The Medicalization Of Aging
Medicalization
Medicalization is the process of turning certain aspects of human life into a medical problem, whereas it was traditionally not considered a problem (Maturo, 2012). Medicalization is not a new concept to sociologists and psychologists, and it is not limited to the physical body. Ivan Illich, an esteemed philosopher, used to term iatrogenesis to describe many diagnoses as an overextension of medical categories on every day life, mental and physical. A practical example of psychological medicalization given by Illich is the decreasing tolerance for psychological discomfort and sadness, resulting in an increase of clinical depression diagnosis. An example of anatomical medicalization is the medicalization of beauty.
Engines of Medicalization
According to Peter Conrad's "The Medicalization of Society: On the Transformation of Human Conditions into Treatable Diseases", there are several "engines of medicalization" (2007). Conceptual Medicalization is the process of medicalization through the description of non-medical conditions using medical lexicons. Institutional Medicalization is the process of medical professionals influencing non-medical personnels. Interactional Medicalization is the redefinition of a social problem into a medical one through physicians' interaction with patients. Conrad also describes an engine that pertains to the profitability of medicalization.
History and Rise of Medicalization
The modern conception of medicalization takes root in works of renowned thinkers such as Irving Goffman, Ivan Illich, and Michel Foucault during early and mid-1970s. These scholars rejected the push for a "medical model" of social analysis that relied heavily on science and medicine for identifying social and individual issues. The rise of medicalization during this time was not by random. During the 1970s, Western medicine has witnessed 30 years of unprecedented advancement, so societies were only learning to manage their expectations for medicine. Many would agree society and governments have a much more reserved attitude towards medicine, exemplified by campaigns to reduce usage of antibiotics.
The medicalization of aging is two folds (Hadler, 2011). Firstly, aging takes a toll on the body that can result in pains and inconveniences. Secondly, medicalization of age is fueled by people’s desire to uphold socially constructed standards of beauty and people’s chase for prolonged youth. Medicalization is a popular approach for aging people because it is an effective bandage. Furthermore, companies invest great amounts of resources to advertise enforce the need to look young.
Medicalization of the Aging Body
Balding
Medicalization of baldness is relatively recent, even though traditional remedies of hair loss have a long history. This is in part due to recent advancement in medical technologies to offer treatments for balding (Szymczak & Conrad, 2006). There is no consensus in the scientific community whether androgenetic alopecia, the scientific name for pattern baldness, should be considered a disease. However, many medical professionals regard hair loss as a natural part of aging. In fact, humans aren't the only primate species to experience hair loss as a result of aging. Furthermore, no harm to men's health has been found to have association with balding. It's safe the main reason motivating men to seek treatment is the desire to look young.
Erectile Dysfunction
During the twentieth century in America, medical technologies were employed to address large-scale sexual problems that persisted in society, such as teenage pregnancy, AIDS, and fertility. This laid the foundation for the "pharmacology of sex" (Loe, 2006). From this hegemony of biotechnology came other medical successes such as oral contraceptive pills; eventually leading to the famous medication for impotence - Viagra. What aided the success of Viagra was the instability of gender roles that occurred 30 years prior to the invention of Viagra. Leading up to the introduction of Viagra, women were making a push to re-enter the workforce, thereby challenging the men's masculinity that was rooted in their familial role. Viagra provided the solution to this problem by allowing men to re-establish their self-objectified masculinity through the performance of their body.
Concerns
Medicalization and Overdiagnosis
Medicalization is a problem because it can lead to overdiagnosis. As a society with medicalization tendencies, healthcare professionals are more likely to result in diagnoses and treatments. Medicalization is a great concern because if diagnoses are readily delivered, then simple human differences may be reduced to medical conditions. This could also be detrimental for patients as well. Consider an elderly man who is slightly more forgetful than an average man his age, his physician might prescribe medication and treatment much earlier than is actually needed. This would not be beneficial for the patient or the healthcare system.
Explanation for Human Pathology
Consider the following quote from Christopher Lane, a professor at Northwestern University. "Bad breath becomes halitosis, for example, and impotence erectile dysfunction. Even overdoing plastic surgery gets a brand-new name: body dysmorphic disorder. To put it bluntly, this process of pathologizing has gotten out of control" (On the Medicalization of Our Culture, 2009). Lane highlights many important points in this short quote. Human differences should not be explained away with medical conditions. Humans are different by design, and to attribute all the differences to medical problems is very dangerous. Lane also highlights an aspect of medicalization often overlooked. Psychological disorders are experiencing massive change, and not necessarily good ones. The legitimization of psychological problems allow people to continue these behavioural problems behind the cover of medical diagnosis.
References
Conrad, P. (2007). The medicalization of society: on the transformation of human conditions into treatable disorders. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Halfmann, D. (2011). Recognizing medicalization and demedicalization: Discourses, practices, and identities. Health:: An Interdisciplinary Journal for the Social Study of Health, Illness and Medicine, 16(2), 186-207. doi:10.1177/1363459311403947
Maturo, A. (2012). Medicalization: Current concept and future directions in a Bionic Society. Mens Sana Monographs, 10(1), 122. doi:10.4103/0973-1229.91587
On the Medicalization of Our Culture. (2009). Harvard Magazine. Retrieved from https://www.harvardmagazine.com/2009/04/medicalization-of-our-culture.
Nye, R. A. (2003). The evolution of the concept of medicalization in the late twentieth century. Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences, 39(2), 115-129. doi:10.1002/jhbs.10108
Robertson, S. (2007). Medicalized Masculinities - By Rosenfeld, D. and Faircloth, C.A. (eds). Sociology of Health & Illness, 29(1), 154-155. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9566.2007.549_2.x
Hofmann, B. (2017). On the Social Construction of Overdiagnosis Comment on "Medicalisation and Overdiagnosis: What Society Does to Medicine". International Journal of Health Policy and Management, 6(10), 609-610. doi:10.15171/ijhpm.2017.21