I know I’ve written about this subject in the past, but I believe it’s important enough to revisit occasionally. Suffice to say that any word that ends in “ism” does not describe something positive. Consider such words as racism, sexism, terrorism, chauvinism, fanaticism, antisemitism, ableism, and ageism. All have deeply negative connotations. For our purposes, let us take another look at ageism.

In general, ageism refers to stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination towards others and ourselves based on age. That alone is bad enough, but you’d be surprised at how many different varieties of ageism there are.

• Implicit ageism is the unconscious bias towards people of other age groups that takes place without our even being aware of it.
• Interpersonal ageism includes ageist comments and behavior that are based on stereotypes.
• Benevolent ageism consists of patronizing, paternalistic beliefs that older people need to be protected because they are no longer able to care for or make decisions for themselves.
• Cultural ageism is the everyday, invisible, ingrained, negative messages about aging and old people that are reflected in movies, TV, songs, jokes, etc.
• Institutional ageism is unfair age-based restrictions in laws, policies, and practices of public and private institutions.
• And finally, internalized ageism, is how we feel about ourselves as aging people and how we marginalize and discriminate against other older people.

When we are experiencing one or more of these types of ageism, we don’t always recognize what’s going on. We may not realize that ageism is one of the most widespread and socially accepted forms of prejudice or that negative ideas about age are often internalized by children at a very young age.

Ageism is harmful to our health and longevity. For one thing, it intersects and exacerbates all the other isms, including racism, sexism, and ableism. We hear a lot about the importance of our attitudes on how well we age. The single most important factor in determining how long we live—more important than gender, income, social background, loneliness, or health—is how we think about old age. Older adults with positive attitudes about aging live 7.5 years longer than those with less positive attitudes.

Ageism also harms our financial well-being. Older workers face longer periods of unemployment, discrimination in hiring, and fewer professional development opportunities.

Ageism in the media is pervasive. Only a small percentage of characters on television are older people, and most of them have minor roles and are often portrayed for comic effect. In the media, older adults are underrepresented and more often portrayed using negative stereotypes. Ageism in marketing and advertising is no better. Only an estimated five to ten percent of marketing budgets are devoted to winning over older people.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that ageism in American medicine is a matter of life and death. Negative stereotypes often result in less effective care, such as denial of treatment options, underdiagnosis of depression, and mismanaged pain.

• Older adults are not included in clinical trials and are less likely to receive preventive care. Pain is consistently under-treated in older adults in some areas and overtreated in others, including testing and procedures.
• Medication-related problems are estimated to be one of the top five causes of death in older adults, as well as a major cause of confusion, depression, falls, disability, and loss of independence.
• One out of five adults over the age of fifty experiences discrimination in healthcare settings. Frequent healthcare discrimination is associated with new or worsened disability within four years.
• Ageism or age discrimination has been linked to an increase in stress and anxiety. People aged sixty or older who have experienced ageism are more likely to have poorer mental health than those who do not perceive or experience ae discrimination.
• Health care for older adults isn’t adequately funded or compensated and is not valued as a profession. By 2025, this country will need about. 33,200 geriatricians to care for older patients. Currently, only 50 percent of geriatricians practice full-time. Less than 1 percent of grant funds go to causes related to age.

Ageism in the workplace affects not only older workers but also the companies that employ them.

• Sixty-four percent of older workers believe that they face age discrimination and 41 percent report experiencing ageism in their workplace.
• The economic cost of age discrimination against older workers was estimated to be $850 billion in lost GDP in 2018.
• Age diversity is rarely included in workplace initiatives. However, addressing age equity would increase workers’ feelings of belonging and productivity.

All “isms” are harmful to the groups they target. Nobody wins—neither the perpetrators nor the victims—when prejudice exists, whether it is conscious, intentional, malicious, or not. It is a tragic waste of accumulated experience and wisdom when the recipients are our senior citizens. What is even sadder is that this occurs in few other countries of the world.