The most visible sign of the aging process takes place within the skin. The skin consists of three layers: epidermis, dermis and hypodermis. The outer level is called the epidermis. As this skin level ages the rates of cell loss increase and cell production decrease resulting in a thinning of the skin. This thinning makes the skin more susceptible to creasing and wrinkling. Another visible aspect is the appearance of age spots. These age spots result from the grouping of pigment producing cells. Also the blood vessels near the surface weaken, as they age and this will allow the skin to bruise easily. The middle level is called the dermis. It is at this level where collagen is produced. Collagen helps to strengthen the skin. As an individual ages less collagen is produced resulting in the skin becoming s

As the body ages the brain begins to shrink in size and becomes filled with fluid. Neurons die which result in less synaptic connections. This will become evident in memory loss and a slowing of response to stimuli. Lungs will become less effective due to a decrease in elasticity. The liver becomes less capable of filtering toxins from the blood. The heart pumps less competently as the arteries harden causing poor circulation and high blood pressure. Women will go through menopause. This is when females lose the capacity to bear children due to the cessation of egg production within the ovaries that in turn causes menstruation to end.

Even though these biological changes happen during the aging process certain lifestyle factors may speed up or slow down the process. Factors that may accelerate the process are smoking, the misuse of drugs and alcohol, excessive sun exposure, insufficient exercise, poor eating habits and obesity. By doing the opposite of these, like exercising regularly and eating a good diet, the aging process maybe slowed down and an individual's life span extended.

With the loss of nerve cells in the aging individual the body's senses become less acute. The corneas within the eyes suffer from shifts in shape, which alter the visual fields causing the individual to become nearsighted. The cornea also goes from transparent too blurry. The iris which consist of muscle fibers begin to atrophy which allows less light to enter the eye causing the individual to need more light in which to read, work etc. The outer ears begin to physically droop and get wider. The sweat glands within the ear canal begin to die off allowing earwax to dry and build up. The eard

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Approximate Word count = 1144
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)