Age-related changes in physical qualities. The influence of a woman's age on the ability to conceive and the successful completion of pregnancy Age-related changes - the spine

Sometimes, old people seem to us to be eternally dissatisfied and forgetful citizens, with wrinkles on their faces, but science reveals to us a completely different side of the coin: people old age usually become smarter over the years, more tolerant in their views and, for the most part, satisfied with their fate.

Liberal views

Previously it was believed that getting older, humanity stiffens in its outlook on life, but recent studies by scientists prove otherwise.

The researchers conducted a survey of several thousand people, during which the results were obtained, demonstrating age-related changes in views on the world around different categories of people.

It turned out that with age, a person shows more liberality in relation to political activity, family, material and spiritual values.

Stem cell aging with humans

Depending on how quickly the body ages, almost all cells go through a stage of change, and despite the fact that it is constantly being updated and replaced by a new stem cell, it still wears out.

Scientific evidence shows that the ability to regenerate cells decreases with age

Experiments conducted by scientists on mice only confirm this fact.

And, of course, the genetic background of the human body, which is responsible for diseases and stressful situations, becomes more dynamic over time.

The need for sleep decreases with age

After studying the need for sleep of several age groups, with an interval from 20 to 83 years, scientists came to the conclusion that the need for sleep decreases with age by a duration of 20 minutes.

This is explained by the fact that an elderly person does not need much time to sleep, although many people of advanced age 65 years and older suffer from this, this happens when more time is needed to fall asleep.

The ability to abstract is getting worse

The frequent problems of abstraction over time and the comprehensive flow of information are another unfortunate factor affecting the lives of aging people.

The ability to control the situation and focus on something gradually worsens with age

Nevertheless, according to Canadian psychologists, old people can distinguish more important information from insignificant, which has a positive effect on.

Skin condition will worsen

Upon reaching the age of 50, it begins to flake, the epidermis becomes thin, along with this, the elasticity and firmness of the upper layer are lost. skin which leads to the formation of wrinkles and folds on the skin of the face.

Usually, in such cases, the use of various injections and rejuvenation procedures gives an insufficient, ineffective result, since the bones of the jaw and eye sockets also wear out over time, as a result of which they sag. upper eyelids and sunken cheeks.

Sense of humor will remain the same

Laughter has always been beneficial for the human body, including the elderly.

Old people who appreciate humor and are sympathetic to it react effectively and endure stress more easily.

As a result, the quality of life improves, and the aging process itself is easier and more optimistic accepted by a person.

A more positive attitude towards life

Imaginary stereotypes about dissatisfied and gloomy people of the older generation have not been proven by science, it is quite typical to test the level of joy and happiness in more mature years.

Sociologists, in the course of surveys and observations, note that the level of happiness, in most cases, directly depends on such components as health, family and material income, which usually do not always justify themselves in old age.

And although the younger generation is often happier than the old, the age change still changes the attitude towards the environment.

So, for example, there is scientific confirmation that the older generation remembers their past with optimism and a positive mood, perceiving everything in a rosy light.

Conclusion

Old age is not yet a final sentence, but a special gift.

Even though over time physical body and the human body undergoes significant changes - the soul always remains young, with a large, rich experience of the days lived.

Freed from fears and illusions, a person of senile age becomes kinder, more loyal and less critical of himself.

The main advantage of old age is a great accumulation of wisdom and vital prudence, considering all these advantages, you should not forget about it, and then life will be filled with meaning and become full.

We used to think that as people age, they increasingly begin to experience difficulty sleeping. However, according to a new scientific study, insomnia makes people age, not the other way around. The study, published in the journal Neuron, presented irrefutable findings. It turns out that sleep problems do not arise as a result of age-related changes, but as a result of the fact that certain mechanisms change in the brain of people.

Study lead author Matthew Walker said that insomnia is the result of a loss of neural connections in the brain. Thus, the main organ stops picking up the body's signals of fatigue. In laboratory experiments that were conducted on rodents, scientists compared the type and amount of chemical signals involved during sleep in individuals different ages. As a result, neurologists found that the chemical signature in all cases (both in young and aged mice) was the same.

With age, the number of receptors in the brain decreases.

