We all expect the wrinkles and the gray hairs, no surprise there. What may surprise you is just how many body systems can malfunction as we age. All of us age, from the moment we are born, our bodies are being used and worn. It is inevitable that the day should come when one or more body systems decide to stop working or at least go on strike. What is likely to happen and when?

Your heart, which acts like a pump, has been beating since you were in utero. It has a vital function in the grand design of your body. It pumps blood all over the body so that vital organs and systems can have a fresh supply of blood used to cleanse, transport, and nourish your body parts.

One common ailment as we age is hypertension or more frequently called: high blood pressure. This is caused by atherosclerosis (a hardening of the arteries), which occurs when fatty deposits form on the walls of the heart vessels. The job of the heart muscle is to pump blood through these arteries and to all the parts of the body. The blood carries oxygen, carbon dioxide and nutrients to where they are needed. The fatty deposits impede the blood flow, so the heart has to work harder to force the blood flow through blocked arteries. Working heart puts more pressure on the arteries and the result is an elevated blood pressure reading.

Our bones have something called “bone mass” which reaches peak somewhere around age 25 - 35. The aging process causes our bones to shrink and decrease in density. When this happens we can become shorter. The loss of density also causes your bones to weaken and when this happens breakage can occur.

We can also experience difficulty with our digestive system because things tend to slow down along the process of digesting food. This slow down can result in more periods of constipation.

Our kidneys have the job of removing waste from the bloodstream. As we age and have chronic conditions like: diabetes or high blood pressure, damage can be done to our urinary tract and kidneys. Loss of bladder control is common in people over age 65, known as incontinence (the inability to hold in urine) or to have scant leakage due to the sphincter muscle being as a reaction to stress like sneezing, surprise.

Reasons for incontinence can be caused by obesity, frequent problems such as chronic cough, frequent constipation, chronic cough, and obesity.