource for the next client who confides in you because you're now more aware of elder sexuality.
Best of luck in your career as a social worker!
Regards,
Michele Cauch
SageHealth Network
SageHealth Network
I was delighted to receive a question from a social work intern. When approached by elderly clients asking for information on sexuality, she tried to divert the topic because she was embarrassed. She asks how she could have handled the situation.
Response: Thank you for your email. I'm glad you contacted me. Asking for help and becoming aware of older adult sexuality are positive steps in altering society's perspectives on aging.
I think the most important thing we can do when caught off guard in a surprise situation is to stay calm and be completing accepting of the question. Or, if you are speechless, quickly compose yourself and apologize by admitting you were caught off guard and you'd like to try and help. This will help your client feel that they are not being judged and help them feel comfortable. Your client is perhaps also nervous and embarrassed and may have come to you because you are a student rather than a professional and this makes them feel less intimidated.
Thank your client for trusting you with such sensitive information but it's important to remind your client that you are a student intern. Ask if they would prefer to be referred to the social worker who may have more expertise in the area. If they don't want to speak to a social worker or other health care professional, it may be up to you to get them the resources that could help them. Get some basic points from your client so you can direct them to the appropriate person/resource/department, for example, decide whether it is medical (ie resuming sexual activity after a heart attack or sex and disability; physical or biological changes (ie prescription medications to enhance sexual activity or biological changes); emotional (issues with intimacy with a partner or self esteem issues). I need to stress communication with your supervisor is key. Either by referring your client to your supervisor or having your supervisor coach how you deal with the situation--your supervisor is their to guide you.
Being a social worker means we are advocates for change, so... read up on elder sexuality,speak to other healthcare professionals on how THEY would have handled the situation, speak to other interns about your experience and make them aware of elder sexuality.
Because of this experience,you're now more sensitive to the subject and better equipped to handle the next time. You may still be embarrassed when asked, but you will be more in control of your reactions. You will be an invaluable resource for the next client who confides in you because you're now more aware of elder sexuality.
Best of luck in your career as a social worker!
Regards,
Michele Cauch
SageHealth Network
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
North York Seniors Talk about Safe Sex
Michele Cauch
SageHealth Network
September 4, 2007
The curious and intrigued filed into the synagogue at the Bernard Betel Centre in North York last Thursday. The NEW Sex Over Sixty was advertised as a “women only” workshop, much to the chagrin of a handful of older men who also came out. Unfortunately, they were asked to leave to ensure a comfortable and safe environment for the female participants to speak freely and openly. They all came to hear the speaker talk about senior sexuality, more specifically safe sex over sixty.
Although it still may be hard for some to believe, seniors need to be aware of sexual health risks. The fact is seniors are having sex and they’re at risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections. It’s essential to raise awareness of sexual health dangers that may affect seniors, give them information that could protect themselves and help them make better informed decisions about their health.
The presentation was informative, fun and full of questions from the participants. The goals of the workshop were to introduce seniors to sexual health risks, learn ways of communicating about safe sex and help participants become advocates of their own sexuality. The workshop dispelled some of the myths about sexually transmitted infections and myths about senior sexuality.
Even if people attending these workshops are not sexually active, they should still know about sexual health risks. This is just more information in their arsenal of personal knowledge when talking with friends, children and even grandchildren. All information is valuable and we all know that age is never protection against disease.
The feedback from the participants was very positive and the presentation was enthusiastically received. Comments ranged from, “I learned a lot so I can pass it on to others,” “very informative with a sense of lightness,” and “cutting edge presentation.”
Plans are underway to offer another workshop, one of which will be a sexual health presentation geared to a co-ed group where both men and women are welcome to come learn new information and share their thoughts and concerns on elder sexuality.
Thank you to the Bernard Betel Centre for hosting The New Sex Over Sixty workshop and all the wonderful participants who shared their thoughts, questions and wisdom.
SageHealth Network
September 4, 2007
The curious and intrigued filed into the synagogue at the Bernard Betel Centre in North York last Thursday. The NEW Sex Over Sixty was advertised as a “women only” workshop, much to the chagrin of a handful of older men who also came out. Unfortunately, they were asked to leave to ensure a comfortable and safe environment for the female participants to speak freely and openly. They all came to hear the speaker talk about senior sexuality, more specifically safe sex over sixty.
Although it still may be hard for some to believe, seniors need to be aware of sexual health risks. The fact is seniors are having sex and they’re at risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections. It’s essential to raise awareness of sexual health dangers that may affect seniors, give them information that could protect themselves and help them make better informed decisions about their health.
The presentation was informative, fun and full of questions from the participants. The goals of the workshop were to introduce seniors to sexual health risks, learn ways of communicating about safe sex and help participants become advocates of their own sexuality. The workshop dispelled some of the myths about sexually transmitted infections and myths about senior sexuality.
Even if people attending these workshops are not sexually active, they should still know about sexual health risks. This is just more information in their arsenal of personal knowledge when talking with friends, children and even grandchildren. All information is valuable and we all know that age is never protection against disease.
The feedback from the participants was very positive and the presentation was enthusiastically received. Comments ranged from, “I learned a lot so I can pass it on to others,” “very informative with a sense of lightness,” and “cutting edge presentation.”
Plans are underway to offer another workshop, one of which will be a sexual health presentation geared to a co-ed group where both men and women are welcome to come learn new information and share their thoughts and concerns on elder sexuality.
Thank you to the Bernard Betel Centre for hosting The New Sex Over Sixty workshop and all the wonderful participants who shared their thoughts, questions and wisdom.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Seniors and sexuality study by NEJM
Survey: Seniors Have Sex Into 70s, 80s
from The Associated Press
NPR.org, August 23, 2007 · An unprecedented study of sex and seniors finds that many older people are surprisingly frisky — willing to do, and talk about, intimate acts that would make their grandchildren blush. That may be too much information for some folks, but it comes from the most comprehensive sex survey ever done among 57- to 85-year-olds in the United States.
