How does ageing cause diseases?
The number of changes in the body that occur with age is remarkably long. This includes visible changes in appearance, such as wrinkled skin, along with less obvious effects such as a gradual reduction in height and weight loss due to loss of muscle and bone mass. However, the biggest effects of ageing that we don’t see are what occur internally in our bodies, namely the decline in the function of most organs such as renal, pulmonary, cardiac and cerebral.
It has been reported that around 100,000 people worldwide die each day of age-related causes, making ageing among the most important known risk factors for most chronic diseases. In fact, age is the main risk factor for the prevalent diseases of developed countries that we are most familiar with — cancer, cardiovascular disease and neurodegeneration.
What is behind ageing?
Generally speaking, ageing is associated with a progressive degeneration of the tissues, which has a negative impact on the structure and function of vital organs. This is among the most important known risk factors for most chronic diseases. Loss of physiological integrity, resulting in a progressive decline of homeostasis and reduced capacity to respond to environmental stimuli with age, contributes to an incremental risk of disease and death.
Ageing is associated with a progressive degeneration of the tissues, which has a negative impact on the structure and function of vital organs. This is among the most important known risk factors for most chronic diseases.
There is also increasing evidence that many chronic inflammatory diseases represent an acceleration of the ageing process. Chronic pulmonary diseases represent an important component of the increasingly prevalent multiple chronic debilitating diseases, which are a major cause of morbidity and mortality, particularly in the elderly.
It has been suggested that ageing results from a range of intrinsic phenomena that affect the whole organism and consequently leads to the “weakest link” organ failing, sometimes culminating in death.
Ageing and neurological diseases
It is widely accepted that ageing is the driving factor of various age-related diseases. Based on studies, 92 of 293 (31.4%) diseases were determined to be age-related. The most common ageing-related diseases included neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and metabolic diseases.
The most common ageing-related diseases included neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and metabolic diseases.
Specifically, ageing is the most common risk factor for the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common neurodegenerative disease in the world, and its incidence increases with advancing age. For instance, aged mice and humans have a reduction in the number of neurons compared to their younger counterparts.
Parkinson’s disease is also a neurodegenerative disease. The prevalence of Parkinson’s disease increases significantly — by approximately ten times — between 50 and 80 years of age. The loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra is considered a hallmark of Parkinson’s Disease.
Ageing and cardiovascular diseases and cancer
Ageing also has a significant effect on the heart and arterial system, leading to an increased prevalence of cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, myocardial infarction, and stroke. By 2030, about 20% of the population will be over 65 years old, and it is believed that cardiovascular diseases will cause 40% of all deaths.
By 2030, about 20% of the population will be over 65 years old, and it is believed that cardiovascular diseases will cause 40% of all deaths.
Ageing cardiovascular tissues demonstrate pathological alterations, including hypertrophy, altered left ventricular diastolic function and increased arterial stiffness. It also results in impaired endothelial function (which refers to the tissue that forms a single layer of cells lining various organs and cavities of the body, especially the blood vessels, heart, and lymphatic vessels).
In terms of cancer, from 2010 to 2030, the ageing of the US population will lead to a 67% increase in the incidence of cancer among Americans over 65 years of age. With the accumulation of senescent cells as a result of ageing, the expression of SASP will increase and promote an inflammatory state, enhancing the invasive capabilities and accelerating the progression of cancer. As such, epigenetic modification is an important link between ageing and cancer.
In terms of cancer, from 2010 to 2030, the ageing of the US population will lead to a 67% increase in the incidence of cancer among Americans over 65 years of age.
What’s most significant of all, is that the immune system also undergoes dramatic ageing-related changes, which could cause the body to lose its ability to fight against infection, and increase the risk of autoimmune diseases.
As such, the science is clear: ageing in general directly leads to various physiological failings within the body.
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