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Middle age

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This article is about the stage of human development. For the historical period, seeMiddle Ages.For other uses, seeMiddle Ages (disambiguation).
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Middle age,ormiddle adulthood,is the age range of the years halfway betweenchildhoodandold age.[1]The exact range is subject to academic debate, but the term is commonly used to denote the age range from around 40–45 to around 60–65 years.[2][3][4][5]Many changes may occur between young adulthood and this stage.[6][7][8]This phase of life is marked by gradual physical, cognitive, and social decline in individuals as theyage.

Overall

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This time span is generally referred to as "middle age" and can be defined as the time of ages about 40–45 to about 60–65.[2][3][9][10][11]Many changes may occur between young adulthood and this stage.[12][13][14]There is no universal consensus on what the exact definition of middle age is, but usual characteristics include the beginning of rapid decline of fertility, graying of hair, and lessening of opportunities.

Those in middle age continue to develop relationships and adapt to changes in relationships. Such changes are highly evident in the maturing relationships between growing or grown children and aging parents. Community involvement is fairly typical of this stage of adulthood,[15]as is continued career development.

Physical characteristics

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Middle-aged adults may begin to show visible signs ofaging.This process can be more rapid in women who haveosteoporosis.[citation needed]Changes might occur in the nervous system. The ability to perform complex tasks remains intact. In the normal range of 45 to 55, women experiencemenopause,which ends natural fertility.[16][17]Menopause can have many side effects. Changes can occur toskin,and other changes may include a decline inphysical fitness,including a reduction in aerobic performance, a decrease in maximal heart rate, and graying and loss of hair. Sensory sensitivity in middle-aged adults has been shown to be one of the lowest.[18]These measurements are generalities, and people may exhibit changes at different rates and times.[19]

Mortality rates can begin to increase, due mainly to health issues like heart problems,cancer,hypertension,anddiabetes.[15]Still, the majority of middle-aged people in industrialized nations can expect to live intoold age.

Starting around age 35, pregnant women are considered to be of advanced maternal age, and significant declines in fertility begin to occur that usually end with menopause around age 50.[20]

Middle-aged urban adults who are experiencing frailty and poverty show an association with increased H2O2induced oxidativeDNA damage.[21]

Cognitive

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Erik Erikson refers to this period of adulthood as generativity versus stagnation, the seventh of eight stages ofErikson's stages of psychosocial development.People in middle age may experience some cognitive loss, which usually remains unnoticeable because life experiences and strategies get developed to compensate for any decrease in mental abilities.[22]

During this stage, adults often strive to have things that will outlast them. Generativity, which is the concern and the commitment middle-aged people have forfuture generations,is a big part of development during this stage.[23]

