A nurse is teaching a newly licensed nurse about physiological changes in the digestive system that occur with aging. The nurse should include older adults might experience which of the following physiological changes?

A. Have the client breathe into a paper bag. Breathing into a paper bag helps retain CO₂, which can correct respiratory alkalosis caused by hyperventilation.

B. Plan to administer insulin to the client. Insulin is used to manage hyperglycemia or diabetic ketoacidosis, not respiratory alkalosis.

C. Plan to administer sodium bicarbonate to the client. Sodium bicarbonate is used to treat metabolic acidosis, not respiratory alkalosis.

D. Have the client place their head between their knees. This position is not a standard intervention for respiratory alkalosis or hyperventilation.

A. "Your colostomy will not produce formed stool." A sigmoid colostomy is located in the lower part of the large intestine where stool is typically more formed. Therefore, this statement is incorrect and should not be included in the teaching.

B. "You should expect your stoma to be a purple color." A healthy stoma should be pink or red and moist. A purple, dusky, or dark color may indicate compromised blood flow to the stoma and is a sign of a medical emergency. This statement is incorrect.

C. "The end of the stoma will be painful after this procedure." The stoma itself does not have nerve endings, so it should not be painful. Pain around the incision site may occur, but the stoma itself should not be painful. This statement is incorrect.

D. "You will have a stoma in your left lower abdomen." The sigmoid colon is located on the lower left side of the abdomen, so the stoma for a sigmoid colostomy is typically placed in this area. This statement is correct.