This book provides concrete scientific basis that we can conceive the possibility of modifying or even completely canceling aging process, despite the fact that aging is commonly regarded as the result of the overall effects of many uncontrollable degenerative phenomena. The authors illustrate in detail the mechanisms by which cells and the whole organism age. Actions by which it is possible, or will be possible within a limited time, to operate for modifying aging are also debated. The discussion is conducted within the frame and the concepts of evolutionary medicine, which is also indispensable for distinguishing between the manifestations of aging and: (i) diseases that worsen with age, and (ii) acceleration of normal aging rates, caused by unhealthy lifestyle habits and other avoidable factors. The book also discusses the impact of aging on overall mortality and the strange situation that, according to official statistics, aging does not exist as cause of death. This book is a turning point between a gerontology and geriatrics conceived as the study and vain treatment of an incurable condition and one in which these disciplines examine the how and why of a physiological phenomenon that can be modified up to a possible total control. This means transforming the medical prevention and treatment of physiological aging from the greatest failure to the greatest success of medicine.

Sleep and Aging provides a unique and timely collection of review articles that cover the gamut of basic and clinical aspects of sleep and the abnormalities in sleep associated with aging and neurological disorders that occur during aging. From the evolutionary basis of sleep and its normal functions in processes such as learning and memory, to considerations of the roles of sleep abnormalities in neurological disorders such as depression, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, the chapters are written by experts in the field. Several chapters focus on signalling pathways involved in sleep regulation and abnormalities in sleep, including those activated by serotonin and BDNF. Basic and clinical research on insomnia, sleep apnea and other disorders of sleep, are covered thus providing students and scientists at all levels with a valuable source of information to advance their understanding of this important topic in aging, biology and medicine. The circuits in the brain involved in sleep regulation, their neurochemistry, how they are altered in disorders of sleep and current clinical treatments of various sleep disorders are reviewed. The important role of sleep disturbances in neurodegenerative disorders is described and research in this particular area is leading to a better understanding of the relationships between synaptic plasticity, neuronal degeneration and the clinical manifestations of disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and depression. This book is a must for scientists, as well as non-scientists, who are interested in the neurobiology of aging, sleep and neurodegenerative disorders.

Each species has its own characteristic aging trajectory coded by a species-specific developmental program. This developmental program is triggered at the time of fertilization, hence aging begins at conception. Within a species there are considerable variations in the aging phenotype between individuals due to the plasticity of the developmental process and its inherent stochasticity. The evolution of a species is due to genetic changes in its underlying developmental program and when enough genetic changes have accumulated a new species emerges with its own characteristic aging phenotype. Therefore, speciation and aging are linked processes. Over the evolutionary course of the human lineage, culture has been an important driver of evolutionary change. Culture is not restricted to the human lineage but only humans have evolved cumulative culture; the transmission of modified cultural practices across generations. Early cultural innovations such as toolmaking, agriculture and dairy farming had a utilitarian function. However, over the past 100 to 150 years, there has been a significant change in the pace and nature of cultural innovations. Although many cultural innovations still have a utilitarian function, a new category of cultural innovations has emerged that have "entertainment" functions in the domains of social communication and information transfer. In addition, cultural practices by the tobacco, food and technological industries have been used to modify population behaviors, physiology and beliefs. Over the past 50 to 75 years, there has emerged so called chronic non-infectious diseases, which occurrence parallels the development of these new cultural innovations and practices. In addition, culture has now become the primary driver of human evolution. In answer to the question posed by the title of this book, aging is not a disease and diseases are cultural constructs used to define variants in the aging process.

Why do we age? The answer to this question is critical to our ability to prevent and treat highly age-related diseases such as cancer and heart disease that now cause the deaths of most people in the developed world. This short book provides an overview of biological aging theories including history, current status, major scientific controversies, and implications for the future of medicine. Major topics include: human mortality as a function of age, aging mechanisms and processes, the programmed vs. non-programmed aging controversy, empirical evidence on aging, and the feasibility of anti-aging and regenerative medicine. Evolution theory is essential to aging theories. Theorists have been struggling for 150 years to explain how aging, deterioration, and consequent death fit with Darwin’s survival of the fittest concept. This book explains how continuing genetics discoveries have produced changes in the way we think about evolution that in turn lead to new thinking about the nature of aging.

Does Aging Stop? shatters the conventional beliefs on which aging research has been based for the last fifty years.

Half a century of UK gerontology research, theory, policy and practice are under the spotlight in this landmark critical review of the subject that places the country’s achievements in an international context. Drawing on the archives of the British Society of Gerontology and interviews with dozens of the most influential figures in the field, it provides a comprehensive picture of key developments and issues and looks to the future to plot new directions in thinking. This is the story of the remarkable progress of gerontology, told through the eyes of those who have led it.

This report examines the relationships between aging and exposure to environmental agents (including natural and man-made agents, as well as life-style factors). Several relationships must be considered--the impact of intermittent or lifelong exposure to environmental agents on the rate of aging, the impact of lifelong exposure on health status when one reaches more advanced age, and the special response of the aged compared with that of the young when exposed to environmental agents.

Popular with generations of practitioners, Brocklehurst's Textbook of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology has been the definitive reference of choice in the field of geriatric care. The new 7th Edition, by Howard M. Fillit, MD, Kenneth Rockwood, MD, and Kenneth Woodhouse, carries on this tradition with an increased clinical focus and updated coverage to help you meet the unique challenges posed by this growing patient population. Consistent discussions of clinical manifestations, diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and more make reference quick and easy, while over 255 illustrations compliment the text to help you find what you need on a given condition. Examples of the latest imaging studies depict the effects of aging on the brain, and new algorithms further streamline decision making. Emphasizes the clinical relevance of the latest scientific findings to help you easily apply the material to everyday practice. Features consistent discussions of clinical manifestations, diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and more that make reference quick and easy. Includes over 255 illustrations—including algorithms, photographs, and tables—that compliment the text to help you find what you need on a given condition. Provides summary boxes at the end of each chapter that highlight important points. Features the work of an expert author team, now led by Dr. Howard M. Fillit who provides an American perspective to complement the book’s traditional wealth of British expertise. Includes an expanded use of algorithms to streamline decision making. Presents more color images in the section on aging skin, offering a real-life perspective of conditions for enhanced diagnostic accuracy. Includes examples of the latest imaging studies to help you detect and classify changes to the brain during aging. Offers Grade A evidence-based references keyed to the relevant text.

Presenting the latest research in the biology of aging, this volume addresses important theoretical issues focusing on the basis for why humans live as long as they do. Expert authors combine three general paradigms of aging research: demographic studies, evolutionary studies, and studies of biological mechanisms. Topics explored include: Why does aging occur? Cellular aging Models in aging research Modern approaches to the mechanisms of aging The genetics of behavioral aging

By the year 2050 one in five of the world's population will be 65 or older, a fact which presages profound medical, biological, philosophical, and political changes in the coming century. In Time of Our Lives, Tom Kirkwood draws on more than twenty years of research to make sense of the evolution of aging, to explain how aging occurs, and to answer fundamental questions like why women live longer than men. He shows that we age because our genes, evolving at a time when life was "nasty, brutish, and short," placed little priority on the long-term maintenance of our bodies. With such knowledge, along with new insights from genome research, we can devise ways to target the root causes of aging and of age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's and osteoporosis. He even considers the possibility that human beings will someday have greatly extended life spans or even be free from senescence altogether. Beautifully written by one of the world's pioneering researchers into the science of aging, Time of Our Lives is a clear, original and, above all, inspiring investigation of a process all of us experience but few of us understand.