Essay Sample on Cardiovascular Changes Associated With Aging

Aging is a foreseeable condition that people await as they continue to live. However, as people continue to age, many requirements creep in due to reduced physiological activities in the body (Bota & Davies, 2016). Some of these conditions can move from mild to severe states and harm someone's life. One of the challenges faced by older people in cardiovascular changes, if not managed well, can be very detrimental and cause health challenges (Bota & Davies, 2016). Conversely, the younger population is also registering such conditions and more need to be done, such as a change in lifestyle among the youth. Nonetheless, this condition is manageable. Its effect can be derailed by doing several things such as exercising and taking some medication to manage the disease if discovered (Bota & Davies, 2016). As people continue to grow, their heart muscles tend to enlarge, thus thickening the heart; therefore, the heart muscles become stiffer, hence reducing activity.

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With time as one continues to age, many physiological changes occur in their heart in terms of size and the thickness of the walls within the heart and the arteries (Alama, 2017). There is increased lipofuscin deposit in the heart and blood vessels, and the heart muscles cells operation reduces with time due to the thickening of the walls (Alama, 2017). Moreover, the valves inside the heart that either prevent or allow the blood to flow in and out of the heart chambers thickens and with time becomes tauter; thus, this inflexibility leads to reduced heart activity and might cause heart failure (Alama, 2017). Another physiological disorder associated with the elderly is heart mumble that usually occurs due to valve stiffness. However, these conditions vary from one person to another and depend on various factors such as the environment, the physical activities of a person, the diet, and any other preexisting condition of a person (Alama, 2017). Various exercises can be carried out to prevent or control this disorder in elderly persons (Bota & Davies, 2016).

Jugular and carotids are located on either side of the neck and supply blood to and from the upper part of the body (Joshi et al., 2019). Moreover, the right jugular and carotid vessels contain oxygenated blood from the heart to the skull, brain, the neck, and the superficial parts of the face. However, the other set carries the deoxygenated blood from the upper part of the body through the neck to the right atrium of the heart (Joshi et al., 2019). Many bloods flows in these vessels; thus, in case of damage, much of this will be lost within a short time and can result in death or one being unconscious due to lack of blood in the brain (Joshi et al., 2019). Moreover, these vessels are located superficially on the neck and are thus more exposed than other vessels; hence in case of any damage, blood will flow freely without any restriction. This could lead to a lot of blood being lost (Joshi et al., 2019). Further, the vessels are smaller in diameter. Thus, blood flows with a lot of pressure, and in case of any damage to the cells, a lot of blood would be lost unless the situation is addressed swiftly.

In conclusion, heart disease is one of the major killers of the elderly population in society, and it is essential that the elderly practice healthy living to curb this challenge. Moreover, effective ways of controlling and managing this disorder are controlling the blood pressure as this may predispose one to this condition. Also, exercising frequently, practicing healthy eating habits, living a stress-free life, managing weight at a reasonable level, and limiting alcohol consumption are ways to prevent this condition. Furthermore, managing the condition can be expensive for many households; therefore, many preventive measures should be put in place to enable individuals to live a fulfilling and healthy life and prevent them from getting conditions such as this. Healthy activities should be encouraged even in the younger population since as much as these conditions are more prone to the elderly, and studies have shown that the younger population is not being spared either.

References

Alama, M. N. (2017). Aging-Related Changes of the Cardiovascular System. Journal of Health and Environmental Research, 3(2), 27.

file:///C:/Users/MANAGER/AppData/Local/Temp/10.11648.j.jher.20170302.12.pdf

Bota, D. A., & Davies, K. J. (2016). Mitochondrial Lon protease in human disease and aging: Including an etiologic classification of Lon-related diseases and disorders. Free Radical Biology and Medicine, 100, 188-198.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0891584916303197

Joshi, H., Hynes, L. M., & Edgell, H. (2019). Influence of a neck compression collar on cerebrovascular and autonomic function in men and women. Plos one, 14(12), e0225868.

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0225868