Sex and interest in it do fall off when people are in their 70s, but more than a quarter of those up to age 85 reported having sex in the previous year. And the drop-off has a lot to do with health or lack of a partner, especially for women, the survey found.
The federally funded study, done by respected scientists and published in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, overturns some stereotypical notions that physical pleasure is just a young person's game.
"Most people assume that people stop doing it after some vague age," said sex researcher Edward Laumann of the University of Chicago.
However, more than half of those aged 57 to 75 said they gave or received oral sex, as did about a third of 75- to 85-year-olds.
"Bravo that the New England Journal of Medicine is publishing something like that. It's about time," said Ruth Westheimer, better known as sexpert Dr. Ruth, who has long counseled seniors on sex.
The survey involved two-hour face-to-face interviews with 3,005 men and women around the country. Researchers also took blood, saliva and other samples that will tell about hormone levels, sex-related infections and other health issues in future reports. They even tested how well seniors could see, taste, hear and smell — things that affect being able to have and enjoy sex.
Some results:
—Sex with a partner in the previous year was reported by 73 percent of people ages 57 to 64; 53 percent of those ages 64 to 75, and 26 percent of people 75 to 85. Of those who were active, most said they did it two to three times a month or more.
—Women at all ages were less likely to be sexually active than men. But they also lacked partners; far more were widowed.
—People whose health was excellent or very good were nearly twice as likely to be sexually active as those in poor or fair health.
—Half of people having sex reported at least one related problem. Most common in men was erection trouble (37 percent); in women, low desire (43 percent), vaginal dryness (39 percent) and inability to have an orgasm (34 percent).
—One out of seven men used Viagra or other substances to improve sex.
—Only 22 percent of women and 38 percent of men had discussed sex with a doctor since age 50.
The survey had a remarkable 75 percent response rate. Only 2 percent to 7 percent did not answer questions about sexual activities or problems, although a higher percentage declined to reveal how often they masturbate.
Why do this research? Sex is an important indicator of health, said Georgeanne Patmios of the National Institute on Aging, the study's main funder.
Sexual problems can be a warning sign of diabetes, infections, cancer or other health woes. Untreated sex issues can lead to depression and social withdrawal, and people may even stop taking needed medications because of sexual side effects, the researchers wrote.
Some of them did a landmark study of sexual habits in younger people a decade ago, but little is known about X-rated behaviors beyond Generation X.
"This subject has been taboo for so long that many older people haven't even talked to their spouses about their sexual problems, let alone a physician," said the lead author, Dr. Stacy Tesser Lindau, a University of Chicago gynecologist.
Many doctors are embarrassed to bring it up, and some may not know how to treat sexual dysfunction, said Dr. Alison Moore, a geriatrics specialist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who had no role in the study.
"Even among geriatricians, there can be an age bias that this is not as big a deal as some of the other things they come into us for," like heart problems or dementia, Moore said. "It gets lost in the shuffle."
The National Opinion Research Center, a university-affiliated private research firm, did the surveys in people's homes. Laumann, its chairman, has received research support from Pfizer Inc., the maker of Viagra.
Hundreds of questions were asked face to face; others, like the number of lifetime sex partners and frequency of masturbation, were asked in a questionnaire, and 84 percent of those were completed.
Most participants were married. But by the time they were 75 to 85, only 37 percent of women had spouses compared to 71 percent of men. Roughly 10 percent of those in the survey were black and more than 6 percent were Hispanic.
The proportion of each gender reporting giving and receiving oral sex "matched up perfectly," Lindau said. "This gives us pretty good reassurance that men and women are telling the same story."
Older people were generally sexually conservative. A small minority had more than one partner, and very few said they paid for sex.
Researchers also used state-of-the-art technology and products donated by several companies to test people's senses. Taste strips were used to see if people could distinguish between various tastes (sour, salty). Special devices were used to test the ability to smell certain scents, including a suspected pheromone — a smell thought to evoke sexual responses.
Scents and tastes "get under the skin to influence biology," and scientists wanted to know whether these senses diminish as people age, Lindau explained.
Niels Teunis, an anthropologist and researcher at the Institute of Sexuality, Social Inequality, and Health at San Francisco State University, said the survey bolsters the "use it or lose it" factor seen in previous studies.
"If you are doing it, you keep doing it. If you slack off in marriage like when you're in your 40s, it's hard to pick it up when you are older," he said.
Jack Menager, 83, and his wife, Elizabeth, 84, agree. The suburban Los Angeles couple say they have had a good sex life for nearly 60 years.
"It gives a person relief on any burdens or problems. It makes us forget everything — escape," he said, admitting that as physical endurance wanes "you have to work at it harder."
The couple takes twice daily walks, drinks wine in moderation and talks a lot, said his wife.
"I think it's important," she said of sex. "It just makes you feel close."
More men than women felt that way. Only 13 percent of men but 35 percent of women said sex was "not at all important."
Menopause has a big effect on women, and the drop-off of estrogen makes many of them less interested in sex, Dr. John Bancroft of the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction at Indiana University wrote in an accompanying editorial.
But menopause also means women no longer have to worry about getting pregnant, and many have more time and feel freer after children are gone, notes Westheimer, the sex adviser.
At age 79, she said, "I don't ever answer personal questions" about sex. But she added, "I certainly have a zest for life."
————
Associated Press Science Writer Alicia Chang in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
from The Associated Press
NPR.org, August 23, 2007 · An unprecedented study of sex and seniors finds that many older people are surprisingly frisky — willing to do, and talk about, intimate acts that would make their grandchildren blush. That may be too much information for some folks, but it comes from the most comprehensive sex survey ever done among 57- to 85-year-olds in the United States.
Sex and interest in it do fall off when people are in their 70s, but more than a quarter of those up to age 85 reported having sex in the previous year. And the drop-off has a lot to do with health or lack of a partner, especially for women, the survey found.
The federally funded study, done by respected scientists and published in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, overturns some stereotypical notions that physical pleasure is just a young person's game.
"Most people assume that people stop doing it after some vague age," said sex researcher Edward Laumann of the University of Chicago.
