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P5-Explain the physical and psychological changes which may be associated with ageing
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P5-Explain the physical and psychological changes which may be associated with ageing
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Unit 4P5-Explain the physical and psychological changes which may be associated with ageing
All individuals go through physical and psychological within their lives. There are many
changes we must face as we grow older, whether it be our appearance or changes within
our body. Bellow I am going to describe physical and psychological changes that occur in the
ageing process.
Physical changes
Skin, bones, joints and muscles
When ageing, physical changes associated with the skin, bones, joints and muscles occur. Its
starts by the skin becoming more frail, thin, less elastic-like and wrinkly. Next, the bones
begin to become thinner making fractures and breaks more likely. Then, the joints become
ridged which can cause pain as cartilage will also become thinner because of the joints
becoming stiffer and less flexible. Also, ligaments reinforcing the joints tend to shorten and
lose flexibility, making joints feel stiff. During the ageing process, an ageing adult’s height
will decrease as the cartilage that separates the vertebra in the spine becomes compressed,
as well as the back becoming more rounded. Finally, as we get older, muscles lose strength,
become more rigid and lose mass. This is because of a condition that occurs during old age
known as sarcopenia which is the process of losing muscle mass and strength as a result of
ageing.
Senses
With age, the individual will begin to notice a decline in the five senses such as touch, sight,
smell, taste and hearing. An ageing individuals vision may deteriorate and a condition called
cataracts caused by a clouding in the lens of the eye may start to develop. Lack of sensitivity
in the skin can increase the chances of hypothermia and hearing can also worsen leading to
an individual being unable to hear high-pitched sounds.
Menopause
As females age, their hormone levels frequently change. However, during the ageing
process between the ages 45-65 oestrogen levels decrease causing menopause to occur.
The menopause is when a woman stops having menstrual cycles. Symptoms of menopause
are things such as hot flushes, night sweats, anxiety and low sex drive. The menopause is a
natural part of ageing, females who go through the menopause usually tend to take
oestrogen tablets because of the decline in oestrogen.
, Organs
During ageing muscles located within the digestive tract may weaken, stiffen and become
less efficient resulting in a higher risk of constipation. Blood pressure can increase and the
heart becomes less effective pumping blood around the body pumping. Nutrients in food
become harder to absorb because the amount of stomach acid and digestive enzymes
decreases with age. The metabolism in the body decreases in performance as activity levels
decrease and the performance of the endocrine glands decrease. As the respiratory muscles
become frailer, breathing is much harder and walls within the alveoli become damaged
resulting in gas exchange within the lungs decreasing.
Cardiovascular system
Ageing individuals might experience narrowing arteries as well as other blood vessels due to
fats such as bad cholesterol thickening on the walls of the blood vessels. This processed is
refed to as atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis can cause higher blood pressure which increases
the risk of strokes and heart attacks which can be deadly for ageing individuals. Also, the
elasticity of blood vessels may start to reduce, causing the heart the work much harder to
pump blood around the whole body which can cause an enlarged heart. Fatty deposits can
separate causing obstructions in the arteries which can result in a risk of coronary heart
disease. These fatty deposits that can obstruct an individual’s arteries can cause a shortage
of breath and pain in the chest.
Arthritis
This is when the joints in our body become weaker and more brittle with wear and tear. As
we age the cartilage in our bodies becomes weaker which makes arthritis more common in
old age individuals. There are two main types of arthritis that an individual can suffer from
such as rheumatoid arthritis, this form of arthritis is a long term condition that can cause
pain, swelling and stiffness in the joints. Areas that are commonly affected with this type of
arthritis are usually the hands, feet and wrists. Rheumatoid arthritis normally occurs in
people aged 40-50 and women are three times more likely to get this type of arthritis. The
second type of arthritis is osteoarthritis this is a common form of arthritis that affects the
hands, feet, spine and joints that bare our weight on. This form of arthritis also develops in
people over the age of 50 usually caused by age however, it can result from joint injuries or
obesity.
Respiratory system
When blood fails to pump around the body effectively, shortage of breath may result. The
power of the chest muscles may start to decline as individual ages and the effectiveness of
the lungs may decrease. Increasing chronic diseases occurring such as bronchitis. Bronchitis
involves inflammation of the airways that connect the windpipe to the lungs. It mostly
affects adults over 40 and it can be caused by viral and bacterial infections, breathing in
irritant substances and exposure to substances such as fabrics, dust, chlorine and ammonia.
Bronchitis clears up within a few weeks however if it lasts longer than 3 months it could be a
sign of chronic bronchitis which cannot be cured.
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