1. THE AGING PROCESS
Although biologists largely agree that an organism's life span is determined and limited by the
laws of natural selection, no single theory prevails about the mechanisms by which a species rids
itself of one generation to make room for the next. According to one theory, called the error
theory, aging is caused by the accumulation of small flaws in genetic information passed on as
the body cells reproduce. Nevertheless, aging may be defined as irreversible biological changes that
occur in all living things with the passage of time, eventually resulting in death. Even though, all
organisms age, rates of aging vary considerably. Fruit flies, for example, are born, grow old, and die
in 30 or 40 days, while field mice have a life span of about three years. Dolphins may live to age 25,
elephants to age 50, and Galápagos tortoises to 100. Maximum life span though is the greatest age
that a member of a species has been known to reach, whereas average life span is the average age
at which that organism is expected to die. Average life span, which is the more useful concept,
reflects in part the relative hospitality of the environment, among other considerations.
The maximum life span for humans in some documentation has been authenticated to be at 122
years though there might be some probable changes in the recent past.
Among humans, the effects of aging vary from one individual to another. Although some
people never reach the maximum life span, and others are beset with illnesses if they do, more and
more people are living healthy lives well into their 90s and older. The study of the different aging
processes that occur among individuals and the factors that cause these changes is known as
gerontology. Geriatrics is a medical specialty concerned with the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment
of diseases in the elderly.
Several general changes take place in the human body as it ages: hearing and vision decline, muscle
strength lessens, soft tissues such as skin and blood vessels become less flexible, and there is an
overall decline in body tone.
Most of the body's organs perform less efficiently with advancing age. For example, the
average amount of blood pumped by the heart drops from about 6.9 liters per minute at age 20 to
only 3.5 liters pumped per minute at age 85. For this same age range, the average amount of blood
flowing through the kidneys drops from approximately 0.6 liters per minute to 0.3 liters. Not all people
experience decreased organ function to the same degree some individuals have healthier hearts and
kidneys at age 85 than others do at age 50.
The immune system also changes with age. A healthy immune system protects the body against
bacteria, viruses, and other harmful agents by producing disease-fighting proteins known as
antibodies. A healthy immune system also prevents the growth of abnormal cells, which can become
cancerous. With advancing age, the ability of the immune system to carry out these protective

2. functions is diminished. The rate of antibody production may drop by as much as 80 percent between
age 20 and age 85. This less-effective immune system explains why a bout of influenza, which may
make a young adult sick for a few days, can be fatal for an elderly person. Thus, it is as important for
an older person to be vaccinated against the flu and pneumonia as it is for young people to be
vaccinated against childhood diseases.
Most of the glands of the endocrine system, the organs that secrete hormones regulating such
functions as metabolism, temperature, and blood sugar levels, retain their ability to function into
advanced age. However, these glands often become less sensitive to the triggers that direct hormone
secretion. In the aging pancreas, for example, higher blood sugar levels are required to stimulate the
release of insulin, a hormone that helps the muscles convert blood sugar to energy.
The ovaries and the testes, the endocrine glands that regulate many aspects of sexual reproduction,
alter during the aging process. As a man ages, the testes produce less of the male sex hormone,
testosterone. A woman's ovaries undergo marked changes from about age 45 to age 55 during a
process known as menopause. The ovaries no longer release egg cells, and they no longer generate
the hormones that stimulate monthly menstrual cycles. After women have gone through menopause,
they are no longer capable of having children without the aid of reproductive technology. The physical
changes associated with aging do not have a significant impact on sexual activity. Most healthy people
maintain an interest in sex all of their lives.
One of the myths of aging is that intelligence diminishes with age. Early studies that used intelligence
tests designed for children revealed that older people scored lower than young adults. However, these
tests relied heavily on skills commonly used in school classrooms, such as arithmetic, and required the
test to be completed within a specific time limit. Older people may require more time to answer
questions, and more recent studies based on untimed tests and other measures of intellectual activity,
such as problem solving and concept formation, show that there is relatively little decline in mental
ability in healthy people at least up to age 70.
The aging brain does undergo a progressive loss of neurons, or nerve cells, but these losses represent
only a small percentage of neurons in the brain. The speed of conduction of a nerve impulse declines
with age, but it drops only about 15 percent over the age span from 30 to 85 years. Although
intelligence is generally not affected by the aging process, studies show that some older people may
find it difficult to deal with many stimuli at once. For example, an older individual requires more time
to sort out all of the information when many highway signs come into view simultaneously. Traveling
at 97 km/h, an elderly driver may miss the information he or she needs or may act on the wrong
information. But if older individuals recognize this limitation and adjust their behavior accordingly,
they can continue driving safely well into old age.
Many older people experience problems with memory, and up to 10 percent of the elderly have
memory problems significant enough to interfere with their ability to function independently. Memory
problems were once considered an inevitable effect of the aging process, but researchers have
determined that many of the brain-related changes often observed in elderly people, including

