Question

Explain in detail why exercising at 96oF and 8000 ft. is more hazardous for elderly individuals

Answer 1

When you are older, body become less efficient at regulating temperature for a couple of reasons they don’t sweat as much as younger adults, also, seniors store fat differently, which complicates heat-regulation in the body, so as they exercise at hot weather their internal body temperatuire also rises, because of their impaired heat regulation system, this can result in heat stroke, heat syncope,( is a sudden dizziness that can happen when you are active in hot weather) heat exhausation ( is a warning that your body can no longer keep itself cool) which all can be very fatal if immediate measures are not taken. Too much heat is not safe for anyone. It is even riskier if you are older.

High altitude is defined as 8,000 - 12,000 feet above sea level, at these altitudes there is lower air pressure and lower oxygen level in the air, so if your body is not properly adapted it can result in altitude sickness, with symptoms like  shortness of breath at rest, inability to walk, confusion and fluid buildup in the lungs and/or brain. Elderly have reductions in ventilatory capacity and efficiency, it means they have reduced capacity to eliminate metabolised CO2. and they also have reduced hypoxic ventilatory drive, that may impair the normal adaptive response to altitude. So in general adults have reduced exercise capacity at high altitude and they take more time for adaptation to take place so under these condition it becomes very dangerous for adults to exercise at high altitudes unless the body is properly adapted to these conditions. High altitude pulmonary edema is a serious conditon which can occur to adults when exercising at high altitudes.