A: Aging is America's #1 growth industry. Credentialing hasn't kept pace with growth, so there are a lot of so-called experts who may know less about the field than you do. It's a good idea to check references from several sources including physicians and clergypersons you trust as well as friends and associates with circumstances similar to your own.

Advice and support from qualified, experienced professionals could significantly improve your health, save you money, and open doors to programs and practices that improve the quality or length of your life. Improper advice, however, could do great harm. In any event, you'll almost certainly need more than one advisor, since aging issues run the gamut from physiology to law.

The paragraphs below will give you some of the basic lingo you need to navigate the field. The most helpful navigating tool, however, may be JCA's own Senior HelpLine. 

At the HelpLine, highly trained volunteers as well as the Certified Information Specialists on staff have only one job: to help you make wise choices for aging well. Thanks to generous philanthropic support, the HelpLine can answer many questions for free. At low fees, JCA's Senior HelpLine Gold can answer more complex questions and connect you to providers in other parts of the United States or even abroad.

...But back to some of the ABCs about aging experts.

Gerontologists are social scientists - generally not MDs - who have studied the lifelong process of aging. Many have formal gerontological education and hold a Master's Degree or Doctorate in Gerontology or a graduate-level certificate in aging studies from an accredited university. Others may be gerontologists by virtue of their hands-on experience in the field.

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