Even the NIH…

Are you as tired as I am of everyone talking down to anyone over the age of 65 as if we were children who had difficulty understanding even the simplest of verbal and printed information?

The most recent egregious offender is the senior health web site from the NIH. You can take a look at this yourself at www.nihseniorhealth.gov. T – A – L – K       A – B – O – U – T        S – P – E – A – K – I – N – G         S – L – O – W – L – Y enough so that we obviously addled brain 65+ year olds can understand – the site is actually insulting.

From the exercise section of the site:

Exercise for Older Adults

Benefits of Exercise

“Congratulations! You are joining an elite team of women and men who appreciate that exercise is one of the healthiest things you can do.
(For more, click below on “Next Page.”)”

Gee, glad you told me…

“Frequently Asked Questions

2. What is the difference between exercise and physical activity?

Exercise is physical activity that follows a planned format using repeated movements to improve or maintain fitness. Exercise progress can be scored and counted. Physical activity is any voluntary body movement that burns calories.”

So happy to know that…

Take a look at this video that purports to teach seniors how to peform endurance exercises, for example

Before I get flamed at this blog, I know there are many seniors who do have mental and physical problems that make comprehension difficult. And I do know that much of what is posted at “official” web sites is under the scrutiny of their legal departments – the same legal departments that insisted that a warning label be placed on coffee cups at MacDonald’s that informed that coffee is hot – but just once, somewhere, I’d like to see us treated as alert, intelligent, effective, individuals who had the capacity to understand complete sentences.

Larry