Be careful how you refer to older people. Your words may become your destiny when you are older.

According to a recent HealthDayNews article: Seniors who tend to think of other older people as spry instead of decrepit are far more likely to bounce back after a serious disability than people with a more negative outlook, according to a new study. Older people who had positive age stereotypes were 44 percent more likely to recover completely from a severe disability. They also were 23 percent more likely to progress from a severe disability to a mild disability.

Interesting stuff first published as a research letter in the Nov. 21 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

What five words would you use to describe older people?

(S-R archive photo of Betty White)

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