A study of Elderly Life Experiences as Potential Conditions for Reducing Risk Factors of Chronic Diseases

Introduction: The human life span has different phases, the final stage of which is old age, is not itself a disease, but elderly people are more liable to chronic illnesses than young people. Many chronic diseases affect all aspects of the elderly life and this indicates the need for the continuous or periodic changes in the physical, occupational and social activities. This research aimed to study the elderly life experiences as potential conditions for reducing risk factors of chronic diseases.

Materials and Methods: This study applied phenomenology method. The purposive sampling was conducted among those elderly came to the parks to spend their spare time and they interviewed deeply. The data was analyzed through Colaizzi method.

Results: The interviews were analyzed and the related concepts were extracted as the initial codes that were classified in to 5 themes including: leisure time, spending time, freshness, peace of mind and memories.

Conclusions: Of primary concern are age-associated changes and the presence of multiple chronic diseases. Moreover, the healthy life style in an ageing period requires increasing the expertise and attention of all chairmen and planners especially in the public education field. This study showed that everyday activities of the elderly are a stroll in the park to help the m to prevent chronic diseases.