Aging and dying is a major part of a person’s life, even though no one in this world knows quite how long they are going to live or when they are going to die. The process of aging is defined as “a progressive decline in the maximum functional level of individual cells, whole organs, and entire organisms”. As people get older, the body begins to slowly lose its degree of wellness, which includes physical and mental declines. Generally, most people reach their prime for physical capabilities during their twenties and thirties, but they can also reach it later on in life. Over the years, researchers have come up with many different theories regarding the causes of aging. Some of these theories include the wear and tear theory, the cellular theory, and the genetic mutation theory.
The wear and tear theory, basically states that over a period time, a buildup of damage from internal and external factors eventually wears the body out and starts to it break down. The cellular theory, proposes that when we are born our cells are limited to only reproducing a certain amount of times before they die, then our organs begin to slowly rot away. Researchers promoting the genetic mutation theory believe that all the mutated cells in our body increases with age, so as people get older they tend to have more damage and problems within their cells. Most of the signs of aging are shown through the outward appearance of a person, such as wrinkles, baldness, gray hair, etc., and other signs can be seen mentally which include memory loss or a slower reaction time. Osteoporosis, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease are three of the most common diseases that occur with the aging process of a person.
Osteoporosis is when a person’s bones become fragile and lose density over time. During the early stages of osteoporosis, there are no noticeable symptoms, but later on during the