The biggest group of nutritional difficulties in developed countries results from failing to eat a balanced diet and from overeating. Eating too much saturated fat raises the amount of cholesterol within the blood, causing narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis). This, in turn, can lead to coronary artery disease (angina pectoris or heart attack, for instance) and stroke (damage to part from the brain due to an interrupted blood supply or a leakage from a blood vessel). People who consistently overeat and fail to take exercise turn out to be obese and run a greater danger of developing not only coronary artery illness but also diabetes mellitus and osteoarthritis – a painful and disabling joint illness frequently afflicting the elderly. Smoking cigarettes increases the risk of building lung cancer (and many other illnesses). Alcohol abuse increases the chances of obtaining cancer from the liver (too as nervous system disorders and heart and circulatory difficulties). Dependence on both nicotine and alcohol produces a a lot higher danger of cancer of the mouth, tongue, throat and gullet than utilizing either drug alone.

The ageing process

Since the body ages, it becomes more prone to illness. Wear and tear on the joints can result in osteoarthritis, causing pain, stiffness and reduction of mobility. Organs such as the heart, lungs and liver gradually become less efficient and declining numbers of nerve cells lead to a loss of sharpness in all the senses. As a result of their reduction of sensitivity to changes in temperature elderly people are more susceptible to hypothermia – a serious situation caused by a fall in body temperature to below 35°C. The condition can be largely avoided by the use of thermostatically controlled central heating and by keeping an eye on elderly relatives and friends, particularly during the winter months.

Numerous elderly people experience declining mental ability – forgetfulness, in particular. About one in five people over the age of 80, nevertheless, suffers from dementia – a general and progressive decline in all areas of mental ability. The situation is usually due to brain disease, most commonly Alzheimer’s illness. In the early stages, most Alzheimer’s sufferers are usually greatest cared for at home, but since the illness progresses patients frequently need the specialist care provided by a nursing home.

There are many various kinds of inherited illnesses – some are apparent at birth and are called congenital, but numerous do not become evident until later life. About one in every 200 babies born alive has a issue due to extra, damaged or missing chromosomes. The presence of an additional chromosome causes the physical and mental characteristics of Down’s syndrome, for example. While a missing chromosome is to blame for cri du chat syndrome, a rare illness causing mental handicap, stunted development and a cat-like cry due to a very small larynx.

Inherited diseases triggered by faulty genes consist of albinism, haemophilia, muscular dystrophy and cystic fibrosis. Left untreated, the metabolic disorder, phenylketonuria can lead to brain damage, so babies are routinely tested for the illness shortly after birth and affected infants are treated by modified diets.

Tay-Sach’s disease, another serious metabolic disorder, causes blindness, dementia and paralysis, and few sufferers live beyond four years of age. Genetic testing and counselling enables couples likely to have a baby with a serious illness to make informed decisions about whether to begin a family or to continue a pregnancy. The symptoms of Huntington’s chorea – dementia and uncontrolled movement – don’t appear until middle age, nevertheless, by which time the sufferer may already have produced children at risk from the same disease.

Families might also share combinations of genes which predispose them to developing certain illnesses, especially when combined with environmental factors, for example diet, way of life and air high quality. These diseases include coronary artery illness, asthma and epilepsy – a tendency for the brain to experience recurrent seizures. Diabetes mellitus also tends to run in families. The situation is caused by insufficient or a total lack of insulin production. Without insulin too much glucose accumulates within the blood, causing excessive urination and thirst.

Deprived of energy, the body burns up fats and proteins, leading to weakness, weight loss and the production of poisonous wastes; left untreated, the condition is eventually life-threatening. You will find two primary types of diabetes mellitus – the insulin-dependent (type 1) form, which typically very first appears during childhood, and also the non-insulin-dependent (kind 2) form which usually occurs in people over the age of 40. People with type 1 diabetes produce little or no insulin and need to rely on injections of a synthetic form of it. Sufferers of type 2 diabetes fail to produce sufficient insulin to meet their needs and are often treated by diet modification and tablets.