Age shouldn’t be a problem for Trump, Biden or Sanders, but mental health test would be a good idea

When former Vice President Joe Biden, 76, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, 77, show up Thursday in Miami at the Democratic debates, there will be much public discussion about the fact that that any of them — as well as President Trump — would be the oldest president in U.S. history. But in other parts of the world, their ages would hardly be an issue.

In Asia, Africa and Latin America, there is a long history of presidents in their late 70s, 80s and even 90s. I interviewed many of them in Latin America while they were in office. While some of them were sharp and active until the end of their terms, others weren’t. By the November 2020 U.S. election, Sanders will be 79, Biden 77, and Trump 74. The oldest president in U.S. history was Ronald Reagan, who was 73 years and 274 days old when he was elected to a second term.

By comparison, Cuban dictator Raul Castro — who officially stepped down as president a few years ago but remains as first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba and Cuba’s de facto ruler — is 88 years old. His late brother Fidel Castro stepped down as president at 82, but continued to rule behind the scenes until he died at 90. The current president of Uruguay, Tabare Vazquez, is 79 years old. His immediate predecessor, Jose Mujica, took office at age 74, and ruled until he was 79. One of the best-known candidates for Uruguay’s presidential elections in October is former president Julio Maria Sanguinetti, who is 83 and as sharp as they come.

Brazil’s recent president Michel Temer took office at 75 and stepped down at 78....

“Biden reminds me of a lot of my customers I have seen as they were in the beginning stages of Dementia and Alzheimer’s.”

I’m 80 and my wife is close. She worked until she was in her mid 70’s as the lead RN in a busy family practice.

Between what she saw re the onset of Dementia and Alzheimer’S in their patients, the people we knew and a couple of senior family members, the signs are out there, often way before the diagnosis.

Most of the onsets came on slowly over time. Then, there were some, that in less than a year, they went from fully functional to not functional.

A scary thing was how many went quickly from a few lapses to getting lost driving home or to someplace they drove to on a regular basis. One poor guy ended up 150 miles from here to a neighborhood, he had not lived in for 40 years. He didn’t realize what he had done until his front door key didn’t work.

“Most the people I knew in the Condition Biden appears to be in were incapacitated within 18 months.”

The same out here with all age groups, from to mid 50’s to their 70’s.

It is/was amazing how their spouses covered for them during the early onset. They did most of the talking in the early stages or they had excuses why their spouse wasn’t at church or in social settings.

One we remember very vividly. The husband was a great mild alpha male and very talkative. Then, he started letting her
do most of the talking. We were at a dinner party at their house, after about an hour, he asked if we wanted to see his new car.

Those of us who said yes, followed him. He went down the hallway and instead of turning to get to the door to their driveway. He turned into the guest room and admitted that he was lost.

We got him back to the living room and told his wife in private. She thanked us and said that the dinner was cancelled as her husband wasn’t feeling well. On the way home I told my wife, she said many of their patients got lost in their homes in spite of living there for years.

This wife called my wife and told her that her husband had Alzheimer’s and asked my wife to tell the group. In a couple of weeks, he was admitted to a Alzheimer’s care home. He died in less than a year.

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