Most older adults always complain about fatigue, although it is an issue that has been
Fatigue is the lack of both mental and physical motivation and energy. When one is fatigued, he or she often complains of feeling tired. Fatigue is commonly confused with drowsiness, which is a term that explains that one needs to sleep. Markedly, there are various potential causes of fatigue, including lifestyle aspects, physical health conditions, and mental health issues. Lifestyle factors are aspects like being obese, lack of sleep, lack of physical activity, physical exertion, grief, boredom, and taking some medications. Physical health conditions that contribute to fatigue entail liver disease, kidney disease, anemia, cancer, insomnia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and eating disorders. Mental health aspects like seasonal affective disorder, depression, and anxiety can also result in fatigue. Notably, fatigue is amongst the most commonly reported symptoms which get reported in primary care, and the elderly perceive it as distressing and overwhelming experience. Fatigue is a common complaint about the elderly, and several types of research show that it contributes to adverse health outcomes, mainly for older adults.
Negative health outcomes of fatigue in the elderly
Performance deterioration is one of the key negative impacts of fatigue amongst the aged. Notably, a study conducted by Simonsick, Schrack, Glynn, & Ferrucci (2014) shows that fatigue made the aged less active. The study had 588 participants for evaluating performance deterioration, amongst whom 134 had slowed performance. The 588 elderly individuals participated in a 400 m walk, but before completing the task, 93 of them slowed down between the second and ninth laps. Then, after approximately a 2.5-minute walk, 31 of the participants stopped. This was influenced by fatigue, and the individuals who were showing performance deterioration mainly had more symptoms of fatigue. Markedly, fatigue symptoms were not dependent on sex, race, smoking history, or obesity.
Then, fatigue also increases the rate of perceived exertion. Amongst the 470 participants in the perceived exertion study, almost 32% of them had a Borg rate of perceived exertion of 10 or more when they had a fine minute walk at 0.67 meters per second. The average RPE Borg scores were 9. The individuals who reported RPE of 10 or more showed fatigue symptoms, and they reported low walking ability. An increase in RPE score resulted in a 15% chance of the individual reporting a fatigue symptom (Simonsick et al., 2014). Therefore, the physical activity one can get involved in at younger ages is considerably low compared to what they can do at an old age since one gets tired very quickly.
Avlund, Schultz‐Larsen, Christiansen, & Holm‐Pedersen (2011) explain that tooth loss for older adults aged 70 years or more is associated with fatigue in a non-disabled community-dwelling. In the study conducted by Avlund et al., (2011), only 19% of the participants had 20 or more teeth, with the most substantial proportion of the participants being edentulous. Moreover, the fatigue symptoms were more prevalent amongst individuals of different ages, and the fatigue symptoms increased with age. For instance, about 50% of the participants felt tired while conducting their daily activities at the age of 70, while 86% of women and 77% of men felt tired while doing their actions at the age of 85 (Avlund et al., 2011). Thus, there is a bivariate association on the number of teeth and fatigue as one gets older.
Fatigue also results in stress, which is the natural feeling of not having the capability to handle certain events and demands in life. Markedly, the study shows that fatigue can result in the loss of a few teeth, which increases the chances of frailty. Frailty refers to the physiological state of being vulnerable to stressing factors that result from low physiological reserves (Avlund et al., 2011). Similarly, the aspects can lead to dysregulation of numerous physiological systems.
Fatigue can also result in depression. Markedly, an older person, gets tired quickly for engaging in any activities. This can be frustrating, especially if an individual was active in the earlier days of life. Moreover, it results in one remaining seated all the time and barely engaging in any physical activity. Furthermore, boredom accelerates fatigue amongst individuals, which worsens the entire situation further.
Furthermore, fatigue increases the chances of disability amongst the elderly. Whitson et al. (2011) explain that tiredness in daily activities is significantly linked with a subsequent disability, especially when adjusted with walking limitations. Markedly, fatigue causes the initial dysregulation within various psychological and physiological systems, which can be a subjective indication for frailty. Moreover, the muscle strength declines in old age, which results in a decreased physical activity level, lower dietary protein, and low steroid hormones. Additionally, most aged individuals need to use a walking stick because the weakening of muscle strength is critical in walking ability. Therefore, since one can quickly get tired and the muscle strength significantly declined due to old age, the chances of becoming disabled are considerably high.