3. memory loss, are actually a result of such diseases as Alzheimer’s disease and diseases associated
with blood vessels and blood flow in the brain, such as stroke. Memory loss is sometimes treatable,
and certain memory-aiding strategies have been found to help reverse the short-term memory loss
experienced by many older people.
Another myth about aging is that people tend to grow sour and mean-spirited with age. Research
shows that personalities really do not change much over time. A mean-spirited, grumpy old person
was probably that way when he or she was 30. And, as humans age, most still like to do the things
they did when they were young. For example those who were athletic in their youth may continue to
enjoy athletic activities as they age.
An older person's social environment, however, can have a marked impact on personality. The social
isolation that often exists among older people can dramatically influence mental attitudes and
behavior. Some documentation show that in the United States, 33 percent of all older people live
alone, most of them widowed women over the age of 85. About 5 percent of elderly Americans live in
some type of long-term care facility, and almost 25 percent of all older Americans live under or near
the federal poverty level. These people have little or no money for recreational activities. This poverty
and isolation often leads to clinical depression and other problems, such as alcoholism.
Although the exact causes of aging remain unknown, scientists are learning a great deal about the
aging process and the mechanisms that drive it. Some of the most promising research on the aging
process focuses on the microscopic changes that occur in all living cells as organisms’ age. In 1965
American microbiologist Leonard Hayflick observed that under laboratory conditions, human cells can
duplicate up to 50 times before they stop. Hayflick also noted that when cells stop normal cell division,
they start to age, or senesce. Since Hayflick’s groundbreaking observations, scientists have been
searching for the underlying cause, known as the senescent factor (SF), of why cells stop dividing and
thus age.
Different theories have been proposed to explain how SF works. One theory is based on the
assumption that aging, and diseases that occur more frequently with advancing age, are caused by
structural damage to cells. This damage accumulates in tiny amounts each time the cell divides,
eventually preventing the cell from carrying out normal functions.
One cause of this damage may be free radicals, which are chemical compounds found in the
environment and also generated by normal chemical reactions in the body. Free radicals contain
unpaired electrons and so carry an electric charge that makes them highly reactive. In an effort to
neutralize their electric charge, free radicals constantly bombard cells in order to steal electrons in a
process called oxidation. Free radicals are thought to greatly increase the severity of or perhaps even
cause such life-shortening diseases as diabetes mellitus, strokes, and heart attacks. Researchers have
observed that free radicals exist in smaller amounts in those species with relatively long life spans.
Increasing human life span may depend on our ability to prevent free radical damage, and scientists
are currently examining the role of chemical compounds, called antioxidants, that prevent or reverse
oxidative damage in the aging process.

4. Another theory suggests that SF is genetically regulated i.e. cells are genetically programmed to carry
out about 50 cell divisions and then die. Researchers have identified at least three genes that are
involved with human cellular senescence. They have also discovered a protein on the surface
membranes of senescent cells that inhibits production of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), the essential
molecule that carries all genetic information.
Another theory proposes that extra, useless bits of DNA accumulate over time within a cell's nucleus.
Eventually this so-called junk DNA builds up to levels that clog normal cell action. If this idea is
correct, scientists may be able to find ways to prevent accumulation of junk DNA, thereby slowing
down the process of senescence in cells.
Other studies focus on cell division limits. Each time a cell divides, it duplicates its DNA, and in each
division the sections at the ends of DNA, called the telomeres, are gradually depleted, or shortened.
Eventually the telomeres become so depleted that normal cell division halts, typically within 50 cell
divisions. Scientists have found that an enzyme produced by the human body, called telomerase, can
prolong the life of the telomeres, thus extending the number of cell divisions. In laboratory studies,
cells injected with telomerase continue to divide well beyond the normal limit of 50 cell divisions.
These promising results have triggered worldwide attention on telomerase and its relationship to
aging.
A number of other studies are underway to investigate the effects of aging. Scientists have found, for
example, a possible explanation for why women have longer average life spans than men. The
difference seems to be biologically determined, and male and female sex hormones are probably
responsible. The blood levels of female sex hormones drop sharply during menopause. At that time,
the incidence of heart disease and high blood pressure in women increases to match the incidence in
men, suggesting that the presence of female sex hormones offers some protection against heart
disease.
In developed nations, life expectancy has increased more in the 20th century than it has in all of
recorded history. A person born in the United States in 1995 can expect to live more than 35 years
longer than a person born in 1900. Today more than 34 million Americans are 65 or older, accounting
for about 13 percent of the population. By the year 2030, their numbers will more than double: One in
every five Americans will be over age 65. A person who lives 100 years or more—a centenarian—was
once a rarity, but today about 60,000 Americans are 100 years or older. By the year 2060, there may
be as many as 2.5 million centenarians in the United States. The number of super-centenarians—
people 105 years of age and older will probably be as commonplace in the next century as
centenarians are fast becoming now some researches indicates. This increase in life expectancy is the
result of better public health measures, improvements in living conditions, and advances in medical
care
In summary,the race isnot forthe swiftneitheristhe battle forthe strongbut wisdomisvital to
exercisingcontrol thanintelligence.Inasmuch as there maybe problemsrelatedtoaging,the secretto
life issatisfaction andcomfortinall decisionsinthe past,presentandthe future. AnAfricansocietyand

