Queen Elizabeth II died at the age of 96 in Balmoral Castle in Scotland. According to her recently published death certificate, she died of old age, reports Discover Magazine.
What does this mean?
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Medically, “death of old age” is not the real cause of death. In reality, this sentence is hidden: he died of complications caused by old age. All human bodies age, albeit at different rates. However, age can significantly affect how our bodies respond to injury and disease that can lead to death.
How do we age?
According to the Mayo Clinic, our bodies change in many ways with age. Bone and muscle density decreases, blood vessels and arteries stiffen, vision and hearing become poorer, and skin becomes thinner.
This is because the cells of some tissues regenerate more slowly or do not regenerate at all. For example, our skin loses elasticity because cell regeneration slows down with age. Brain cells can live for a long time, but they don’t regenerate after death. This can lead to cognitive decline.
However, a healthy diet and regular exercise can help slow aging.
How does age affect health?
What age is considered old? There are multiple sources with multiple answers. For example, according to the WHO, the elderly are people over the age of 60, according to the UN – over the age of 65. WHO divides old age into three phases: 60-75 years – old age, first old age; 75-90 years – advanced age, late age; over 90 years – old age, longevity.
However, as the researchers point out, there is no exact age to quantify old age, as many people between the ages of 60 and 70 are in excellent health.
Old age is not the main cause of death, the cause is the multitude of factors that lead to death. However, as we age and our bodies stop regenerating cells or become less active, our ability to stay healthy weakens.
For example, longstanding arthritis or osteoporosis can make exercise difficult, resulting in loss of bone density and increased fatigue. Less active older people may develop stiffer blood vessels and arteries, which means the heart has to work harder to get blood around the body. This can eventually lead to heart failure.
Older people are also more likely to die from pneumonia and flu because their bodies aren’t strong enough to fight the disease. As we age, our immune system produces fewer B and T cells which help fight infections.
Translation: GlasNews
