Gastro Intestinal Tract Problems among Ageing Adults

Gastro Intestinal Tract Problems among Ageing Adults *Dr. Kirti Sharma, Project Fellow, Department of Home Science, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur **Dr. Shubha Dube, Associate Professor, Department of Home Science, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur The process of ageing begins at birth and continues throughout life. Many physiological and psychological changes occur with age. There are significant changes in gastrointestinal function that occur in geriatric patients. With increasing age, there is reduced or impaired co-ordination of contraction of the muscular wall of the various parts of the gastrointestinal tract which is also aggravated by the various co-morbidities and adverse effect of many medications, leading to other problems. This research work investigates the severity of Gastro Intestinal disorders among the ageing adults. For the present study the sample comprised of N= 400 ageing adults both males and females, in the age range of 65 to 75 years belonging to rural and urban setting of Jaipur district (n = 200 urban, i. e 100=males, 100=females and n = 200 rural i. e.100= males and 100=females). Cornell Medical Index Health Questionnaire (Wig et al, 1999) was used to assess Gastro Intestinal disorders among the respondents. The prevalence of Gastro Intestinal disorders were high in urban ageing adults as compared to rural ageing adults. An ulcer which is a sore or lesion that forms in the lining of the stomach was found to be slightly less in rural population. The dramatic increase in the life expectancy over the last few years demand that awareness should be there for all of physiological and psychological problems in ageing population.