According to a study conducted at the University of Maryland, if your blood pressure is well above normal limits, you may be physically 20 years older than others of your generation. If you had four grandparents who lived to be 80, you'll likely outlive most of your college classmates by four years. If you live in the country, you are likely to live five years longer than if you live in the city.
Why do some people age faster than others?
Each of us actually has three different ages in one: chronological (indicated by the calendar); biological age (or aging of the body); psychological age (how old we seem and how we feel).
Recent research indicates that life appears to be able to retain its energy even into late life. Many aggravations once blamed on the aging process are actually caused by disease. For example, arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) has long been considered a normal phenomenon during aging. However, today it is known to be a disease caused by a chemical imbalance.
An important factor in the aging process is stress, but so is the lack of stress. A small moderate dose of stress is needed. Studies have shown that nuns suffer less from heart disease, cancer and gastrointestinal disorders than other women. They work even after the age of 65, and their lifespan is longer.
The environment is important
For example, sun-damaged skin becomes dry, rough, flabby and wrinkled. People who live in warm, humid climates have a shorter lifespan. Premature appearance of gray hair can be caused by inadequate nutrition in early childhood, underactive or overactive thyroid gland, mental or physical shock. Some degree of hearing loss is part of the aging process. However, some diseases often make the situation worse.
Sex even after the 70s
Regarding sex, doctors generally agree that the problems that come in older years are largely psychological in nature (understandably, a certain percentage of problems are also physical in nature). Surveys have shown that 70 percent of healthy, married men and women are still sexually active after 70 years of age.
How to prevent?
Can anything be done to prevent or slow down the effects of aging? It can, at least in one area, and that is nutrition. There is evidence that avoiding large amounts of food can be helpful. Avoiding excess body weight has multiple health benefits.
Physical activity can slow down the aging process. From the age of 30, the interest and ability for intense physical effort begins to decrease. Cardiologists say that housework and other physical activities, not hormones, may be one of the primary reasons why women manage to avoid more severe forms of atherosclerosis until after menopause.
Some scientists believe that the key to the speed of the aging process lies in the body's immune defense system, that is, in the lack of resistance to microbes or some chemical substances that attack the body, and that this may explain why some people age faster than others.
Hereditary factor
Apart from this, there are some other theoretical explanations. So, for example, some scientists explain it with hereditary traits. They believe that we are all born with an internal biological clock, which is programmed to tick for a certain number of years.
However, perhaps the most important factor of all is the attitude we have towards aging.
A philosopher said:
"He who is of a peaceful nature and who is happy will seldom feel the pressure of years. However, he who has the opposite nature, youth and old age will be equally burdensome to him."
Source: Health Supplement
Bonus video:
