Photo: The author at age fifty after climbing the Colorado Route on King Fisher Tower, Fisher Towers, Utah 2004. Credit Paul Gardner
The woman I am talking to has asked me the same question five times in the last twenty minutes. I expect this. It’s been going on for the last five years. She is a retired college professor, a world recognized expert in urban economics. She hikes, skis, writes for the local paper, and teaches yoga. Her body is strong, but her short-term memory functions have aged. Normal memory loss with age is progressing into something more serious. She is seventy eight years old, eight years older than me. I have known her my whole life. She is my sister.
I have written about memory loss: see my article: Memory: How It works, Why it Changes with Age, and How to Manage that Change New research on organ aging indicates different parts of the body age earlier than others affecting our longevity and disease risk. Aging is much more variable than once thought starting at different parts of the body at different times. Aging is unique for every individual occurring at the molecular level. In this article, I will examine chronological age versus biological age and how science is differentiating aging in the major organs.
Photo: King Fisher Tower, Utah 2004
Chronological Age v. Biological Age
Historically, science has analyzed blood and tissue to identify patterns of gene activity commonly seen at certain ages. If your gene activity matches your other people your age, your chronological age and your biological age are the same. Recently, using models based on detailed protein analysis and large scale sample size, scientists developed biological age signatures for eleven organs: heart, lungs, arteries, brain, fat, immune system, intestines, kidney, liver, muscles, and pancreas. In a UK study of 44,550 men and women, 33% had at least one organ extremely aged, 26% had two or more, and some as many as eight. You are only as strong as your weakest link.
We are all not dealt the same genetic hand, but we can, though lifestyle changes, improve our biologically age. I detail some of these changes in my article: Turning 70: Reflections on the Blue Zones In the next section I will look at some of the common organ “agers.”
Organ Aging
Heart agers, in other words individuals whose protein analysis indicate an older heart than their age are found to be more likely to develop heart failure, coronary artery disease and heart valve disease. Again, some of this is genetic, but also related to a sedentary lifestyle and poor diet.
Among lung agers, the most common disease is chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). My mother, active into eighties, suffered from COPD and was on a breathing machine the last several years of her life.
Chronic liver disease (CLD) is more common in liver agers. Scar tissue replaces healthy liver tissue and stops the liver from working normally. It is often reversible in early stages. Viral infections, alcohol use, and diabetes are major contributors to CLD.
Extremely old brains are 3X more likely to develop Alzheimer’s while relatively young brains have 81% less risk. Of all organs, the health of your brain is most strongly predictive or mortality. Use it or lose it.
Conclusion
Scientific research on aging is clear: people who smoke, drink alcohol, ate processed meat and do not exercise are prone to accelerated aging. In a previous article: Don’t Let The Old Man In: Seven Strategies For Adding life To Your Years I write about ways to add life to your years.
I feel lucky that I won the gene pool, but I also lead a disciplined life: good diet, intense exercise, writing articles, learning new languages, good sleep habits, and a wonderful community of family, friends, and clients.
I have my weak links: muscles, soft tissues and joints which have suffered from use and abuse. Although it has been 12 years since I quit drinking, I still fight mental demons. I’m not as strong, aerobically fit nor does my body work like it did when I was fifty. I identify my weak links and constantly work on improving them. I don’t know with certainty what is my biological age, but I believe it’s younger than 71.
Photo: Biological age? Wind River Range, Wyoming 2020. Credit Paul Gardner
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