There is an old saying in China, which is called "Raising children for old age and saving grain for hunger". It means that a family must raise a son to prevent the elderly from being helpless; Be sure to store food in good years in case of famine.
In the past, society advocated not only filial piety, but also family ethics, which was everyone's social and family responsibility.
However, with the development of the times, especially the only-child generation born in 1980s, both husband and wife have to support four elderly people and bear their living and medical expenses while raising their children. The pressure of life is so great that young people are afraid to get married, fearing that they can't afford to support themselves and the elderly in the future.
On the other hand, with the decline of China's demographic dividend, young people generally choose to get married later, or even not to get married, or choose not to have children after marriage, resulting in a continuous decline in the birth rate in China in recent years.
In the future, with the acceleration of population aging in China and the arrival of an aging society, China will face a social ecology dominated by population aging, and it is very likely that there will be an age gap, that is, there will be a dangerous trend of not finding young people to provide for the elderly.
The situation of social aging in China is getting more and more severe, but so far, there are no very clear and effective methods and measures for the establishment and improvement of the old-age care system and how to provide for the elderly, whether at the national level or in society.
The problem of providing for the aged mainly depends on the children in the family and private institutions for the aged.
But not all old people are so lucky to have daughters and sons to rely on.
Helpless, they can't rely on the unity of the state and society to properly solve the problem of old-age care. With the dilemma of providing for the aged approaching, the mode of "cohabiting for the aged" is gradually emerging among the people, which has become an effective supplement to the national pension system and the family's old-age prevention.
The so-called "cohabitation for the aged" means "partnership for the aged". That is, the old people who need to support the elderly but can't get help and solutions from their families and society find like-minded people (old people and young people) to live together, and everyone takes care of each other in life, and the expenses such as rent, water, electricity and food are shared by them.
This way of providing for the aged not only saves costs, but also expands social communication, which is very beneficial to the physical and mental health of the elderly. At present, this way of providing for the aged is not only popular in Germany, but also introduced to China, which has caused a craze among the elderly and provided a good solution for them.
Living together for the aged actually has many advantages.
1. Reduce the rent of nursing homes: the cost of social nursing homes is generally not low, and many elderly people cannot afford it for a long time. Living together for the elderly and sharing the expenses can save most of the expenses.
2. Win-win society: suppose an elderly person living alone rents his vacant room to students or young people who don't have a house for free or at a low price, as long as the young people who rent it are willing to spend time chatting with the elderly, doing housework and helping to buy daily necessities.
It can not only enrich the daily life of the elderly, but also make them feel more secure and beneficial to their physical and mental health. Young people who don't have a house will also have a sense of belonging at home, and in the process of taking care of the elderly, they will also save extra rent and food expenses, killing two birds with one stone.
3. Different: If several old friends live together, their spare time will not only become colorful, but they will also often chat together and recall the past. These group behaviors have a great preventive effect on eliminating senile diseases, especially Alzheimer's disease.
4. Reduce the burden on children: With the trend of declining birthrate and aging, the cost of communication between the elderly and young people, especially between children, is getting higher and higher. Living with old friends or strange young people helps to reduce the burden on children, and also invisibly expands the social circle of the elderly, allowing them to participate in social life and reducing their children's worries about their health.
In addition to the advantages, the disadvantages of living together for the aged are also obvious.
Every old man's living habits are different, and living under one roof at the same time definitely requires mutual habits and understanding. Therefore, before the elderly live together to support the elderly, they must strictly screen their cohabiting partners, and they should not let people eat and live with themselves just because they want to support the elderly.
Otherwise, not supporting the elderly is likely to lead to contradictions and frictions between the two sides because of small frictions in life or strangers and unaccustomed personality habits.