However, more than half of those aged 57 to 75 said they gave or received oral sex, as did about a third of 75- to 85-year-olds.
"Bravo that the New England Journal of Medicine is publishing something like that. It's about time," said Ruth Westheimer, better known as sexpert Dr. Ruth, who has long counseled seniors on sex.
The survey involved two-hour face-to-face interviews with 3,005 men and women around the country. Researchers also took blood, saliva and other samples that will tell about hormone levels, sex-related infections and other health issues in future reports. They even tested how well seniors could see, taste, hear and smell — things that affect being able to have and enjoy sex.
Some results:
—Sex with a partner in the previous year was reported by 73 percent of people ages 57 to 64; 53 percent of those ages 64 to 75, and 26 percent of people 75 to 85. Of those who were active, most said they did it two to three times a month or more.
—Women at all ages were less likely to be sexually active than men. But they also lacked partners; far more were widowed.
—People whose health was excellent or very good were nearly twice as likely to be sexually active as those in poor or fair health.
—Half of people having sex reported at least one related problem. Most common in men was erection trouble (37 percent); in women, low desire (43 percent), vaginal dryness (39 percent) and inability to have an orgasm (34 percent).
—One out of seven men used Viagra or other substances to improve sex.
—Only 22 percent of women and 38 percent of men had discussed sex with a doctor since age 50.
The survey had a remarkable 75 percent response rate. Only 2 percent to 7 percent did not answer questions about sexual activities or problems, although a higher percentage declined to reveal how often they masturbate.
Why do this research? Sex is an important indicator of health, said Georgeanne Patmios of the National Institute on Aging, the study's main funder.
Sexual problems can be a warning sign of diabetes, infections, cancer or other health woes. Untreated sex issues can lead to depression and social withdrawal, and people may even stop taking needed medications because of sexual side effects, the researchers wrote.
Some of them did a landmark study of sexual habits in younger people a decade ago, but little is known about X-rated behaviors beyond Generation X.
"This subject has been taboo for so long that many older people haven't even talked to their spouses about their sexual problems, let alone a physician," said the lead author, Dr. Stacy Tesser Lindau, a University of Chicago gynecologist.
Many doctors are embarrassed to bring it up, and some may not know how to treat sexual dysfunction, said Dr. Alison Moore, a geriatrics specialist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who had no role in the study.
"Even among geriatricians, there can be an age bias that this is not as big a deal as some of the other things they come into us for," like heart problems or dementia, Moore said. "It gets lost in the shuffle."
The National Opinion Research Center, a university-affiliated private research firm, did the surveys in people's homes. Laumann, its chairman, has received research support from Pfizer Inc., the maker of Viagra.
Hundreds of questions were asked face to face; others, like the number of lifetime sex partners and frequency of masturbation, were asked in a questionnaire, and 84 percent of those were completed.
Most participants were married. But by the time they were 75 to 85, only 37 percent of women had spouses compared to 71 percent of men. Roughly 10 percent of those in the survey were black and more than 6 percent were Hispanic.
The proportion of each gender reporting giving and receiving oral sex "matched up perfectly," Lindau said. "This gives us pretty good reassurance that men and women are telling the same story."
Older people were generally sexually conservative. A small minority had more than one partner, and very few said they paid for sex.
Researchers also used state-of-the-art technology and products donated by several companies to test people's senses. Taste strips were used to see if people could distinguish between various tastes (sour, salty). Special devices were used to test the ability to smell certain scents, including a suspected pheromone — a smell thought to evoke sexual responses.
Scents and tastes "get under the skin to influence biology," and scientists wanted to know whether these senses diminish as people age, Lindau explained.
Niels Teunis, an anthropologist and researcher at the Institute of Sexuality, Social Inequality, and Health at San Francisco State University, said the survey bolsters the "use it or lose it" factor seen in previous studies.
"If you are doing it, you keep doing it. If you slack off in marriage like when you're in your 40s, it's hard to pick it up when you are older," he said.
Jack Menager, 83, and his wife, Elizabeth, 84, agree. The suburban Los Angeles couple say they have had a good sex life for nearly 60 years.
"It gives a person relief on any burdens or problems. It makes us forget everything — escape," he said, admitting that as physical endurance wanes "you have to work at it harder."
The couple takes twice daily walks, drinks wine in moderation and talks a lot, said his wife.
"I think it's important," she said of sex. "It just makes you feel close."
More men than women felt that way. Only 13 percent of men but 35 percent of women said sex was "not at all important."
Menopause has a big effect on women, and the drop-off of estrogen makes many of them less interested in sex, Dr. John Bancroft of the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction at Indiana University wrote in an accompanying editorial.
But menopause also means women no longer have to worry about getting pregnant, and many have more time and feel freer after children are gone, notes Westheimer, the sex adviser.
At age 79, she said, "I don't ever answer personal questions" about sex. But she added, "I certainly have a zest for life."
————
Associated Press Science Writer Alicia Chang in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Sex Education as a Noble Vocation
By MCauch
SageHealth Network
Shortly after my commentary on seniors and sexually transmitted infections was printed in the Toronto Star (http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/247081), many older adults expressed their views to me in very supportive and approving ways. Many told me they were very pleased by shedding light on the subject. One comment was especially meaningful to me. It came from a 70 year old man from India who told me after reading the article, “what you’re doing is very noble work.”
I was flattered that my message about sexual education for seniors crossed a cultural divide and was seen by both this gentleman and his wife as a worthy cause. If noble work is to raise a warning flag to danger and facilitate access to information that prevents illness and saves lives, so be it.
However, this aspect of raising awareness of sexually transmitted infections among older adults is only one small piece of a much larger picture. It’s all part of a larger, invisible and ignored area of older adulthood--- advocacy for seniors’ sexuality and sexual rights.
Last week, the New England Journal of Medicine released a new study on seniors and sexuality confirming once again that older adults are indeed sexually active.
The latest findings:
• 73% reported being sexually active
• 2/3 had sex at least twice a month
• More than half had sex at least twice a month into their 80s
• People in good physical health were 2x as likely to be sexually active than those in poor or fair health.