Social and personality characteristics

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For some, marital satisfaction remains intact, but other family relationships can become more difficult. Career satisfaction focuses more on inner satisfaction and contentedness and less on ambition and the desire to advance.[15]Even so, career changes occur often. Middle age can be a time when people reexamine their lives by taking stock and evaluating their accomplishments. Morality may change and become more conscious.[24]The perception that those in this stage of development of life undergo a so-called midlife crisis is a largely false one.[25]Personality characteristics remain stable throughout this period,[1]and relationships in middle age may continue to evolve into connections that are stable.[15]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ab"APA PsycNet".psycnet.apa.org.Archivedfrom the original on 2020-01-02.Retrieved2016-09-25.
  2. ^ab"Middle Age: definition of middle age in Oxford dictionary (American English) (US)".Oxforddictionaries.Archived fromthe originalon October 14, 2014.Retrieved2016-06-15.
  3. ^ab"Definition of MIDDLE AGE".merriam-webster.Archivedfrom the original on 2016-10-27.Retrieved2022-10-04.
  4. ^"The Language Of Ageism: Understanding How We Talk About Older People".Dictionary.2021-05-19.Retrieved2023-07-13.When ismiddle age?We definemiddle ageas "the period of human life between youth and old age, sometimes considered as the years between 45 and 65 or thereabout." Given the different views on when old age begins, it shouldn't surprise you to learn that the exact range of middle age is not set in stone either. In general, our age range of "45 to 65" is around the age range generally used to say when middle age supposedly occurs. Polling shows that people may think middle age begins later or earlier depending on who you ask.
  5. ^"Story: Midlife adults".teara.govt.nz.
  6. ^Gordon-Salant, Sandra;Frisina, Robert D.; Fay, Richard R.; Popper, Arthur (3 May 2010).The Aging Auditory System.Springer Science & Business Media.ISBN9781441909947.Archivedfrom the original on 19 March 2023.Retrieved1 November2020– via Google Books.
  7. ^Infurna, F. J.; Gerstorf, D.; Lachman, M. E. (2020)."Midlife in the 2020s: Opportunities and Challenges".The American Psychologist.75(4): 470–485.doi:10.1037/amp0000591.PMC7347230.PMID32378943.
  8. ^Lachman, M. E. (2015)."Mind the Gap in the Middle: A Call to Study Midlife".Research in Human Development.12(3–4): 327–334.doi:10.1080/15427609.2015.1068048.PMC4734389.PMID26848288.
  9. ^Middle ageArchived2017-07-12 at theWayback Machine.CollinsDictionary.Collins English Dictionary– Complete & Unabridged 11th Edition. Retrieved December 05, 2012.
  10. ^"APA Dictionary of Psychology".dictionary.apa.org.Archivedfrom the original on 2018-04-27.Retrieved2022-10-04.
  11. ^"middle age | psychology | Britannica".britannica.Archivedfrom the original on 2022-10-04.Retrieved2022-10-04.
  12. ^Gordon-Salant, Sandra;Frisina, Robert D.; Fay, Richard R.; Popper, Arthur (3 May 2010).The Aging Auditory System.Springer Science & Business Media.ISBN9781441909947.Archivedfrom the original on 19 March 2023.Retrieved1 November2020– via Google Books.
  13. ^Infurna, F. J.; Gerstorf, D.; Lachman, M. E. (2020)."Midlife in the 2020s: Opportunities and Challenges".The American Psychologist.75(4): 470–485.doi:10.1037/amp0000591.PMC7347230.PMID32378943.
  14. ^Lachman, M. E. (2015)."Mind the Gap in the Middle: A Call to Study Midlife".Research in Human Development.12(3–4): 327–334.doi:10.1080/15427609.2015.1068048.PMC4734389.PMID26848288.
  15. ^abcdStern, Theodore (2016).Massachusetts General Hospital comprehensive clinical psychiatry.London: Elsevier.ISBN978-0-323-29507-9.
  16. ^Bourgeois, F. John; Gehrig, Paola A.; Veljovich, Daniel S. (1 January 2005).Obstetrics and Gynecology Recall.Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.ISBN9780781748797.Archivedfrom the original on 10 January 2023.Retrieved1 November2020– via Google Books.
  17. ^"What is Menopause?".
  18. ^Harkins, S. W.; Price, D. D.; Martelli, M. (1986-01-01). "Effects of Age on Pain Perception: Thermonociception".Journal of Gerontology.41(1): 58–63.doi:10.1093/geronj/41.1.58.ISSN0022-1422.PMID3941257.
  19. ^Leyk, Dieter; Rüther, Thomas; Wunderlich, Max; et al. (2010-11-19)."Physical Performance in Middle Age and Old Age".Deutsches Ärzteblatt Online.107(46): 809–816.doi:10.3238/arztebl.2010.0809.ISSN1866-0452.PMC2999945.PMID21151416.
  20. ^staff, familydoctor org editorial; Rice, Alex; Rice, Alex (September 7, 2017)."Pregnancy After 35: Advanced Maternal Age".familydoctor.org.Archivedfrom the original on October 4, 2022.RetrievedOctober 4,2022.
  21. ^Smith JT, Noren Hooten N, Mode NA, Zonderman AB, Ezike N, Kaushal S, Evans MK (September 2023)."Frailty, sex, and poverty are associated with DNA damage and repair in frail, middle-aged urban adults".DNA Repair (Amst).129:103530.doi:10.1016/j.dnarep.2023.103530.PMID37437502.
  22. ^Gordon-Salant, Sandra;Frisina, Robert D.; Fay, Richard R.; Popper, Arthur (3 May 2010).The Aging Auditory System.Springer Science & Business Media.ISBN9781441909947– via Google Books.
  23. ^"APA PsycNet".psycnet.apa.org.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-05-26.Retrieved2021-05-26.
  24. ^Kellner, Douglas; Habermas, Jurgen (March 1992). "Moral Consciousness and Communicative Action".Contemporary Sociology.21(2): 278.doi:10.2307/2075511.ISSN0094-3061.JSTOR2075511.
  25. ^Levenson, Michael R.; Aldwin, Corolyn M. (2014), "Change in Personality Processes and Health Outcomes",Handbook of Personality Development,Routledge,doi:10.4324/9781315805610.ch21,ISBN978-1-315-80561-0

Further reading

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Middle age 		Succeeded by
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