However, a problem has been found. It was a gradual decrease in the number of receptors that receive a signal from the body about fatigue. The head of the sleep and neuroimaging laboratory at the University of California at Berkeley explained this in a press release: “Our study showed that the aging brain has the same capabilities as the young one, it just cannot take full advantage of them. It looks like a weak radio antenna. There are signals, but she can't take them."

These Findings Are Changing Our Understanding of Sleep Changes

If it was previously believed that age inevitably interferes with the quality of sleep, now we have received data of a different nature. Insomnia itself is not a consequence of aging. But sleep problems can be one of the factors provoking age-related changes in the body. Scientists have already found causal links between lack of sleep and cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and obesity. But when it comes to memory functions, sleep is the "Goldilocks" problem. Both too much nighttime rest and not enough of it is not a good idea for your body.

How much sleep do older people need?

The Sleep Foundation claims that older adults need seven to nine hours of sleep per night, exactly the same amount as growing teenagers. However, the older generation, as a rule, does not rest during the indicated norm. According to National Institute according to Aging, 13 percent of men and 36 percent of women over 65 cannot fall asleep for 30 minutes or more. They get up early and often stay up all night.

Problems come on gradually

This failure does not occur suddenly. Lack of sleep invades the lives of modern people already closer to 30 years. Gradually, problems only accumulate, and by the age of 50, the quality of deep sleep deteriorates by exactly half. Unfortunately, by the age of 70, people often cannot do without sleeping pills. However, this does not solve the problem of lack of deep sleep. It just means that older people don't wake up in the middle of the night.

Late pregnancy is becoming more and more common in Western society.

For example, in the UK average age child bearing rose to 40 years from 23 in 1968 and 29.3 in 2008. There are several reasons why many couples choose to have children after establishing a strong relationship and achieving financial stability. The number of late and remarriages is also on the rise. Moreover, there may be a delay in finding a suitable partner, or the partner may have health problems that should be addressed first.

Relationship between age and fertility

Although pregnancy is sometimes recorded in women aged 50 years and above, fertility declines with age. The decline occurs gradually, throughout the woman's reproductive life; this becomes noticeable over the age of 30, and accelerates between 35 and 40 years of age so that fertility by 45 years is very close to zero.

Most women can conceive and give birth to a healthy child in the time period prescribed by nature; but the number of women who will suffer infertility, miscarriages or develop fetal abnormalities increases rapidly after a certain age.

At the age of 25, only 5% of women pass more than a year before they become pregnant with regular intercourse; this figure rises to 30% at age 35. Only 2-5% of those who want to have a child at the age of 40 will be able to do this.

The risk of miscarriage also increases with age - that is, the risk of miscarriage at the age of 40-44 is 35%. Moreover, advanced maternal age is associated with an increased risk chromosomal abnormalities in children.

Older women are also at risk for gynecological complications during pregnancy, such as gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, placenta previa, C-section, intrauterine growth retardation, preterm birth and the risk of stillbirth.

Why does fertility decline with age?

Ovarian aging is the most significant factor. It is part of the normal age-related changes that occur in organs and tissues. Most women have about 300,000 eggs in their ovaries at the end of puberty. For every egg that is released at ovulation, there are 500 eggs that do not mature.

By the time a woman reaches menopause, which usually occurs between the ages of 50-55, only a few thousand eggs remain. As a woman ages, the remaining eggs in her ovaries also age. Aged eggs are susceptible to DNA damage as the DNA repair system wears out. This makes the eggs less suitable for fertilization, and the resulting embryos are poorly capable of implantation.

The production of follicles is mainly determined by genetics, although a woman's lifestyle (such as smoking habits) can also affect fertility.

With age, fertilization is associated with an increased risk of developing chromosomal abnormalities (such as Down syndrome). The risk of chromosomal abnormalities among women aged 20 is 1/500, while among women aged 45 it is 1/20.

Gynecological problems- abdominal infections, tubal damage, endometriosis, fibroids, ovulation problems, etc. also increase with age. There is also the possibility of premature menopause. As women age, they are more likely to develop diseases that negatively affect their fertility.

sexual functions- libido, intercourse frequency, etc. also decrease with age. There is information about the effect of age on the implantation readiness of the endometrium - this ability decreases with age.