• 50% of men and a quarter of the women reported that they engage in self pleasuring
• More than half of those aged 57 to 75 and 1/3 or 75-85 year olds said they gave or received oral sex
People are always so shocked at the thought of seniors having sex. Seniors having sex? This doesn’t happen. They’re too old for such nonsense. They can’t possibly have sex at THAT age! Every time a story comes out reporting the sexuality of seniors, shock and disgust are usually the first reactions that welcome the news. There has been, and will continue to be negativity towards senior sexuality.
The good news is that we won’t have to wait too long for a change in our disbelieving, youth-skewed psyches. In the somewhat near future, seniors and sex will become a practically commonplace notion. The clout of the aging baby boomers will slowly but surely begin to change societal perspectives on everything from architectural design to sex. The boomers will have such a profound influence on aging and sex that the only reaction to greet the subject will be run of the mill, “so-what” shrugs.
But why do we need to wait that long to begin to change societal attitudes? We need to advocate for senior sexuality now. Intimacy, physical connection, the ability to feel emotion, these are all part of being human. Why should these rewards be regarded as the domain of the young? Senior sexuality should be celebrated as a life force of physical and emotional expression. An energy that keeps us healthy, vibrant, and content.
Time will turn the tide of perceptions of senior sexuality but we still need to advocate for senior sexuality. We need to talk about it and bring it out of the shadow of being shameful or taboo.
The New England Journal of Medicine put senior sexuality back in the spotlight. Hopefully, it will stay there for a little while longer before it fades from public consciousness again.
SageHealth Network
Shortly after my commentary on seniors and sexually transmitted infections was printed in the Toronto Star (http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/247081), many older adults expressed their views to me in very supportive and approving ways. Many told me they were very pleased by shedding light on the subject. One comment was especially meaningful to me. It came from a 70 year old man from India who told me after reading the article, “what you’re doing is very noble work.”
I was flattered that my message about sexual education for seniors crossed a cultural divide and was seen by both this gentleman and his wife as a worthy cause. If noble work is to raise a warning flag to danger and facilitate access to information that prevents illness and saves lives, so be it.
However, this aspect of raising awareness of sexually transmitted infections among older adults is only one small piece of a much larger picture. It’s all part of a larger, invisible and ignored area of older adulthood--- advocacy for seniors’ sexuality and sexual rights.
Last week, the New England Journal of Medicine released a new study on seniors and sexuality confirming once again that older adults are indeed sexually active.
The latest findings:
• 73% reported being sexually active
• 2/3 had sex at least twice a month
• More than half had sex at least twice a month into their 80s
• People in good physical health were 2x as likely to be sexually active than those in poor or fair health.
• 50% of men and a quarter of the women reported that they engage in self pleasuring
• More than half of those aged 57 to 75 and 1/3 or 75-85 year olds said they gave or received oral sex
People are always so shocked at the thought of seniors having sex. Seniors having sex? This doesn’t happen. They’re too old for such nonsense. They can’t possibly have sex at THAT age! Every time a story comes out reporting the sexuality of seniors, shock and disgust are usually the first reactions that welcome the news. There has been, and will continue to be negativity towards senior sexuality.
The good news is that we won’t have to wait too long for a change in our disbelieving, youth-skewed psyches. In the somewhat near future, seniors and sex will become a practically commonplace notion. The clout of the aging baby boomers will slowly but surely begin to change societal perspectives on everything from architectural design to sex. The boomers will have such a profound influence on aging and sex that the only reaction to greet the subject will be run of the mill, “so-what” shrugs.
But why do we need to wait that long to begin to change societal attitudes? We need to advocate for senior sexuality now. Intimacy, physical connection, the ability to feel emotion, these are all part of being human. Why should these rewards be regarded as the domain of the young? Senior sexuality should be celebrated as a life force of physical and emotional expression. An energy that keeps us healthy, vibrant, and content.
Time will turn the tide of perceptions of senior sexuality but we still need to advocate for senior sexuality. We need to talk about it and bring it out of the shadow of being shameful or taboo.
The New England Journal of Medicine put senior sexuality back in the spotlight. Hopefully, it will stay there for a little while longer before it fades from public consciousness again.
Friday, August 17, 2007
Birds, bees and HIV- for Seniors
Birds, bees and HIV – for seniors
TheStar.com - comment - Birds, bees and HIV – for seniors
August 17, 2007
Michele Cauch
(Original link http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/247081)
Recently, the Department of Aging in New York City has initiated sex education for seniors. The program gives away free condoms and offers free HIV testing in efforts to raise awareness of sexually transmitted infections among older adults.
Case in point, HIV was diagnosed in an 82-year-old in Washington, D.C. NYC has the most HIV cases of any U.S. city, nearly 100,000, and the city council has earmarked $1 million toward HIV education for older adults.
In contrast, Ontario has been lax in taking on a leadership role in educating older adults about HIV/AIDS. Seniors and HIV is an invisible danger no one wants to talk about or give any credence to.
Yet the threat is very real. Public Health Canada data show approximately 10 per cent of the positive HIV test reports in Canada each year since the beginning of the epidemic have been among those aged 50 years or older.
Compounding the danger of unchecked HIV/AIDS infection rates is the statistical proof of a major demographic shift. According to census results from Statistics Canada, seniors total 4.3 million, or 13.7 per cent of Canada's 31 million population, a huge cross-section.
In response to this future health risk, seniors and care providers need information now on the subject of sexuality. This is not the same old "birds and the bees" topic that used to make parents blush, but rather the unpleasant, cold, hard facts on sexually transmitted infections such as HIV, HPV, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and herpes, to name a few.
However, it's been an uphill battle to raise awareness in this population and their care providers. The biggest stumbling block is individuals who have the means to prevent access to information. Subjective announcements of "that doesn't happen here," or "that's not our concern" resound in nursing homes and retirement communities.
