Date Posted: 10/2/2012 8:31:12 AM
Posted By: warira Membership Level: Gold Total Points: 1095
Come Thursday-the new Friday most people will update their timelines with ‘Y.O.L.O’ or forever young. Most people are of the opinion that life is enjoyable and fun at a young age. I beg to differ since one can enjoy life at any point of their lives as some also believe life begins at forty. When I say I want to be young forever it also means that my greatest fear is growing old. If asked most people would say that their greatest fear is getting old. Unfortunately growing old is inevitable as it is part of a life process. Biological scientists would define age as a progressive deterioration of the body’s homeostatic responses. Wrinkling, greying of the hair, stooping, loss of eyesight are some of the physical signs of old age. Aging involves a gradual deterioration of the function of body organs as sensory; vision and hearing functions become impaired. You will note that most old people cannot engage in strenuous activities o walk for long, this is due to the thinning of the bones as well as wear and tear of the joints. There is also a gradual reduction in cardiac output and pulmonary function due to a reduction in oxygen absorption and vital capacity. Many diseases are associated with old age and this is because the immune system has been impaired and cannot respond to new and old antigens. Whenever I heard my grandmother was coming to stay with us during the holiday I would become fussy and grumpy as I knew it would be a long holiday. My grandmother is very slow and to make things worse has a poor memory. Being a very active and fast child trying to keep up with her pace was such a herculean task. I later came to realize that this was as a result of the deterioration of the nervous system.From a scientist’s point of view aging results from two factors: a decrease in the number of cells in the organs and a decline in the function of existing cells. Cell number is determined by the balance between cell division and cell death. According to them those who have a long life span undergo more divisions than those with a short life span. The deterioration in cellular function results from problems arising in the DNA, RNA and cell proteins. It goes without saying that one cannot escape old age no matter how many times you tell yourself ‘young forever’.Scientists being scientists believe that they can come up with a cure for old age. They believe that a certain protein called stomatin may stop a cell from dividing. Others propose that a derivative of vitamin A , Retin-A could reduce wrinkling of the skin. As we wait for the scientists to have a breakthrough lets age gracefully in the best ways we can. We should strive to reduce stress, eat well, exercise regularly to ensure we live a good life. The good life will reduce the fears of getting old even though I would highly appreciate a cure for old age. When you start seeing signs of old age do not panic it is a normal process that we all must go through.
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