The aging process affects not only women, but also men, although to a much lesser extent. Age affects sperm quality and intercourse frequency. However, there is no fixed maximum age when men are no longer able to conceive a child.

Statistics show that for men under the age of 25, the average duration of a relationship for conception by partners of a child is 4.6 months, while at the age of 40 this period is extended to 2 years. A recent study in Brazil showed that the chances of conceiving a child fell by 7% every year, starting at age 41. (ASRM 2011)

The mature age of the mother increases the risk of autosomal dominant diseases (Marfan syndrome, neurofibromatosis and achondroplasia).

Identification of infertility among mature women

To assess fertility potential in mature women, you can use different tests- for example, a blood test to study the levels of the hormones FSH, LH, estradiol and inhibin on the 3rd day of menstruation.

When planning a pregnancy, you will most likely be advised of the risk of miscarriage and chromosomal abnormalities due to your age. In addition, you will learn about potential pregnancy complications such as blood pressure, bleeding and diabetes.

Infertility Treatment Options for Mature Women

For the treatment of infertility in mature women in premenopausal or menopausal age, there is a very limited opportunities. More mature women respond poorly to ovarian stimulation; the chance of having a live baby, even with IVF, is significantly lower than that of younger women.

According to data from the SART report 2000, in women aged 40 years, the rate of live births for each egg collection is 15%, at 41 years old - 11%, 42 years old - 8%, 43 years old - 5%, 44 years and older - 2 %.

In addition, older women are at risk of health problems during pregnancy and childbirth, such as gestational diabetes, placenta previa, abruption, caesarean section, preterm birth, blood clotting, etc.

To improve IVF success rates among mature women, some clinics recommend assisted hatching, embryo transfer in the fetal bladder, pre-implantation diagnosis, and transplant high-quality embryos. Transplantation is also recommended in some countries a large number embryos. Other treatment options include:

Egg donation using eggs from a younger donor. Bewley and Ledger (2009) report that more than half of live births after IVF among women over 40 have used donor eggs.
Embryo donation - with the consent of the couple, and if the man has problems with sperm.
Surrogacy using biological father's sperm and donor eggs.
Adoption and guardianship.
Acceptance of life without children.

Successes on the sexual front, good potency for all men play an important role, because it is male strength and abilities in bed that affect the self-esteem and personality formation of men at any age, throughout their life. Any malfunctions in the reproductive system cause serious indignation among the stronger sex. And with age, potency, sexual activity and strength decrease, which often leads to various psychological disorders and mood swings, including. If love and harmony reign in the family, and the relationship between spouses is built on trust and understanding, then reduced potency will not cause serious moral trauma and maintain a high male ego without compromising self-esteem.

At what age does male potency begin to wane?

Men's health and its condition, including, directly depends on the lifestyle that a man leads. Active, mobile, healthy and without bad habits men retain good potency much longer than others. Such people are sexually active at any age.

But there is a main factor that affects all men without exception - this is time. Human body, despite the ability to regenerate, ages over time, and the performance of all organs in the body deteriorates and slows down, health problems begin. From the age of thirty, the production of testosterone in the blood of men decreases every year, and with it the sexual activity, but this does not mean that a man cannot live a normal sexual life. On average, somewhere between the ages of 35 and up to 50, for normal functioning and potency, a man must perform 2-3 full-fledged sexual acts per week, which is quite enough to maintain male strength and activity until old age.

Factors that affect potency in men

There are a number of reasons why a decrease in libido, poor potency and disturbances in the functioning and erection of the penis can occur much earlier. This can lead to all sorts of problems, complications, disorders in the functioning of the body as a whole and cause moral decline or depression, among other things. The most common factors due to which the potency in men worsens in early age, can be distinguished:

Diseases and problems with the genitourinary system. Prostatitis (prostate adenoma) in one form or another.
chronic diseases internal organs, complications from the disease.
Systematic abuse of alcohol, cigarettes, drugs.
Not regular and not stable sex life, regular interruption of sexual intercourse.
Venereal diseases and complications during the period of illness.
Obesity, diabetes and sedentary lifestyle.
Mechanical or medical damage to the genitals.
Not proper care behind the genitals, lack of personal hygiene.
Living in ecologically polluted areas.
Taking medications that have side effect on the genitals.
Hormonal disruptions in the body of men, which affect the level of testosterone production in the blood.
Strong and long lasting psychological pressure and disorders, constant depression, in one form or another.

