How our body ages

[aspundir]

HEART - Starts ageing at 40

The heart pumps blood less effectively around the body as we get older.
This is because blood vessels become less elastic, while arteries can
harden or become blocked because of fatty deposits forming on the coronary
arteries -- caused by eating too much saturated fat.
The blood supply to the heart is then reduced, resulting in painful angina.
Men over 45 and women over 55 are at greater risk of a heart attack.

[aspundir]

LIVER - Starts ageing at 70

This is the only organ in the body which seems to defy the aging process.

[aspundir]

KIDNEYS - Starts ageing at 50

With kidneys, the number of filtering units (nephrons) that remove waste
from the bloodstream starts to reduce in middle age.

[aspundir]

PROSTATE - Starts ageing at 50

The prostate often becomes enlarged with age, leading to problems such as
increased need to urinate. This is known as benign prostatic hyperplasia
and affects half of men over 50, but rarely those under 40. It occurs when
the prostate absorbs large amounts of the male sex hormone testosterone,
which increases the growth of cells in the prostate. A normal prostate is
the size of a walnut, but the condition can increase this to the size of a
tangerine.

[aspundir]

BONES - Start ageing at 35

'Throughout our life, old bones are broken down by cells called osteoclasts
and replaced by bone-building cells called osteoblasts -- a process called
礎one turnover'. Children's bone growth is rapid - the skeleton takes just
two years to renew itself completely. In adults, this can take 10 years.
Until our mid-20s, bone density is still increasing. But at 35, bone loss
begins as part of the natural ageing process.

[aspundir]

TEETH - Start ageing at 40

As we age, we produce less saliva, which washes away bacteria, so teeth and
gums are more vulnerable to decay. Receding gums - when tissue is lost from
gums around the teeth - is common in adults over 40.

[aspundir]

MUSCLES - Start ageing at 30

Muscle is constantly being built up and broken down, a process which is
well balanced in young adults. However, by the time we're 30, breakdown is
greater than buildup, explains Professor Robert Moots. Once adults reach
40, they start to lose between 0.5 and 2 per cent of their muscle each
year. Regular exercise can help prevent this.

[aspundir]

HEARING - Starts ageing mid-50s

More than half of people over 60 lose hearing because of their age,
according to the Royal National Institute for the Deaf.

[aspundir]

SKIN - Starts ageing mid-20s

The skin starts to age naturally in your mid-20s.

[aspundir]

TASTE AND SMELL - Start ageing at 60

We start out in life with about 10,000 taste buds scattered on the tongue.

This number can halve later in life. After we turn 60, taste and smell
gradually decline, partly as a result of the normal ageing process.