AGING

Dr J Swain
Sr DMO/Khurda Road
Aging is the
process of
growing old.
Most living things
undergo two basic
types of biological
change during their
lifetime.
One is growth, an
increase in the
size or efficiency
of an organism.
The other is aging,
which involves a
decrease or
levelling off in size
or efficiency.
Growth and
aging can occur
at the same
time.
Signs of aging begin
to appear in most
people between
the age of 30 and
40.
Heredity determines
most of the ways a
person changes while
aging, but
environment also
plays a role.
Greying hair is
probably the
most common
sign of aging.
Another is arcus
senilis, a cloudy ring
that forms around
the cornea of the
eye.
All the senses
decline with
age.
For example, the eyes
lose their ability to
adapt to darkness,
and they require
brighter light for
reading.
The lens of the eye
cannot adjust so
well as before to
near and distant
vision.
A person also
loses the ability to
hear sounds of
high frequency.
About half the taste
buds may be lost,
and the capacity to
detect odours
decreases greatly.
Movement also
becomes more
difficult with
age.
By the age of 80,
about half the muscle
cells have been
replaced by other
kinds of tissue.
A connective material,
composed largely of a
protein called
collagen, occupies the
space between cells.
Aging makes
strands of collagen
link together and
become less elastic.
In women
especially, the
bones lose calcium
and become more
likely to break.
As a person ages,
the body's ability
to combat
infection declines.
This change occurs
because the white blood
cells of what is called the
body's immune system
lose their protective
function.
Many people believe
that with advancing age,
an individual loses the
ability to learn,
remember, and make
decisions.
But unless disease or
injury damages the brain,
a healthy elderly person
who remains physically
and mentally active
probably suffers no serious
decline in mental capacity.
Scientists
distinguish
between two
types of aging.
Primary aging, also called
senescence, includes the
unavoidable changes in
the structure and
composition of the body
that are determined by
heredity.
Secondary aging
includes disabilities
caused by illness or
accidental damage.
Most serious
changes associated
with old age result
from secondary
aging.
The branch of medicine
that deals with the
diseases of old age is
called geriatrics. The study
of the aging process itself
is known as gerontology.
No one
completely
understands the
aging process.
Some scientists
doubt that human
aging will ever be
controlled.
Others believe
that aging can
be conquered.
They note that several species
of fish continue to grow until
death, without ever
appearing to age. Also,
single-celled organisms seem
to lose all signs of age after
each of the many times they
reproduce.
Normal human cells
can be kept alive in
a laboratory for
only a limited time.
But abnormal cells,
such as various kinds
of cancer cells, can be
sustained indefinitely.
If scientists can
determine how such
abnormal cells survive,
they may gain an insight
into the process of cell
aging.
Old age cannot be
defined exactly
because it does not
have the same
meaning in all
societies.
In many industrial
societies, people often
consider that old age
begins when a person
reaches the ages of 60
or 65.
This is because in those
countries these are the
ages at which women and
men can receive pensions
paid by the state on their
retirement from full-time
employment.
People in the 65-and-
over age groups are
often called senior
citizens or pensioners.
However, in some
societies people may
be considered old
because they have
grandchildren or grey
hair.
People's life expectancy
(the average age to
which people may be
expected to live) varies
from country to country.
One hundred years ago, in
Western countries, a
person was considered old
at 55. Today, the life
expectancy of a person in
many industrial countries
is over 70.
This increase has been
brought about by
improvements in diet,
hygiene, medicine, and public
health and by medical
discoveries, which continue to
be made.
In poor countries, with
less advanced medical
and welfare services, life
expectancy is usually
lower.
Women live
longer than
men.
One reason for this
difference is that fewer
women than men die
from heart disease and
cancer.
Many people look forward to
old age as a time of increased
leisure and reduced
responsibility. Old people
with a high retirement
income may look forward to
pleasurable activities.
They are eager to travel or
to pursue other interests
and activities after their
children are grown and
they themselves have
retired.
People of all ages agree
that the worst problems
of old age are finances,
health, loneliness, and
personal safety.
A person's status in
society often depends
on his or her job. So
when people retire,
they often lose a certain
amount of status.
This is because
retired people
usually have lower
incomes than
working people.
They may
also feel
unwanted.
This is less of
a problem in
India
People in India, for example,
tend to have closer family
structures than people in the
West. In India, Japan, and
other Asian countries, elderly
people live in the homes of
their adult family.
An Indian extended family
may contain several
generations living in one
home. The old people are
respected as leaders of the
community.
However, in some other
Asian countries, the old
are seen as a burden on
scarce resources, and little
effort is made to care for
them.
Social isolation of the old
can be a problem,
especially in countries
where children and
grandchildren often live a
long way from elderly
relatives.
In particular,
many married
women face
widowhood in old
age.
Loneliness can
be a serious
problem for the
elderly.
Physical and
intellectual
disabilities trouble
the old more than
the young.
People over the age
of 75 need more
help and support
from medical and
welfare services.
The elderly require a doctor's
services more often as they age,
and they may also need such
services as meals on wheels and
home nursing, or eventually
permanent residential care for
those who are too ill, frail, or
mentally confused, to look after
themselves.
Whereas in India, care of
the old is still regarded as a
family responsibility, in
many Western countries it
is seen as at least partly a
government responsibility.
Many old people
continue to enjoy a
vigorous and full life
into their 80's and
beyond.
They often take part in
social, educational,
sporting, and cultural
activities with other
people in their age-
group.
Senior citizens may benefit
from cheap or free travel
on public transport, and
from reduced prices on
tickets for theatres,
concerts, and similar
events.
The process of
aging takes
place at
different rates.
This explains why
some people remain
physically active and
intellectually creative
into advanced old
age.
The less fortunate may
suffer from medical
complaints particularly
associated with aging,
such as arthritis, heart
diseases, diabetes, and
high blood pressure.
Hearing, eyesight
and digestion as
well as memory
may also be
affected.
This decline in
ability becomes
more marked in
people over the age
of 85.
The number of people
over 85 is increasing
rapidly in both
industrial and
developing countries.
In general, as the proportion
of retired people grows,
society must find ways to use
the talents and energies of
people who, though "old",
may well have 25 or more
years of active life before
them.
Life expectancy is a
statistical measure of
the average number of
years that a group of
people of a certain age
may expect to live.
This measure is based
on the death rates by
age for a specific
population at a
specific time.
If death rates decline,
as has normally
happened, life
expectancy increases.
Life expectancy varies
from country to
country because of
differences in public
health and standards
of living.
In general, the
industrial nations
have the highest
life expectancy.
Most females
have a higher
life expectancy
than males.
Most females
have a higher
life expectancy
than males.
 ADD LIFE TO
THE
YEARS;NOT
YEARS TO THE
LIFE
Thank
You