With respect to government agencies, no one wants to take ownership of this sensitive issue. The mandate of the government is young adults, who receive the bulk of sex education funding. While it would be unconscionable to downgrade the importance of such educational initiatives, we need to advocate and educate on senior sexual health also.
Education and prevention efforts must be aimed at three groups: First, older adults who are at risk of acquiring sexually transmitted infections in later life; second, older adults who acquired a sexually transmitted infection earlier in life and are aging with it; and third, senior care providers who must acknowledge the existence of senior sexuality and risk of unsafe sexual practices.
Seniors are not immune to sexually transmitted infections because of their age.
However minor an increase in HIV infection in older adults is, it will be compounded by the natural aging process of the baby boomers. We need strong government leadership that will acknowledge, support and implement programs for seniors, care providers and family members.
We need to create an environment in which we can openly discuss senior sexual health, disease prevention and management in a constructive and non-judgmental manner.
Otherwise, the health, dignity and well-being of our seniors will be at risk.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Michele Cauch is executive director of SageHealth Network Canada, which offers health promotion workshops focusing on older adults and care providers. sagehealthnetwork.com
TheStar.com - comment - Birds, bees and HIV – for seniors
August 17, 2007
Michele Cauch
(Original link http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/247081)
Recently, the Department of Aging in New York City has initiated sex education for seniors. The program gives away free condoms and offers free HIV testing in efforts to raise awareness of sexually transmitted infections among older adults.
Case in point, HIV was diagnosed in an 82-year-old in Washington, D.C. NYC has the most HIV cases of any U.S. city, nearly 100,000, and the city council has earmarked $1 million toward HIV education for older adults.
In contrast, Ontario has been lax in taking on a leadership role in educating older adults about HIV/AIDS. Seniors and HIV is an invisible danger no one wants to talk about or give any credence to.
Yet the threat is very real. Public Health Canada data show approximately 10 per cent of the positive HIV test reports in Canada each year since the beginning of the epidemic have been among those aged 50 years or older.
Compounding the danger of unchecked HIV/AIDS infection rates is the statistical proof of a major demographic shift. According to census results from Statistics Canada, seniors total 4.3 million, or 13.7 per cent of Canada's 31 million population, a huge cross-section.
In response to this future health risk, seniors and care providers need information now on the subject of sexuality. This is not the same old "birds and the bees" topic that used to make parents blush, but rather the unpleasant, cold, hard facts on sexually transmitted infections such as HIV, HPV, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and herpes, to name a few.
However, it's been an uphill battle to raise awareness in this population and their care providers. The biggest stumbling block is individuals who have the means to prevent access to information. Subjective announcements of "that doesn't happen here," or "that's not our concern" resound in nursing homes and retirement communities.
With respect to government agencies, no one wants to take ownership of this sensitive issue. The mandate of the government is young adults, who receive the bulk of sex education funding. While it would be unconscionable to downgrade the importance of such educational initiatives, we need to advocate and educate on senior sexual health also.
Education and prevention efforts must be aimed at three groups: First, older adults who are at risk of acquiring sexually transmitted infections in later life; second, older adults who acquired a sexually transmitted infection earlier in life and are aging with it; and third, senior care providers who must acknowledge the existence of senior sexuality and risk of unsafe sexual practices.
Seniors are not immune to sexually transmitted infections because of their age.
However minor an increase in HIV infection in older adults is, it will be compounded by the natural aging process of the baby boomers. We need strong government leadership that will acknowledge, support and implement programs for seniors, care providers and family members.
We need to create an environment in which we can openly discuss senior sexual health, disease prevention and management in a constructive and non-judgmental manner.
Otherwise, the health, dignity and well-being of our seniors will be at risk.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Michele Cauch is executive director of SageHealth Network Canada, which offers health promotion workshops focusing on older adults and care providers. sagehealthnetwork.com
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Condoms Can Be Fun, Too
Condoms Can Be Fun, Too
Promoting Condoms as Pleasurable Boosts Contraceptive Use, New Research Suggests
By DAN CHILDS
ABC News Medical Unit
Dec. 1, 2006 —
When it comes to setting the mood for safe sex, pleasure seems to be more of a motivation than fear of pregnancy or disease.
Authors of "Viewpoint" in this week's issue of leading U.K. medical journal The Lancet say campaigns promoting condom use should emphasize how they can enhance the "fun factor" of sex.
Touting the pleasure-enhancing benefits of certain condoms -- whether they be ribbed, textured or twisted -- would represent a divergence from conventional safe-sex promotion efforts, which usually focus on the adverse consequences of unprotected sex.
"Since pursuit of pleasure is one of the main reasons that people have sex, this factor must be addressed when motivating people to use condoms and participate in safer sexual behavior," the authors say in the "Viewpoint."
"Although enjoyment -- and even sex itself -- has been noticeably absent from much of the dialogue surrounding STI [sexually transmitted infections] and the spread of HIV, increasing evidence shows the importance of condom promotion that includes a combination of pleasure-based and safer sex messages."
Most experts told ABC News that they agreed that a new approach was needed to promote safer sex.
"Sole emphasis on disease prevention is no longer working," said Eli Coleman, professor and director of the Program in Human Sexuality at the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis. "The authors accurately point out the obvious -- that one of the main goals of having sex for humans is pleasure. It is important that we recognize that sexual health is more than the absence of disease."
Fear-promotion has not stopped the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
"Fear tactics have famously not worked. The spread of STIs is epidemic and devastating," said Gina Ogden, sex therapist and researcher and author of "The Heart and Soul of Sex: Making the ISIS Connection." "Since sex is about pleasure and fun, it makes sense that providing pleasurable, fun materials to make sex safer is a way to help stem STIs."
And condoms need all the public relations they can get.
It turns out the perception that condoms decrease sexual sensation is the key reason more people don't use them.
This finding comes from a study led by The Global Programme on AIDS, which looked at sexual behaviors in 14 countries.
Changing this perception, experts say, is crucial in appealing to those who value pleasure over prudence.
