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Health July 2013

Aid for Age

Senior Shrinkage

By Tait Trussell

Bones are in a constant process of destruction and renewal until you die. So, as the years go by, bones become weaker. As time passes, you tend to lose more bone than you build. From age 40 to 80, the average person is likely to lose two inches in height, just because of bone loss.

 

When you get your annual physical, the nurse will have you step on a scale to find your weight. Then, typically, she will measure your height. You likely will be slightly shorter than the last time you were there.

People do shrink as they age. It mainly has to do with your bones. They are deceptively hard looking if seen from the outside. But their solid appearance from the outside hides an intricate and busy network of blood vessels which carry nutrients to, and transport wastes away from, your bone cells, according to Discovery Health, a health and wellness technology information service.

Bones are in a constant process of destruction and renewal until you die. So, as the years go by, bones become weaker. As time passes, you tend to lose more bone than you build. From age 40 to 80, the average person is likely to lose two inches in height, just because of bone loss.

Osteoporosis, a condition in which the bones become thin and weak, is influenced by genetics. Caucasian and Asian women are more likely to develop osteoporosis. Bone loss also accelerates in the years after menopause.

Bad habits, such as smoking, excessive use of alcohol, and an overly sedentary lifestyle also can contribute to osteoporosis, as can an inadequate intake of calcium and vitamin D.

Does everyone get shorter as they age? Yes. Spongy disks separating the vertebra in your spine deteriorate, so usually your posture also changes with age. You begin to slump. Too much time spent bending over your computer or trying to read a book with small print will do it.

Joints become resistant to wear over time because of changes in cartilage. That’s the tissue that cushions the tips of the bones in your joints. Getting old makes cartilage lose lubricating water, making it more vulnerable to injury from years of repetitive motion.

Osteoarthritis, the most common form, comes about when the cartilage starts to fray. You can feel it in your hips, knees, spine and hands.

If you are overweight, this increases your prospects of developing osteoarthritis. You probably notice you can’t lift as heavy weights as you could several years ago. Aging causes less strength, size and endurance and less blood flow in the muscle tissue. Inactivity does more damage than aging does.

But enough of this anatomy lesson.

Getting back to becoming shorter: This tendency occurs among all races and both sexes, declares Medline Plus. People tend to lose close to half an inch every decade after age 40. Height loss is even more rapid after age 70. You could lose one to three inches in height in years after 70 if you live long enough.

Some people “may sustain small compression fractures in their spine, often without their knowledge, says Dr. David B. Reuben, chief of geriatrics at the School of Medicine at UCLA. These fractures can lead to excessive curving of the spine. When it is very pronounced, it is known as “dowager’s hump.”

New research by the Gerontological Society of America, working with a team in Japan, found that a sloping spine angle of the elderly, if severe enough, could necessitate admission in a nursing home or need care at home for activities of daily living (ADL).

As for shortening of seniors, even the flattening in the arches of your feet can contribute to a loss of height.

Some people are just naturally short and have been since maturity. My mother always maintained she was “five one.” My brother and I insisted on measuring her height one time. Instead, she measured just under five feet. From then on we had a nickname we sometimes used: we lovingly called her “Schmaltz.”

The best way to slow your natural shrinkage as you age, doctors recommend, is to get regular exercise, eat a healthy diet that includes fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and optimal amounts of healthy fats, limit your alcohol use, and avoid smoking. But you knew these facts already.

There are plenty of short people whose height didn’t hold them back. The famous singer Dolly Parton is barely five feet tall. Harry Houdini, the famed magician, was only five feet four. James M. Barrie, who wrote Peter Pan and was an accomplished cricket player, was only five feet one. Their size didn’t keep them from success.

 

Tait Trussell is an old guy and fourth-generation professional journalist who writes extensively about aging issues among a myriad of diverse topics.

Meet Tait