Journal of Women & Aging最新文献

The study aimed to develop a physical fitness age score to assess motor function in community-dwelling elderly women and verify its validity. Principal component analysis was employed to build a physical fitness age score based on motor function variables. Validation test showed that the physical fitness age in the exercised older women was significantly lower than their chronological age, while no significant difference was observed between the physical fitness age and the chronological age in the normal elderly. The findings suggest that physical fitness age score is a valid approach to evaluate motor function in Chinese community-dwelling elderly women.

Aging women frequently use hair dye to disguise their age in order to avoid being stigmatized as "old". Recently, however, some have chosen naturally gray hair. Informed by Goffman's theory of stigma, we investigated why they would do so in the face of age-discrimination, and their experiences of the process. We identified two major, oppositional themes, competence and authenticity. Despite wanting to avoid perceptions of old-thus-incompetent, women risked gray hair in order to feel authentic. However, they employed other beauty practices to mitigate the effects of gray hair, indicating conflict between a (subjectively) authentic appearance and societal perceptions of competence.

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship of existential spirituality to identity processing, religious coping and mental and general health among younger and older aged women in Norway. Participant's included 120 women aged 31-91 who took part in a postal survey. Results showed that both accommodative and balancing identity processes were associated with existential well -being among both the younger and older aged. Among the younger - aged, mental health was also significantly associated with existential well-being, Moreover, among the older aged, religious coping in the form of discontent, was found to be associated with existential well-being.

This study aimed to determine whether body fat distribution and physical fitness would be associated with risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in post-menopausal females. Android fat distribution were more likely to have altered total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C), triglycerides (TG), glycemic levels (GL) body fat percentage (%BF), and body mass index (BMI), and those with inadequate physical fitness showed clear alterations in TC, HDL-C, and TG. Gynoid fat distribution group fared better regarding CVD risk. In conclusion, adequate physical fitness demonstrates a protective factor against CVDs, with the greatest benefit to those with gynoid fat distribution.

Cultural gerontology has developed critical work around cultural representations of age and aging and their role in the reproduction of ageism. However, the cultural industries as producers and disseminators of representations remain under researched. This paper draws on a focus group with four older women actors to argue that workforce allocation and assumptions about audience demographics intersect with cultural attitudes around women's aging to impact on older women actors' career opportunities. We argue that ageism within the cultural industries is limiting our ability to develop diverse and non-ageist cultural representation of women's aging.

Rejecting the association between aging and asexuality that persists in the UK's cultural representation of the female aging body, this paper reveals the importance of sensuality and maintaining physical agency to older women. It pays attention to the phenomena of participating in recreational burlesque classes to counter and negotiate potentially negative representations. Through in-depth interviews and researcher-as-participant observation, the paper explores the transformative possibilities mediated through participating in theatrically glamorized performance classes and the processes thereby initiated. The author examines the potential of burlesque to offer improvements to wellbeing and healthier self-perceptions for aging women experiencing marginalization through social invisibility.

This study explores how African American women understand and experience menopausal transition. Data were collected from 14 women in individual interviews and a focus group of seven participants. Transcripts were analyzed using content analysis. Black Feminist Thought and Womanist Thought were the frameworks used to understand the experiences of participants. Key themes emerged including silence as a form of survival, resilience amidst the chaos, socialization for self-preservation and empowerment, and reshaping and reclaiming womanhood. African American women need to be approached from a culturally sensitive care model to address their care during this phase and to optimize health outcomes.

This study investigates how the wellbeing trend in popular media regulates women's bodies and their selves through establishing norms around successful aging. We report on an exploratory qualitative content analysis of representations of wellbeing and aging from The Australian Women's Weekly (AWW) magazine. While some articles emphasized self-care and self-responsibility, many articulated relational and social/structural understandings of wellbeing. Compared with an earlier analysis of the AWW, our study found largely positive views of experiences of aging, associated with new opportunities and increased self-acceptance. These findings demonstrate how magazines both reflect and reinforce subtle processes of social change.

Aim of the study was to understand the relationship of menopausal status with BMI and blood pressure. The study area was selected through multistage sampling technique covering six districts of West Bengal, a state located at the eastern part of India. 1400 participants were selected for the study. The participants were divided into four groups on the basis of menopausal status: early and late perimenopausal; early and late postmenopausal. Results shows that menopausal status was significantly associated with Body Mass Index (BMI) and Mean Arterial Pressure (MAP), after controlling the effect of covariates such as participants' age, reproductive behavior, diet and addiction to tobacco use.