Problem definition
Fatigue, which is a perception that one does not have sufficient energy levels to meet what they demand is a common symptom for the elderly. Markedly, fatigue is commonly associated with adverse health outcomes and poor quality of life (Ekmann, Osler & Avlund, 2012). In addition to the poor physical functioning of an individual, fatigue increases mortality rates amongst the elderly. Notably, every person feels tired from time to time, but most people, after a good night’s sleep or taking good rest they feel re-energized. Nonetheless, as one reaches the age of 50 or more years, the energy levels are not as high as when they were younger. Study shows that more than 30% of the people aged 51 years and above experience fatigue often (Ekmann, Osler & Avlund, 2012). One reason why fatigue is more prevalent amongst the aged is due to the medical issues which come with age. Markedly, fatigue is commonly caused by ailments or adverse effects of medical or surgical treatment. Common ailments that result in fatigue include multiple sclerosis, thyroid disease, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic renal failure, hepatitis, infections, ischemic heart disease, and obstructive pulmonary disease (Ekmann, Osler, & Avlund, 2012). With age and an individual’s immunity weakness. Which increases the chances of one getting infected with one or more of this ailments
Study Hypothesis
Fatigue is a common condition amongst the elderly, and it is commonly
Why fatigue is an issue mainly amongst the elderly
Several scholars have done various studies on fatigue, especially in aged people. Brown et al., (2017) explains that the depressive symptoms and muscle fatigability which
Happens as one gets older can be the leading causes of fatigue amongst the aged. Markedly, fatigability refers to the extent to which performance reduces for any activity over a given duration and intensity. Moreover, Brown et al., (2017) explain that depression increases the chances of fatigue. Furthermore, fatigability is believed to increase the chances of one getting tired quickly. Depression is an intense public health issue, especially in later life, and t has a close correlation with mortality. Markedly, fatigue tends to be more prevalent with age, and the chances of people with depression disorders getting more tired are high. According to the prevailing fatigue model, fatigue interferes with the daily activities which an individual does. Notably, as one grows old, the body goes through numerous age-related changes, and the body needs more energy to maintain homeostasis. Fatigability entails the measurement of exertion on given activities within a given duration, and as aforementioned, fatigue increases the physical exertion of an individual.
To explain the issue of the relationship between depressive disorders and fatigability, Brown et al., (2017) did a study that comprised of 3075 individuals who were aged between 70 and 79 years. The study took three years, and the participants were asked not to limit their motion range when the fatigue test was being done. This would help in getting a maximal effort from the first and last contractions without the patients pacing themselves. The study showed that for different depressive groups, the characteristics of frailty, cognition, medical comorbidity, and demographics differed. Blacks and females who had lower education attainment depicted more prevalence of medical comorbidities, especially cardiovascular and respiratory ailments.
Therefore. The severity of depressive symptoms increases the chances of an individual getting fatigued. Brown et al., (2017) showed that there is a close association between increased depressive symptoms and muscle fatigability, especially amongst the aged adults.
Avlund (2004) explains that the aging process is dynamic, and it comprises numerous changes in the steps of the disablement process. The dynamic changes in functional ability as one ages give an individual more ability on the aging process than the functional ability, which is measured at a given point in time. Markedly, there is a general decline in functionality as one grows old, resulting in disability. Nonetheless, the study also shows that most aged people recover from the disability they have regardless of age (Avlund, 2004). Markedly, there is usually an increased rate of chronic ailments and poor self-rated health, especially for people above the age of 65. Notably, the critical aspect of health is that an individual should be able to look after himself or herself. Therefore, for the aged who have weakened muscles and find it hard to watch after themselves, it becomes difficult to watch after their health. Consequently, this can result in one having disabilities or other health complications, which increases the chances of an individual getting tired often.
Fatigue assessment
Sex and age are the key aspects that can be used to assess the fatigue rates amongst different individuals. As aforementioned, one an individual attains the age of 51, and above, they tend to get tired more often. That could be because their muscles are not as strong as they used to be before, and they also have higher chances of getting various ailments. Moreover, women get more tired than men. Notably, several diseases follow a social gradient, with gender being a key determining factor in an individual’s vulnerability to a given condition.