"People do have lots of negative connotations around condom use," said David Greenfield of the Healing Center, LLC, in West Hartford, Conn. "The reality is that people mostly have sex because it's fun and feels good. So why not just deal with that reality and stop pretending it's all about abstinence and reproduction?"
Some doctors have already started adapting a more pleasure-oriented approach to condoms.
"This is an approach that I have used in my practice when teaching women how to convince men to use condoms," said Dr. Hilda Hutcherson, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Columbia University in New York. "I recommend that they tell their partners that the condoms that they have chosen will increase their pleasure and make sex more fun."
Not everyone is sold on the approach, however.
"I am very skeptical that this will be effective in the long term, but it would certainly encourage men, including teenagers, to be more willing to try them and perhaps accept them," said Dr. Martin Kafka, associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard University in Boston.
Though shifting condom messages into more pleasurable territory may not be a silver bullet, Kafka says it may be worthwhile to try this approach.
"Any method or marketing strategy that encourages safer sex practices and reduces the risk of pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases is worthy of investigation," he said.
Could the Pleasure Message Appeal to Teens?
Though the study examined in "Viewpoint" dealt largely with HIV-prone populations in Africa, experts say the findings could also help tailor more effective safe sex messages directed at teens in the United States.
"Safer sex messages have been mired by a hesitation or fear that if we even promote condoms we might promote more sexual behavior, particularly among youth," Coleman said.
"However, there are a myriad of other factors that are influencing sexual behaviors and practices. Condom promotion has only helped increase responsible sexual behavior rather than encourage greater sexual activity," Coleman said.
Ogden says there is no basis for the idea that teaching teens about the pleasurable aspects of sex leads to promiscuity.
"In fact, when teens are taught responsible sex -- along with any other kind of responsibility, like wearing a seat belt and using directional signals when driving a car -- they tend to become safer, happier, more confident human beings," he said.
Such promotion efforts could resonate with teens, a demographic not typically known for its attention to messages on safety.
"Teens feel they are invincible," Coleman said. "They are not focused on reproduction or worried about getting old or sick. For those that are sexually active -- and most of them are -- they are looking for ways to enhance pleasure, develop relationships, and enhance their self esteem."
"Many adolescents and young adults are far more interested in being adventurous than practical or prudent, whether it's how they drive, how they snowboard, or how they act on their sexual urges," said Linda De Villers, licensed psychologist and author of "Love Skills: A Fun, Upbeat Guide to Sex-cessful Relationships."
Marketing the 'Sex Toys of the Future'
According to the "Viewpoint," condom brands that emphasize a ribbed or studded design to increase pleasure have sold well in Uganda, where HIV/AIDS remains a problem.
Thus, the authors write, adding pleasure into the equation has the potential to boost condom use even further, reducing the spread of disease.
Now, some say, the onus is on manufacturers to develop and promote new product lines -- ones that enhance stimulation for parties on both sides of the latex.
"It blows my mind that the condom companies themselves are so lacking in unique designs and interesting advertising plans," said Suzie Heumann, president of Tantra.com, Inc. and author of "The Everything Great Sex Book."
"Condoms could actually be the new sex toys of the future -- and without batteries -- with design changes, additions, and a new advert campaign," she said.
And shifting the focus to pleasure, Hutcherson says, makes condoms no less effective in preventing disease and pregnancy.
"All of this puts the focus on increased pleasure during sex, and the protection against STIs is a wonderful 'side effect' or bonus," Hutcherson said. "It seems to work better than the typical 'protection against STIs' message."
Copyright © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures
Promoting Condoms as Pleasurable Boosts Contraceptive Use, New Research Suggests
By DAN CHILDS
ABC News Medical Unit
Dec. 1, 2006 —
When it comes to setting the mood for safe sex, pleasure seems to be more of a motivation than fear of pregnancy or disease.
Authors of "Viewpoint" in this week's issue of leading U.K. medical journal The Lancet say campaigns promoting condom use should emphasize how they can enhance the "fun factor" of sex.
Touting the pleasure-enhancing benefits of certain condoms -- whether they be ribbed, textured or twisted -- would represent a divergence from conventional safe-sex promotion efforts, which usually focus on the adverse consequences of unprotected sex.
"Since pursuit of pleasure is one of the main reasons that people have sex, this factor must be addressed when motivating people to use condoms and participate in safer sexual behavior," the authors say in the "Viewpoint."
"Although enjoyment -- and even sex itself -- has been noticeably absent from much of the dialogue surrounding STI [sexually transmitted infections] and the spread of HIV, increasing evidence shows the importance of condom promotion that includes a combination of pleasure-based and safer sex messages."
Most experts told ABC News that they agreed that a new approach was needed to promote safer sex.
"Sole emphasis on disease prevention is no longer working," said Eli Coleman, professor and director of the Program in Human Sexuality at the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis. "The authors accurately point out the obvious -- that one of the main goals of having sex for humans is pleasure. It is important that we recognize that sexual health is more than the absence of disease."
Fear-promotion has not stopped the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
"Fear tactics have famously not worked. The spread of STIs is epidemic and devastating," said Gina Ogden, sex therapist and researcher and author of "The Heart and Soul of Sex: Making the ISIS Connection." "Since sex is about pleasure and fun, it makes sense that providing pleasurable, fun materials to make sex safer is a way to help stem STIs."
And condoms need all the public relations they can get.
It turns out the perception that condoms decrease sexual sensation is the key reason more people don't use them.
This finding comes from a study led by The Global Programme on AIDS, which looked at sexual behaviors in 14 countries.
Changing this perception, experts say, is crucial in appealing to those who value pleasure over prudence.
"People do have lots of negative connotations around condom use," said David Greenfield of the Healing Center, LLC, in West Hartford, Conn. "The reality is that people mostly have sex because it's fun and feels good. So why not just deal with that reality and stop pretending it's all about abstinence and reproduction?"
Some doctors have already started adapting a more pleasure-oriented approach to condoms.
"This is an approach that I have used in my practice when teaching women how to convince men to use condoms," said Dr. Hilda Hutcherson, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Columbia University in New York. "I recommend that they tell their partners that the condoms that they have chosen will increase their pleasure and make sex more fun."
