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Aging Accelerators
Key: endothelial dysfunction
- Blood vessels are pipes of muscle
- Tiled with cells called endothelial cells
- Covered on the outside by a net of nerves
- Regulated instantaneously by nerves
- Regulated hormonally by endothelial cells
Most Western people are brought low by endothelial dysfunction: atherosclerosis
- About 20% die suddenly, without warning
- About 25% have gradual onset of symptoms
- About 60% have rapid onset of symptoms (hours+)
Aging accelerators:
- Indolence, Appetite, Tobacco, and Heredity.
Notes:
Two of the hot jargon terms in medicine are vascular biology and endothelial dysfunction. These are replacing athersclerosis because we want to emphasize that our blood vessels are dynamic structures that continually respond to the contents of the blood. Many things can damage the endothelium, the cells that line our blood vessels, causing harm to the vessels and the important organs they supply, such as your brain or your heart, both of which are important to safe flight.
More than half of both men and women will die of atherosclerotic disease. To keep this in proportion, less than 10% will die of cancer.