The first signs of erectile dysfunction (impotence) in men

Having crossed the forty-year threshold, many men begin to show problems with potency. Impotence in itself just does not occur, as many believe. Erectile dysfunction occurs due to a disease that a person has or had. An incompletely cured disease of any kind or organ causes problems and complications in the work of the whole organism, including the male penis, and potency is fundamentally reduced. Inflammation of the prostate gland, testicles also causes impotence and requires emergency treatment and patience as well.

In order to start treatment on time and prevent problems and complications, erectile dysfunction should be treated on early stages. The presence of the first signs of the disease cannot be ignored, since more than one doctor will not cure neglected impotence.

The first symptoms of erectile dysfunction:

Erectile dysfunction in men (failures in the morning or night erection, weakening of erection during intercourse).
The rigidity of the penis is significantly reduced (if the penis remains flaccid during arousal, during intercourse the penis loses its elasticity for no reason, blood flow to the organ is disturbed).
Premature ejaculation (uncontrolled ejaculation before sexual intercourse).

If physiological factors influence the deterioration of sexual activity and erection of the penis, this will lead to physical impotence, and severe psychological disorders, mental crises and depression in one form or another can cause the development of psychogenic impotence. For each disease, you need to contact a competent doctor who will make the correct diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate treatment, which is necessary in a particular case.

Correct diagnosis is the key to effective treatment of impotence

If a man notices the slightest disturbance in the work of the male penis and the system, he needs to contact a specialist. Disorders and potency disorders cannot be left to chance, because over time, slight discomfort will develop into big problems that will entail a number of other diseases and disorders.

If symptoms indicating the development of impotence are found, a man should consult a urologist. The doctor will prescribe full examination, establish the cause of the disease and prescribe a course of treatment and necessary procedures. You should not give up in advance and delay the disease, because timely assistance will help maintain sexual activity for many years to come.

If potency declines due to psychological disorders, then at the beginning the patient should consult a psychotherapist. The doctor will understand the cause of stress or depression, help to establish inner harmony with the help of medications and psychotherapy sessions.

Many men, after the first signs of illness, immediately give up and put on themselves and their sexual life big cross. This is not right, because it is enough to show a little patience and perseverance, then the functions of the genital organ will be restored, and it will be possible to please yourself and your beloved woman with full sex for many years to come.

How to restore potency and keep it for many years

When the treatment has given the desired result and the state of potency has stabilized, it is very important to maintain it. Doctors have a list of recommendations for maintaining and extending potency for right level. By following the advice and not ignoring the symptoms, a man will remain sexually active much longer than patients who refuse treatment or lifestyle changes.

Tips for men, so that the potency is on top:

You must bring your physical form in order. sports, leisure, mobile lifestyle. Exercises to strengthen the muscles of the perineum will help well.
Proper nutrition. Refusal of fast foods, snacks on the go, harmful and too fatty foods will help to establish the metabolism in the body and normalize the work digestive system. Increase in the diet the amount of fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts, peanuts, cashews, hazelnuts, dried fruits. The diet includes legumes, honey, fish and seafood, among others. Nutritionists especially recommend avocados for its positive influence to the functioning of the genital organs.
Healthy sleep will help support Good work body and potency at the appropriate level, because during sleep the human body self-repairs, the work of internal organs improves, blood flow to the penis stabilizes, which enriches its tissues with oxygen and helps maintain the health of the male organ.
Stable sex without serious pauses and breaks. The presence of regular full-fledged sexual intercourse in a man helps to maintain potency and the normal functioning of all genital organs.
Minimize psychological stress, avoid stressful situations.
Medical support for libido. The use of drugs, vitamins that have the necessary additives, stimulate the normal functioning of the male genital organ, are useful for erection and the system as a whole.