Not everyone is sold on the approach, however.
"I am very skeptical that this will be effective in the long term, but it would certainly encourage men, including teenagers, to be more willing to try them and perhaps accept them," said Dr. Martin Kafka, associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard University in Boston.
Though shifting condom messages into more pleasurable territory may not be a silver bullet, Kafka says it may be worthwhile to try this approach.
"Any method or marketing strategy that encourages safer sex practices and reduces the risk of pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases is worthy of investigation," he said.
Could the Pleasure Message Appeal to Teens?
Though the study examined in "Viewpoint" dealt largely with HIV-prone populations in Africa, experts say the findings could also help tailor more effective safe sex messages directed at teens in the United States.
"Safer sex messages have been mired by a hesitation or fear that if we even promote condoms we might promote more sexual behavior, particularly among youth," Coleman said.
"However, there are a myriad of other factors that are influencing sexual behaviors and practices. Condom promotion has only helped increase responsible sexual behavior rather than encourage greater sexual activity," Coleman said.
Ogden says there is no basis for the idea that teaching teens about the pleasurable aspects of sex leads to promiscuity.
"In fact, when teens are taught responsible sex -- along with any other kind of responsibility, like wearing a seat belt and using directional signals when driving a car -- they tend to become safer, happier, more confident human beings," he said.
Such promotion efforts could resonate with teens, a demographic not typically known for its attention to messages on safety.
"Teens feel they are invincible," Coleman said. "They are not focused on reproduction or worried about getting old or sick. For those that are sexually active -- and most of them are -- they are looking for ways to enhance pleasure, develop relationships, and enhance their self esteem."
"Many adolescents and young adults are far more interested in being adventurous than practical or prudent, whether it's how they drive, how they snowboard, or how they act on their sexual urges," said Linda De Villers, licensed psychologist and author of "Love Skills: A Fun, Upbeat Guide to Sex-cessful Relationships."
Marketing the 'Sex Toys of the Future'
According to the "Viewpoint," condom brands that emphasize a ribbed or studded design to increase pleasure have sold well in Uganda, where HIV/AIDS remains a problem.
Thus, the authors write, adding pleasure into the equation has the potential to boost condom use even further, reducing the spread of disease.
Now, some say, the onus is on manufacturers to develop and promote new product lines -- ones that enhance stimulation for parties on both sides of the latex.
"It blows my mind that the condom companies themselves are so lacking in unique designs and interesting advertising plans," said Suzie Heumann, president of Tantra.com, Inc. and author of "The Everything Great Sex Book."
"Condoms could actually be the new sex toys of the future -- and without batteries -- with design changes, additions, and a new advert campaign," she said.
And shifting the focus to pleasure, Hutcherson says, makes condoms no less effective in preventing disease and pregnancy.
"All of this puts the focus on increased pleasure during sex, and the protection against STIs is a wonderful 'side effect' or bonus," Hutcherson said. "It seems to work better than the typical 'protection against STIs' message."
Copyright © 2007 ABC News Internet Ventures
Friday, July 27, 2007
Condom Give Aways in NYC
New York Gives Away Condoms, Offers AIDS Education to Senior Citizens
The Associated Press
July 25, 2007
As volunteers served desert at a senior center in New York City , other volunteers were distributing something else to the elderly: condoms.
"You're giving out condoms," said Rose Crescenzo, 82, "but who's going to give us a guy?"
The condom giveaway is part of an effort by the New York City Department of Aging to educate older people about the risks they may face of contracting the virus that causes AIDS. Free HIV testing was offered as well.
AIDS education of the elderly has become an important issue as antiretroviral drugs keep patients living longer. Experts warn that ignorance about HIV among seniors can lead to new infections.
In one case, a doctor from Howard University Hospital in Washington recently diagnosed unsuspected HIV in an 82-year-old.
"Often older people do not concern themselves with HIV and AIDS because they assume that they are not at risk, and that can be a tragic mistake," said Edwin Mendez-Santiago, New York City 's commissioner of aging.
A study last year by the AIDS Community Research Initiative of America projected that within the next decade, the majority of HIV-infected New Yorkers will be over 50.
The group's research found that many older New Yorkers with HIV are isolated and may not use the city's network of more than 300 senior centers.
New York City has the most HIV cases of any U.S. city — nearly 100,000 — and is considered a leader in the area of AIDS education for seniors, with the City Council having budgeted $1 million toward HIV education for older people.
But smaller-scale campaigns are also under way elsewhere.
Nancy Orel, a professor of gerontology at Bowling Green State University in Ohio , is organizing an October workshop for seniors that will include free condoms and HIV tests.
"Unfortunately, most individuals have the perception that sex ends at, what, 32?" Orel said. "And many older adults report that when they go to see their physicians, the physicians don't ask if they're sexually active."
Dorcas Baker, who directs an AIDS education center in Baltimore , said health officials there began HIV prevention programs at senior centers in 2005.
"We call it the silent epidemic because no one thinks seniors are sexual or that they're using drugs," she said.
Dr. Bernard Branson, associate director for laboratory diagnostics in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that people aged 50 to 64 accounted for 14 percent of new HIV diagnoses in 2005, while those over 65 comprised only about 2 percent of HIV diagnoses.
But Branson said doctors should consider the possibility of HIV at all ages.
At the senior center in New York, 66-year-old AIDS educator Edward Shaw recounted his own 1988 diagnosis and warned, "If you're still having sex, you need to know about HIV/AIDS."
Many of the seniors ignored him. But Marie Tarantino, who gave her age as "39-plus," said lonely seniors might take unwise risks.
"They might pick somebody up on the street," she said. "They just think that at a certain age they can't get pregnant. They don't think they could get a sexually transmitted disease."
And Crescenzo, who lost her husband of 62 years last October, did take the condoms.
"If I get a date," she said, "I'm going to use one of these."
The Associated Press
July 25, 2007
As volunteers served desert at a senior center in New York City , other volunteers were distributing something else to the elderly: condoms.
