Did you know that the body’s age-related vascular alterations can increase the risk of vascular disorders? Certain alterations in your vascular health as you age have been discovered in some research. While it is impossible to avoid ageing, many elements that influence such changes can be managed. Get a consultation with the best cardiologists in Brooklyn.

Aging is a natural process with time, it affects our overall health not only our hair and skin. In vascular health, you notice these changes as you age:

Heart

Your heart experience changes as early as your 20s, especially in heart rate or rhythm, heart shape, and thickening of heart valves.

In a healthy cardiovascular system, the right side of the heart pumps blood to the lungs to get oxygen and release carbon dioxide, and the left side pumps oxygen-rich blood to the body. Your arteries flow out the blood from your heart, branching out and getting smaller to supply blood into tissues until they become tiny capillaries.

These capillaries make sure your tissues get all necessary oxygen and nutrients and receive carbon dioxide from them and send it to larger veins to return blood to the heart to repeat the process of releasing carbon dioxide from the body through the lungs and pump oxygen-rich blood.

However, heart functionality decreases over time with age, and you notice these changes in your cardiovascular system:

• Your heart rate decreases because some pathways of the heart develop fibrous tissue and fat deposits in the natural pacemaker system that controls the heartbeat. The natural pacemaker may lose its cells because of this and slow down your heart rate.
• Your heart fills more slowly because your heart size slightly increases, especially the left ventricle in some people. It makes your heart wall thicken, so the amount of blood that the chamber can hold becomes less despite the size increase which makes it hard for the heart to fill at a normal rate.
• Heart valves may become stiff or thick over time and affect the control of blood flow direction and the heart wall. It happens because the heart contains an aging pigment lipofuscin which degenerates the heart muscle cells. This lowers your heart’s tolerance for exercise and other stressors.

These heart changes increase the risk of heart diseases such as atrial fibrillation, coronary heart disease, and heart valve diseases.

Blood vessels

• As you get old, capillary walls start to thicken slightly which reduces the exchange rate of nutrients and wastes.
• Many older people have developed orthostatic hypotension, which is a condition that makes blood pressure fall when a person goes from lying or sitting to standing. It may cause dizziness because of less blood flow to the brain.
• When you become flexible and stiff as you get older it makes your aorta (the main artery in the body that supplies oxygenated blood to the circulatory system) thicken which causes blood pressure to rise and makes your heart work harder which also leads to the thickening of the heart muscle (hypertrophy). The other arteries also become thicker and stiffer which increases blood pressure in many older people.

Blood

• With age, blood also changes itself You notice that with aging you lose total body water. Water is required for the bloodstream and its loss automatically reduces your blood volume.
• Your red blood cell production is also reduced in response to stress or illness. It also leads to a slower response to blood loss and anemia.
• While most blood cells stay at normal level some white blood cells that are important for your immunity start to decrease in number and ability to fight off bacteria which make your body less resistant to infection.

If you have any vascular problems, please visit our cardiology clinic in Brooklyn for professional help. Call us on +1(347) 384-5690. The Cardiologists at Doral Health & Wellness consistently have outstanding patient satisfaction ratings. The professionals at Heart Specialist Brooklyn are able to greatly improve their patient’s health and quality of life because of their vast training and experience. New Yorkers can get the greatest medical, surgical, and cardiovascular care at Doral Health & Wellness Brooklyn. Visit us at 1797 Pitkin Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11212.