Thursday Thirteen

 As we get older,, we all know our bodies and minds are going to change.  I'm experiencing some of them now at age 55, but my poor mom, at 78 is dealing with worse.  My husband is getting close to 60, and his dad is over 90.  Aging is not for the faint of heart.

1.  As you age, your skin becomes thinner and you bruise more easily, not to mention the wrinkles and age spots that can happen.

2.  Your metabolism slows as you age, so you have to eat less if you want to maintain your weight.

3.  You require more medication to handle not only your aches and pains, but also things like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, menopause,  and arthritis.

4.  Sometimes these medicines affect your ability to perform sexually.

5.  Even if your weight stays the same, the percentage of body fat increases.

6.  When we get older, our cells lose some water. This can make it difficult to break down water soluble medications.

7.  Our digestive systems slow down.  This means
it could take longer to metabolize certain medications.

8.  Blood flow to our livers slows down and the enzymes needed to break down medication decrease.  Some of these medications collect in the liver causing unpleasant side effects.

9.  Kidney function declines.

10. Memory lapses are common in elderly adults.

11. Visual problems such as cataracts, changes in eyesight, and nearsightedness can happen.

12.  Changes in hearing can affect an aging person.

13. Last, but not least,  as we age, many of us develop arthritis making dexterity an issue.  It can be more difficult to pick up tiny things, or it is more difficult to open jars, cans, bottles, and other packages.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, and I didn't think of all of these on my own.  A few, though.  But I did use these other sources. Source 1 and Source 2. 

It's not all bad, though.  Maybe next week I will share the positive side of getting older.  And there is probably more than you think.

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