Why do We Get Old and Die

Did you know, that in ancient Rome ordinary man could expect to live no more than 23 years? About a century ago the average life span was 40 years. Currently it is 71 years (68.5 years for males and 73.5 years for females). But in countries with better standard of life, life span is 80 years (USA, Canada, Europe…), while in poor countries (like Angola, Somalia…) is 50 years. Lowest life span has Sierra Leone, only 46 years.

Most people would like to live a long time; but no one wants to grow old. But aging is a process that starts at birth and continues throughout the entire life.

When someone enters into a deepening age, all actions and processes of living organisms is slowing down. Man loses part of his power, and his senses lose their sharpness.

It usually comes in the reduction of body weight and height. Along with these, there may be a weakening of vision, partial deafness, gray hair and to relaxed and less supple skin.

People do not age under the same speed, but some changes that come with age can not be avoided, because they occur in the tissues of the body and all its organs. For example, kidney cells, liver, pancreas and spleen begin to gradually deteriorate, because the blood vessels are old and do not strong enough supplies with blood and food as they used to. Thyroid and other glands also fail.

Did you know; oldest (verified) man ever was Jiroemon Kimura from Japan, born 1897 and died 2013 (aged 116).

The entire system of circulation in the body with age begins to change and no longer functioning as actively as once. Because of these changes, we do not even breathe in the same way. The eyes, ears, bones, joints, blood, skin, nails and teeth, it all begins to degenerate or decay. That is why older people often must change their lifestyle and diet.

These changes are biological and can not be prevented, simply because the aged tissues and organs can no longer operate at full power. The age change is not the same everywhere. A man of sixty years may have some tissues and organs as a man of eighty years, while his other organs can be preserved like a man of forty, thirty, or even twenty years.

Finally we die. Dying, in fact, begins when the heart stops, but at that moment can not yet say that the man was dead. Death is traditionally defined by three biological parameters: heart is not beating, the man is not breathing and the brain shows no activity. A few seconds after the heart stops, perform all signs of being a man is declared dead, the moment when they are present all three parameters is defined as the time of death.