Most people do not bother much about health issues before they reach the fourth or fifth decade of their lives, they are full of their daily life concerns and tasks, and rarely notice their bodily changes. Their bodies are energetic and bear more than of what it’s assigned for.

But once they start to feel the physical changes associated with the aging process after being forty, they begin to think carefully about this issue and it becomes a concern and perhaps a disturbing thought to some.

But after the age of sixty, most of  people go through health problems associated with aging , but in turn, the fear of this eases and one realizes again that he has a lot of opportunities in life to enjoy in spite of health problems.

What is aging?

There are multiple theories to explain what really happen to our bodies at cellular levels that leads to apparent physical changes, but here we will review the most prominent changes that appear on the human body during its aging process.

There are some visible changes everyone can see and feel such as: wrinkles in the skin, hair color changes to gray and slow movement and reflex reactions. However, more significant changes are occurring to internal organs. We mention here the most significant changes in various organs of the body

The Brain:

The number of active brain cells typically decreases. This varies in the brain form area to area and the ultimate effect will depend upon the function related to that area (speech, memory, movement  ... etc). Other significant changes occur in the brain are the atherosclerosis of the cerebral arteries that leads to less blood flow and possible micro infractions (due to narrowing or blockage of the vessels).

The Heart:

The size of the heart increases in adults,  the blood pressure increases as well, where as the heart rate decreases.

Bones:

Bones tend to become less dense and more fragile with aging especially in women. The bones are not static as may imagined by some but they have dynamic life cycle. The basis of this movement is the deposition of some bone material and the absorption of others. Osteoporosis occurs when process absorption exceeds the process of deposition due to multiple factors (Hormonal factors, Genetics, body built , lifestyle ..Etc).  With osteoporosis, bones become weaker and more likely to break even with minor injuries. It is known that fractures in adults, especially in thigh bones means multiple health problems, and may have long-term complications.

Eyes:

In old people, the eyes produce less fluids and lubricants, making them feel dry. The retina atrophies gradually resulting in decreased vision efficiency. The vision length becomes more frequent after the age of forty, making it necessary to use reading glasses. The lens becomes denser and this may lead to what is known as cataract which prevents normal vision.

Hearing:

Hearing becomes less because of weakness in nerve endings that transmit audio waves to the brain, the density of the ear drum increases as well and its movement becomes less flexible than the normal rate, and therefore, its ability to transfer sounds becomes less, the problem becomes more sever with the high-frequency sounds.

Uro-genetal:

The kidneys become smaller and atrophied, their ability to get rid of waste and toxins decreases, and the maximum volume of urine that the bladder can hold decreases. Prostate in increase in size that leads to difficulty in urination with dripping and urgency . The female genital tract becomes dry due to the lack of female hormones and uterus may move down its normal position (uterine prolapse)

Musculoskeletal system:

The amount of muscle tissue (muscle mass) and muscle strength tend to decrease and atrophies. This varies from person to person according to physical exercise; where people who exercise more are less likely to have these problems. The amount of fluid in the ligaments and cartilage are reduced and they become more likely to be stiff, and the opportunity to friction increases.

Skin:

The skin tends to become thinner, less elastic, drier, and finely wrinkled and the rate of nails growth becomes less, as well as the function of the sweat glands and other glands of the skin, so skin becomes drier and more wrinkled.

How long can you live?

As stated in the Hadeeth of the Prophet Mohammed - peace be upon him - (the ages of my nations range between sixty and seventy), and this means that this is the average age rate, although some may live more than that.

In our time, the longest documented life recorded was 122 years old.

With the advances in medicine and the ability to diagnose and  offer early treatment, the average age rate is higher, and people are living longer than ever before and the rate of age in most developed countries in early last century was 50 years old, while now it’s around 77 years old