TUESDAY, APRIL 23, 2024
The way you grow older is specific to you. Lifestyle, among other things can play a part in the process. But some changes in your 70s are universal because they are the result your body works. Experts sometimes call this “pure ageing”. These shifts happen in everyone who lives long enough. You can’t avoid them but you can prepare if you know what to expect.
Your Mind
Parts of your brain shrink as you get older. That means you may have trouble remembering names or coming up with a specific word. It may be harder to you to multitask and pay attention. If that makes you concerned about Alzheimer’s disease, don’t worry – these are normal changes. Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia cause much more severe trouble with memory and everyday tasks.
Your Heart
As you age your heart can’t beat that fast when you are stressed. As its wall gets thicker and its valves get stiffer, blood may not flow through as efficiently. Heart’s electrical system may start to glitch, which can cause an irregular heartbeat. The most common problem is arterial plaque buildup. But you can lower your risk with healthy habits, such as exercise, a healthy heart diet and not smoking
Your Skin
Age spots and wrinkles are no surprise but you may also find that you bruise more and sweat less. Your skin may be drier, more paperlike and itchy. It might help to switch to gentler soap and use moisturizer regularly.
Nutrition
Your metabolism slows as you age. You may need to cut calories to prevent weight gain. As you eat less, choose foods that pack more nutrients into fewer calories such as fruits and veggies, whole grain, low fat dairy and lean protein.
Your Bones Joints and Muscles
About 1 in 4 have osteoporosis, a bone-thinning disease. Your muscles get weaker and your tendons get stiffer. In 70s you might lose an inch or two of your height as disks in your back flatten. Exercise, especially the weight-bearing kind, can help prevent these changes.
Your Sleep
When you are older, you spend less time each night in deep sleep and more in lighter phases. You might wake up more and have trouble going back to sleep. Insomnia can be an issue in your 70s. You might fall asleep and wake up earlier. Do what you can to keep good sleeping habits.
Your Immune System
Your body’s defenses lose a step in your 70s which leaves you more vulnerable to illness. Vaccines don’t work well as they once did for you but because you are susceptible to infection and virus, it is still important to get shots for flu, pneumonia and shingles. More than all nowadays for Covid vaccine due to raging pandemic. On the plus side allergies are less severe, autoimmune disorders rarer at this age.
Your Digestive System
Your stomach lining is more fragile which raises your odds of having ulcers. That is especially true if you take a lot of aspirin or non-steroidal inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). Perhaps the most common problem at this age is constipation. Part of it is because your digestive system doesn’t move food through quite well as before. Medications and lack of exercise also play a role.
Your Urinary Tract
Your bladder can’t hold as much as it did, and your muscles that support it have lost some strength. They might also squeeze when don’t really need to go, which leads to an overactive bladder. All these things can send you to the bathroom more often. Many women in their 70s have trouble with urine leaking. Prostate trouble also affects many men of this age.
Your Sexuality
Research suggests that more people in their 70s today are sexually active than in previous eras. But there may be more challenges. You and your partner might have vaginal dryness or erectile dysfunction as well as other health problems. Body image and stress can play a role too. But you don’t have to give up on sex. Talk with your marital partner about what is enjoyable, and ask your doctor for help about any medical issues that affect sex.
Your Vision
Your pupils react more slowly to changes in light, because your eyes are a bit weaker. You’ll need more time to adjust between indoors and bright sunlight. Some finer details are hard to pick out because there are fewer cells to send messages about what you see back to your brain. The lens gets thicker and more yellow, which makes it harder to see in dim lighting and makes colours less vibrant.
Your Ears
About one third of people above 70 have hearing loss. High pitched sounds are especially hard to make out which makes it difficult to understand what others are saying. You may be able to figure out the vowels but not the consonants. Background noise may also interfere more with your conversations
Steps You can Take
You can’t take back the clock but there are a lot of ways to stay healthy in your 70s. Diet and exercise are important. Monitor your health for illnesses like cancer and heart disease. Stay socially active and challenge yourself mentally – that will fight your mental decline.
More than all remember that nobody grows older merely by living a number of years. We grow old by deserting our ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin but giving up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.
(Dr. Francisco Colaço is a seniormost consulting
physician, pioneer of Echocardiography in Goa)
