Understanding the aging process

Aging is often identified as an onset of bodily changes that occur from middle age onwards. But, it is much more than that, as the changes observed in physical appearance of the human body is merely a manifestation of accumulated changes, that have occurred in the processes taking place within the body at a cellular level. Understanding these changes is essential as they affect our psychology, our ability to do certain activities (mobility) as well as the way we think about ourselves. 

If you are ready, let’s take a look at our cells, the small building units of our body. We have trillions of cells of different types (shape and structure) that work collaboratively to allow the body to function. To use a simple analogy, these cells can be compared to little bricks that go in the making of buildings. Hence, if the bricks start to fall apart, undoubtedly the whole building will slowly crumble down with time as more  and more of the bricks get damaged. This unfortunately is what happens to us as we age: our cells progressively start to malfunction which cause our organs to fail  or function below the normal level. As the years go by, more organs feel the brunt of the  cellular dysfunction and this causes diseases to set in.

Changes that occur at cellular  level as we age

• Cells stop dividing or divide at a much slower rate
• Cells accumulate genetic mutations over the years which result in erratic functioning.
• An increased accumulation of pigments and fatty substances in cells, which contribute to their abnormal behaviour.

Cells associate together to form tissues and many tissues connect together to create our organs. Additionally, connecting these tissues together are elastic fibres (elastic fibrous structures). These fibres are what provide elasticity to our organs: allowing them to stretch and bounce back to their original shape and size without any damage. Take the heart for example: the wall of this organ stretches as blood enters and then contracts to pump the blood out. The heart can do these actions thanks to the elastic fibres present in its wall.

As unfortunate as it may sound, as we age even our connective tissue gives in and becomes more stiff. As a result of this, our organs, blood vessels and airways become more rigid, which in turn make it difficult for the body (more precisely specific tissues in the body) to obtain oxygen and nutrients, and to excrete carbon dioxide and other waste products. 

These changes seem scary as they are responsible for the slow deterioration in health associated with the aging process. An important question to ask ourselves at this point is: Can’t we do anything about these changes that creep in with time?

It is a fact that we cannot reverse the aging process, but many studies have shown that it can be slowed down. In my next posts I will discuss some simple dietary  and behavioural changes that we can make to reduce cellular damage and elastic fibre degradation. Remember to check it out!