5. culture holdsthe elderlytobe atthe epicenterof all knowledge,wisdom, leadershipand customs. The
oldadage that says “a year oldera yearwiser”simplifiesthe reasoningbehindthe respectforthe
elderly inoursociety.However,agingcomeswithitmanychallengesasmentionedhereinof whichif
leftuncheckedmayleadtoserioushealthimplicationhencethe needtoguardourselvesjealouslyin
orderto have meaningful life insuchstagesof life.Totrustt inthe promise of the starto shine inthe
nightisone thingbut to believeinthe hippoorhyenathatwill nevershow- upatdawnis anotherthing.
In otherwordsoldage doesnotspell doomor eminence of deathbutjusta processof life.Itisbetterto
live yourlife the wayyoucan,then the fruits of actualizationwill come yourway.
JONES. H. MUNANG’ANDU (author)
Motivational speaker,healthcommentator &
Health practitioner
Mobile;0966565670/0979362525

6. Sexually Transmitted Infections
Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), formerly known as venereal diseases, more than 25 infections
passed from one person to another primarily during sexual contact. Despite the prevalence of STIs,
studies show that many people are unaware of their risks for contracting an STI or the serious, and
sometimes deadly, health consequences that may result from an untreated infection.
Some STIs, such as gonorrhea or chlamydia, may cause no symptoms. People who do not know they
are infected risk infecting their sexual partners and, in some cases, their unborn children. If left
untreated, these diseases may cause debilitating pain or may destroy a woman’s ability to have
children. Some STIs can be cured with a single dose of antibiotics, but many, such as acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), are incurable but treatable. People with these diseases remain
infectious to others for their entire lives.
Those most at risk for contracting STIs are people who have unprotected sex—that is, sex without
using a latex or polyurethane condom; those who have multiple partners; and those whose sex
partners include intravenous drug users who share needles. Additionally, young people may be more
likely to have unprotected sex and they may find it difficult to tell their sexual partners they are
infected with an STI. Young people may also be embarrassed or unable to seek treatment for STIs.
This means that they are not only more likely to pass the disease to other young people; they also
have a greater risk of suffering the long-term consequences of untreated STIs.
STIs are transmitted by infectious agents—microscopic bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi, and single-
celled organisms called protozoa—that thrive in warm, moist environments in the body, such as the
genital area, mouth, and throat. Most STIs spread during sexual intercourse (vaginal or anal), but
other forms of sexual contact, such as oral sex, can also spread disease.
Some STIs are transmitted in ways other than by sexual contact. Certain viral STIs, such as AIDS and
some types of hepatitis, may be transmitted by contact with infected blood. For instance, viral STIs
may pass between people who share infected needles, and a person can become infected from a
transfusion of infected blood. Some STIs may pass from an infected mother to her child. Infection may
occur before birth, when the infectious agent crosses the placenta (organ in a pregnant woman’s
uterus that links the blood supplies of mother and baby) and enters the baby’s bloodstream. Infection
also may occur during childbirth, as the baby passes through the birth canal, or after birth, when the
baby consumes infected breast milk. STIs cannot be transmitted through shaking hands or other
casual contact, or through contact with inanimate objects such as clothing or toilet se ats.

7. The most common STIs in the United States include chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, herpes, AIDS,
hepatitis, genital warts, and trichomoniasis.