Why people get shorter as they age. In memes

Everyone can grow and enjoy every new mark on the doorjamb, mark the added centimeters with their favorite yogurt with calcium. But taking care of your physical health and remembering to exercise… Hard! Incredible but true: it turns out that adults need a height meter too.

Over time, growth decreases a little bit, but decreases. Often this process cannot be prevented, but it can be delayed. What is the reason for this change and how to deal with it?

orthopedist of the ORTEKA orthopedic salon chain

Like any load-bearing structure, the spine wears out with age. The basic skeleton consists of vertebrae – spongy bones. They are held in an upright position by joints, ligaments and intervertebral discs. The latter perform a shock-absorbing function: they soften the load on the spine when walking, running and sitting.

Natural wear and tear

A slight decrease in height during life is normal. Over the years, intervertebral discs flatten, muscles begin to lose mass, and bone renewal slows. However, significant loss of “height” can signal osteoporosis. After age 35, the process of bone breakdown is faster than bone accumulation, resulting in loss of bone mass. Osteoporosis accelerates this process. Associated factors are also important: for example, in post-menopausal women, bone breakdown is even faster.

While some changes in the body are beyond our control, there are habits that cause a greater loss of height:

• slouching;
• lack of exercise;
• smoking;
• alcohol consumption;
• steroid use;
• excessive caffeine consumption;
• extreme diets and unbalanced nutrition.

A diet rich in calcium and vitamin D can help keep bones strong.

Weak muscles

Age-related loss of muscle mass and muscle function is called sarcopenia. In the language of the senses, a person feels that “strength is gone” and the muscles cannot handle the workload that used to be manageable. In most cases, sarcopenia is a disease that affects people in old age, but this is not always the case.

Statistically*, the prevalence of sarcopenia ranges from 15 to 50% in people over 60. And in middle-aged individuals (45 to 59 years old), it’s between 8 and 10%.

Leo: Loss of muscle mass, strength and endurance is common in the elderly. As we age, it becomes more difficult for our muscles to hold our back in a natural position, so we begin to slouch. Consequently, visually it appears that height is decreasing. A sedentary lifestyle also contributes to the formation of poor posture. Few people, for example, while working in the office, watch the position of their body. Many sit in the wrong posture, which leads to overstretching the muscles, which gradually get used to the unnatural posture. Over time, slouching becomes entrenched, which affects growth.

Bone Health

Osteoporosis is a disease that weakens bones to the point where they break easily. The bones most commonly affected are the hip bones, vertebrae, and wrists. Osteoporosis is called a “silent disease” because you may not notice any changes until a fracture occurs. Yet all the while, bones have been breaking down over the years.

Bone is not stone, but living tissue, something we often forget. The structure of bone is something similar to a honeycomb (hello tripophobes). Under the influence of disease, the spaces in these honeycombs become larger and the number of cells decreases. All of this makes the bones weaker.

Leo: Age affects bone health as well. Bone tissue is constantly renewed, but after 40 years of age this process slows down. The natural destruction of bone tissue is more intensive than its formation. As a result, bones become thinner, weaker, and the risk of osteoporosis increases. According to statistics, every third woman over 50 years old gets a fracture because of it. Men are also at risk, but the disease is less common in them. With this pathology, the density of vertebral tissue decreases, which can negatively affect the growth of a person and even lead to injuries.

Prevent damage

The earlier you pay attention to the problem, the more chances you have to preserve your health. We’re not reinventing the wheel here. But you can always improve your condition by adhering to a healthy lifestyle.

Leo: Both bones and muscles need exercise. Regular sports activate metabolic processes, improve blood supply to the bone tissue, which is thus more intensively renewed. As a result, the bones become stronger.

Moderate training helps to strengthen the muscles of the back, so that they were easier to cope with daily loads and keep the body in a natural position. Exercises such as elbow plank, abs exercises, lying down, and squats help to develop good posture. First of all, physical activity is necessary for office workers and all those who because of their profession do not move much.

We should not forget about nutrition. Our bones need calcium, so it is necessary to consume a sufficient amount of products that include this element. Absolutely everyone, including the elderly, is useful to walk in the fresh air, especially in good weather. Under the influence of sunlight in the skin is produced vitamin D, which is important for bone health.

In preventive doses, you can take the vitamin in the form of preparations, but beforehand you should definitely consult an endocrinologist.

These simple precautions will help slow down the wear and tear on the musculoskeletal system and keep you growing as long as possible.

Sources:
Bezdenezhnykh A.V., Sumin A.N. Sarcopenia: prevalence, detection and clinical significance. Clinical Medicine. № 10, 2012. С. 16-23.