Physical activity is commonly linked to fatigue. Graded exercise therapy acts as an effective therapy in the treatment of fatigue amongst individuals; markedly, individuals involved in low physical activities are commonly fatigued. People should understand that excessive exercise can increase one’s chances of getting chronic fatigue syndrome (Engberg, Segerstedt, Waller, Wennberg & Eliasson, 2017). Thus, to mitigate this, individuals must exercise using the guidelines of a qualified trainer or therapist. That will ensure one does the required exercises to reduce fatigue, and not to increase it.
Furthermore, socioeconomic status, like education, is also a critical aspect that can assess fatigue amongst different individuals. Engberg et al. (2017) explain that individuals who have attained a university degree in education have lower mean fatigue levels amongst men. The same case applied to women with university degrees. Markedly, the more learned an individual is, the greater the exposure they have, which means that they are more cautious about what they eat, the physical activities they are involved in, and other lifestyle activities that can result in fatigue.
Additionally, a study conducted by Engberg et al., (2017) shows that individuals who have longer self-reported sitting duration are commonly associated with higher fatigue scores. Markedly, sedentary behaviors are distinct from physical inactivity, and most studies link it to high fatigue instances. Notably, people should avoid sedentary behaviors to avoid high fatigue levels and avoid other ailments like depression, cardiovascular illness, and diabetes mellitus. Markedly, when an individual lowers the chances of getting these ailments, they similarly m people with better self-rated health have low fatigue scores.
Description of assessment
Notably, despite fatigue being widespread in societies and getting reported commonly in primary care, several factors can be used to assess different individuals’ fatigue levels. The factors include gender, social, economic status, how often an individual gets involved in physical activities, and the amount of time a person spends sited down. Markedly, women have high fatigue levels as compared to men. Moreover, the individuals who had high social, economic status had lower chances of fatigue. Furthermore, individuals who are engaged in more physical activity have high fatigue rates. Additionally, the longer an individual spent sited down, the higher the fatigue level.
Outcomes
Markedly, the main aim of this study was an overview of health outcomes due to fatigue. Although everyone gets tired from time to time, the fatigue levels are higher, especially in people aged fifty years and above. Fatigue is caused by various causes, including excessive sedentary activities, not engaging in physical exercises, and weak muscular muscles. It can also be a symptom of a specific ailment that an individual has.
Markedly, physical activities act as protective measures against functional decline. It does not necessarily mean an individual going to the gym, and can involve both light and vigorous activities. Examples of light physical exercise entail housework, short bicycle rides, short walks, and light gardening. Vigorous physical exercises comprise of acts like heavy gardening, long walks, long bicycle rides, gymnastics, and other sporting activities.
Social relations also impact the fatigue scores for an individual. Notably, people who engage in outdoor leisure time activities have lower fatigue scores than people who do indoor activities. Some people are involved in activities like cleaning the community, playing football, visiting the museum, and several such activities twice or more times monthly. Nilsson, Siersma, Mänty, Avlund, Vass & Lund (2014) explain that such individuals have low fatigue levels. Similarly, people who live with someone in their houses, or engage in other social activities where they meet people often have low chances of getting fatigued. That is because speaking out makes one more relaxed, which reduced the chances of one getting overwhelmed.
Discussion
Considering that fatigue levels are higher amongst the elderly and that it hinders their functionality, we hypotheses that fatigue is dependent on various factors, and it can happen as a result of different aspects. Markedly, the leading cause of fatigue amongst the elderly is the weakening of muscles, which makes them get tired after engaging in any slight activity. That explains why most of them could not complete the 400m walk in a previous study. Similarly, weakening muscles makes one prone to a disability because it is easy to hurt oneself. Additionally, with age, one increases the amount spent on sedentary activities, which increases fatigue levels. Moreover, most of the aged people stay by themselves, and the boredom can increase the chances of getting fatigued. Nonetheless, people have different levels of fatigue, depending on various factors. Females get more tired than males, and people with higher social, economic status like education also have low fatigue levels. Moreover, individuals who engage in physical activities have minimal fatigue levels.
Conclusion
Fatigue is the tendency where the energy if an individual decreases, and the situation is more rampant amongst the aged population because of various factors. Markedly, as one advances with age, the muscular muscles become weaker, one does not have much on self-health, spends more time sitting, and barely does any physical activity. Therefore, people with higher education who engage in more physical activity, have little sedentary activities, and are cautious of their health have low fatigue scores.