"You're giving out condoms," said Rose Crescenzo, 82, "but who's going to give us a guy?"
The condom giveaway is part of an effort by the New York City Department of Aging to educate older people about the risks they may face of contracting the virus that causes AIDS. Free HIV testing was offered as well.
AIDS education of the elderly has become an important issue as antiretroviral drugs keep patients living longer. Experts warn that ignorance about HIV among seniors can lead to new infections.
In one case, a doctor from Howard University Hospital in Washington recently diagnosed unsuspected HIV in an 82-year-old.
"Often older people do not concern themselves with HIV and AIDS because they assume that they are not at risk, and that can be a tragic mistake," said Edwin Mendez-Santiago, New York City 's commissioner of aging.
A study last year by the AIDS Community Research Initiative of America projected that within the next decade, the majority of HIV-infected New Yorkers will be over 50.
The group's research found that many older New Yorkers with HIV are isolated and may not use the city's network of more than 300 senior centers.
New York City has the most HIV cases of any U.S. city — nearly 100,000 — and is considered a leader in the area of AIDS education for seniors, with the City Council having budgeted $1 million toward HIV education for older people.
But smaller-scale campaigns are also under way elsewhere.
Nancy Orel, a professor of gerontology at Bowling Green State University in Ohio , is organizing an October workshop for seniors that will include free condoms and HIV tests.
"Unfortunately, most individuals have the perception that sex ends at, what, 32?" Orel said. "And many older adults report that when they go to see their physicians, the physicians don't ask if they're sexually active."
Dorcas Baker, who directs an AIDS education center in Baltimore , said health officials there began HIV prevention programs at senior centers in 2005.
"We call it the silent epidemic because no one thinks seniors are sexual or that they're using drugs," she said.
Dr. Bernard Branson, associate director for laboratory diagnostics in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that people aged 50 to 64 accounted for 14 percent of new HIV diagnoses in 2005, while those over 65 comprised only about 2 percent of HIV diagnoses.
But Branson said doctors should consider the possibility of HIV at all ages.
At the senior center in New York, 66-year-old AIDS educator Edward Shaw recounted his own 1988 diagnosis and warned, "If you're still having sex, you need to know about HIV/AIDS."
Many of the seniors ignored him. But Marie Tarantino, who gave her age as "39-plus," said lonely seniors might take unwise risks.
"They might pick somebody up on the street," she said. "They just think that at a certain age they can't get pregnant. They don't think they could get a sexually transmitted disease."
And Crescenzo, who lost her husband of 62 years last October, did take the condoms.
"If I get a date," she said, "I'm going to use one of these."
1/3 of sexually active older adults with HIV/AIDs has unprotected sex
One out of three sexually active older adults infected with HIV has unprotected sex, according to a study by Ohio University researchers. A survey of 260 HIV-positive older adults found that of those having sex, most were male, took Viagra and were in a relationship.
AIDs cases among the over-50 crowd reached 90,000 in 2003. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, they will account for half of all HIV/AIDS cases in the United States by 2015 because medical intervention has extended the lifespan of those infected with HIV. Additionally, drugs such as Viagra have made it possible for older adults to remain sexually active longer.
Past studies have shown that up to 65 percent of older adults ages 60 to 71 have sexual intercourse. Among older adults who are HIV-positive, according to the Ohio University findings, 38 percent are sexually active.
“Those who are more likely to engage in riskier behavior – for example, those who are using drugs – are more likely to have unprotected sex,” said graduate student Travis Lovejoy, who led the study along with Ohio University health psychologist Timothy Heckman. “What we don’t know yet is whether these individuals are in a monogamous relationship with someone else who is HIV positive and believe there is no risk of infection.”
The study also found that sexual activity was more prevalent among HIV-positive older adults who were not cognitively impaired, were younger and who considered their overall health to be good.
Because many older adults with HIV are not sexually active, those who do have unprotected sex account for just 13 percent of the overall number of infected people who are aged 50 or older. However, one-third of those who are sexually active have unprotected sex, which suggests that prevention efforts may need to be more highly targeted toward these individuals.
The behavioral information was pulled from a survey of 260 HIV-positive older adults who were participating in a study examining support groups. The study was funded by a three-year, $1.8 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute of Nursing Research.
Lovejoy presented the findings at the annual conference of the Society of Behavioral Medicine in March.
Source: Ohio University
This news is brought to you by PhysOrg.com. Original link: http://www.physorg.com/news96724718.html
AIDs cases among the over-50 crowd reached 90,000 in 2003. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, they will account for half of all HIV/AIDS cases in the United States by 2015 because medical intervention has extended the lifespan of those infected with HIV. Additionally, drugs such as Viagra have made it possible for older adults to remain sexually active longer.
Past studies have shown that up to 65 percent of older adults ages 60 to 71 have sexual intercourse. Among older adults who are HIV-positive, according to the Ohio University findings, 38 percent are sexually active.
“Those who are more likely to engage in riskier behavior – for example, those who are using drugs – are more likely to have unprotected sex,” said graduate student Travis Lovejoy, who led the study along with Ohio University health psychologist Timothy Heckman. “What we don’t know yet is whether these individuals are in a monogamous relationship with someone else who is HIV positive and believe there is no risk of infection.”
The study also found that sexual activity was more prevalent among HIV-positive older adults who were not cognitively impaired, were younger and who considered their overall health to be good.
Because many older adults with HIV are not sexually active, those who do have unprotected sex account for just 13 percent of the overall number of infected people who are aged 50 or older. However, one-third of those who are sexually active have unprotected sex, which suggests that prevention efforts may need to be more highly targeted toward these individuals.
The behavioral information was pulled from a survey of 260 HIV-positive older adults who were participating in a study examining support groups. The study was funded by a three-year, $1.8 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health and the National Institute of Nursing Research.
Lovejoy presented the findings at the annual conference of the Society of Behavioral Medicine in March.
Source: Ohio University
This news is brought to you by PhysOrg.com. Original link: http://www.physorg.com/news96724718.html
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