During the last quarter of the twentieth century, there has been a growing interest in health issues and older people. Although older people make considerable use of health and welfare services, researchers, practitioners and policy makers often forget that the majority of them live active and healthy lifestyles, taking care of themselves with a minimum of formal support. Self care is therefore crucial to the maintenance of well-being yet it has often been neglected when considering later life.

This book explores the theory, extent and practice of self health care in later life. It brings together literature from the areas of health education and promotion, self help and self care, and gerontology, in order to provide an overview of the main research approaches and developments in this field. It critically examines the self health care practices and capacities of older people, using illustrative results from an ongoing innovative action research project.

Promoting Health in Old Age is aimed at students taking courses on gerontology, nursing, medicine, social work, social sciences and women's studies. It will also be of interest to practitioners in the field and those involved in the planning and delivery of services to older adults.