As we age, our body becomes more susceptible to health issues. Every aspect of your body changes as you get older. Your bones become more brittle, your skin starts to sag. Some of these changes are completely harmless and while they may change our appearance, they are nothing to be concerned about. Others are a little more worrying and it’s important to be aware of these changes. What do they mean and how are they going to impact you?
Wisdom Teeth
Wisdom teeth become more of a problem as you age but begin to impact you quite early on in life. Typically wisdom teeth will be impacted fully by the time you reach 25. However, there are cases where the teeth continue to move for a great deal longer than this. They can continue to affect you far later in life.
When this happens, they can cause problems with your oral health as well as typical processes. Wisdom teeth can hurt as they move, making it difficult to eat or even talk. It’s also possible for the area around the wisdom tooth to become infected. It’s worth noting that there is a skin flap over the wisdom tooth. The gap here is large enough for food residue to get through. When that happens, it gets trapped and may start to decay-causing bacteria. This will eventually lead to an infection. If you constantly get these types of infections then it’s possible a dentist will recommend removing the wisdom tooth.
In many cases, a wisdom tooth can emerge without rupturing. However, it’s important for a dentist to keep a check on wisdom teeth and make sure that they are progressing without issues.
RSI
RSI is an issue that can impact you at any point in life. However, it becomes more of a problem as you age because you will have spent more time completing certain processes.
A repetitive strain injury is now the most common injury experienced by office workers in America. It’s caused by typing for long periods, often in the incorrect position without taking any breaks.
The issue can be avoided with the right ergonomic support systems in place. For instance, many health experts recommend adding sit-stand desks to the office environment. These can have a fantastic impact and will ensure that workers can continue to move freely rather than being stuck sitting behind a desk.
RSI may not seem like a serious issue, but it can have lasting consequences. With RSI, it’s possible for a person to experience long term pain that stops them from gaining the highest quality of life.
Chronic Pain
RSI is just one example of chronic pain that can become more of an issue as you get older. The problem with injuries is that they won’t always show signs immediately. You can hurt your back and not develop problems for months or even years. By that time, of course, it’s far too late and the damage is already done.
That’s why it’s important to take care of yourself as you are growing up. Don’t assume that you can lift anything and always use the right technique to avoid back issues later in life. Think about how much you are exercising and how hard you are pushing your body. Studies have suggested that there is a correlation between health conditions like arthritis and running. This makes sense because running does put your legs and indeed your joints under an immense level of pressure. If you aren’t providing yourself with the right support or taking the necessary breaks, you could certainly experience long term damage.
While chronic pain is often not curable, there are steps you can take to handle it more effectively. For instance, many people who are suffering from chronic pain do benefit from seeking therapy. Therapeutic methods can help people cope with the cognitive aspect of chronic pain.
Hearing Trouble
Your hearing can begin to deteriorate at any point in your life. Indeed, we are seeing more young individuals suffer from hearing issues. There are a few reasons for this, including the rise in the use of personal listening devices as well as advances in music technology. Whenever you expose your ears to sounds above a certain volume you risk long term damage. This is worth keeping in mind, the next time you choose to attend a concert or even catch a train. Both will have noises that are loud enough to cause significant damage.
You can use devices to protect your hearing and ensure that you don’t suffer from long term effects. Personalized hearing protection devices can be created to perfectly match the shape of your ear. This will provide the airproof seal that you need.
If your hearing has already been damaged, you may want to consider hearing aids. These are still the best option for hearing damage. They can help improve your quality of life and ensure that you don’t suffer from the other side effects that are common with a loss of hearing. This includes depression and even difficulty comprehending speech.
The C Word
Finally, it’s important to be aware that as you age, your chance of developing certain cancers will increase. For instance, colon cancer is far more likely to impact elderly individuals compared to the young as is prostate cancer. That’s why when you get older, you need to be getting checked out more regularly. It’s important that you are working with your doctor to ensure that if an issue like this does develop you will be aware of it.
With cancer, catching it early always guarantees the best prognosis. You can also check your own body for worrying signs. Familiarise yourself with the symptoms. Just make sure that you aren’t constantly seeing a zebra where there is actually a horse. In other words, don’t panic when you see symptoms that are just the signs of a common cold.
We hope this helps you understand some of the health issues that you need to be aware of as you get older. If you’re aware of these issues they won’t be quite as challenging.
