Poverty in men and women over the age of 65 has many different reasons; more women are affected by poverty than men, because for one women participate in the labor market differently than men. For the most part men work longer hours for more pay which results in a higher income from the government when they reach retirement.
The affect poverty has on the elderly can be severe in some cases; individuals that require medication must pay for their medication before anything else. Sometimes they cannot afford to buy enough food to obtain the proper nutrition needed for their bodies. The impact of poverty on nutrition is an important issue in every stage of life, and older adults are no exception. Poor nutrition caused by poverty plays an important role in health and well-being (http://www.genderandhealth.ca). The aging population cannot always stay as active as they should; there are important changes in nutritional requirements that occur with age including but not limited to, the energy needs decline as basal metabolic rates decrease (http://www.genderandhealth.ca).
The labor market is becoming more and more demanding when it comes to requiring more physically fit individuals; this causes older individuals to have a harder time finding work. Another demanding area is computer knowledge; the younger groups of individuals are more computer literate, in turn are granted the job before a person that would need more training from the company.
Poverty has tremendous long term effects on children; malnutrition in children can cause health problems for their entire life. USA TODAY suggests that a new study found certain brain functions of some low-income children pale in comparison with those of wealthy children. This study suggests the difference is equivalent to the damage from a stroke (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com).
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