Health Promotion and Disease Prevention in the Elderly

Abstract: The papers in this collection discuss the health care needs of the elderly and the demands they make on the health care system. Since there are not enough acute or chronic care beds to accomodate projected needs, promoting health, controlling chronic illness, and delaying hospitalization or institutionalization should be primary goals of health care programs for the elderly. These chapters explore some of the ongoing research and the state of knowledge about health promotion and disease prevention and disease prevention activities. Geriatricians, internists, family doctors, and nutritionists should be particularly interested in these papers.