Compliance with these recommendations will help improve and maintain not only potency, but also general state the male body as a whole. healthy image life activity will favorably affect the immune system, digestive organs, cardiovascular system and significantly improve well-being and psychological condition person. When the body and soul are in harmony, the world around becomes brighter and kinder, life becomes more beautiful, and problems lose their weight. Good potency is very important for the stronger sex, but we should not forget about other joys in life. A happy family, good friends, the opportunity to do what you like, also occupy a significant place on the path of life and you should not neglect these joys if your potency has weakened a little at your age.

A common belief is that a person's intellectual abilities inevitably deteriorate with age. It is believed that after studying at school and graduating from the institute, we learn the bulk of knowledge, the main work skills we get up to 30-35 years, and then a decline necessarily begins. We believe it and... we are afraid. But do people really get dumber with age?

The first thing I would like to note is that the feeling that you have become stupid is irrational, like any feeling. Some real facts can serve as an impetus for it, but it would be hasty to draw conclusions on its basis. So let's look at the scientific evidence.

What happens to the brain as a person grows up? In infants and young children, brain development occurs at its highest rate. Installed for the first time neural connections, which will later become the basis of habitual adult skills - walking, speaking, reading and writing. But is it possible to say that the average baby is smarter than a student?

Here, by the way, is the first fact: the high intensity of processes in the brain does not yet mean the highest intellectual abilities. The baby develops so actively because he needs to have time to lay the "base" for the future life. The same can be said about schoolchildren and even students.

The last grades of school and the time of studying at the institute (that is, between the ages of about 15 and 25) really have a peak in the ability to remember new information and master unfamiliar subject areas. This is partly due to the biochemical processes in the brain: nerve cells begin to gradually die off after 20 years.

Although, as studies have shown, the volume of dead cells is insignificant and really practically does not affect the thinking abilities of a person, especially considering that the number of neurons themselves is only 10 percent of the total brain volume. But there are other reasons: the less knowledge we have, the easier it is for our brain to absorb it like a sponge.

And with age, when we have already accumulated a certain baggage of information and developed critical thinking, any new information must be tested (whether it is consistent with the rest of our knowledge, whether it contradicts it) and "integrate" into the existing picture of the world.

It is not surprising that a forty-year-old person will need more time to assimilate the same amount of new information than a twenty-year-old person. . But his intellectual resources will be more active at the same time: he will do the work not only of memorizing new information, but also subjecting them to critical reflection and refreshing all previous knowledge related to this topic.

Moreover, scientists have already refuted the postulate that with the end of adolescence and the beginning of adulthood, the brain loses its ability to plasticity - the formation of new nerve cells and connections between them. Studies of the brain activity of people who have had a stroke have proven that the adult brain is able to produce neurons and establish new connections between them.

There is another psychological factor: the more we learn, the less significant the increase in new knowledge seems to be. A first-year student who has studied for six months feels incredibly wiser compared to the school period. A person receiving a second higher education or taking advanced training courses no longer feels such euphoria, although he does no less mental work.

However, there is some truth to the assumption that many people get dumber with age. And it consists in this: intellectual abilities need training. Getting an education (which is laid down by the standard "social" program), we voluntarily or involuntarily "train" our neurons.

And then everything depends only on us: on the choice of work, leisure, breadth of views on life, the number of books read ... Moreover, the development of the brain occurs not only during intellectual work - its work is also beneficially influenced by a variety of impressions.

That is, "training the brain" is not only reading new books, but also mastering new sports, traveling to places where you have never been, learning to play board games- anything.

And here the psychological factor also plays a significant role: one who considers such leisure "childish" and unworthy of a respectable adult, or one who does not want to act as a beginner, preferring to always be on top in everything, in the long run significantly reduces his mental development.

Observing the conditions of "brain training", with age you will be able to observe not a decrease, but even an increase in intellectual capabilities, experts say. If the main advantage of students and young people is the speed of assimilation of new information, then middle-aged people are most productive where they can use their accumulated knowledge and experience, primarily in the professional field.

After 30-35 years, a person's level of analytical abilities increases, as well as self-esteem increases, which favorably affects many areas of activity - from the quality of communication skills to the effectiveness of solving problems in a team.