What's new about being old

This paper discusses aspects of aging and its new paradigms. The relationship between aging and increased frequency of illness and consumption of drugs, progressive loss of functionality and greater reliance on health services is well known. However, from the second half of the twentieth century, rapid changes in the way of seeing and living old age have been observed. In recent years, the increase in the number of older people has occurred simultaneously with the expansion of the Brazilian middle class, with a strong impact on the accessibility and consumption of certain goods and services, producing new social needs. The time of old age and social roles assigned to it has always varied according to the historical horizon of different societies. More recently, aging has been associated with positive image of living longer and better. However, this progress has not come true for all citizens. Capitalist societies are marked by distributive inequality and in this situation there are challenges linked to the poor and underserved, as well as the place to be occupied by the young and the new old people.