Part Five: Signs of Aging, Natural Lifespan, and Influencing Factors
(II) Signs of Aging
When discussing the aging process, the Inner Canon mainly describes its signs from the following aspects: First, signs on the head and face, such as a haggard face and a decline in vitality.
Secondly, physical signs, such as graying and falling hair, dry skin and brittle teeth.
Thirdly, signs of physiological changes, such as hearing loss, blurred vision, dulled senses, heaviness and lethargy, and a preference for sitting or lying down.
Fourthly, signs of changes in reproductive function, such as menstrual disorders or cessation in women, and impotence and low sperm count in men, resulting in loss of fertility.
Fifth, signs of emotional changes, such as bitterness, sorrow, and grief.
Based on the content of the *Neijing*, *Suwen* (Plain Questions) chapters on the Primordial Innocence of Antiquity and the Correspondence of Yin and Yang, and *Lingshu* (Spiritual Pivot) chapter on the Natural Lifespan, the signs of aging that appear in humans as they age are as follows: 40 years old (57, 67, 58): A haggard face, hair loss, graying hair, brittle teeth, loose skin, decline in vitality, decreased daily activities, and a preference for sitting; 50 years old (77, 68): Menstruation ceases, women are childless, a haggard face, graying hair, physical decline, heaviness in the body, and impaired hearing and vision; 60 years old (78, 88): Sluggish muscles and bones, extreme physical condition, a preference for lying down, loss of teeth and hair, dysfunction of the nine orifices, frequent weeping, impotence, low sperm count, childlessness in men, and suffering from grief and sorrow; 70 years old: Dry skin; 80 years old: The soul departs, and speech becomes incoherent.
Longevity and premature death
Life is in motion and change. Everything has a beginning and an end. Birth, growth, maturity, aging, and death are the natural laws of human life.
The following section introduces the concepts of natural lifespan and life expectancy, as well as the factors that influence lifespan.
I. Natural lifespan and life expectancy
(I) Natural lifespan and lifespan
"Natural lifespan" refers to the natural lifespan of a person, that is, the quantity and length of their life.
Lifespan, also known as life limit or premature death, refers to the time a person's body survives from birth through development, growth, maturity, aging, and death.
Human lifespan has a certain limit, often referred to as "lifespan limit".
It is generally believed that human lifespan does not exceed 120 years.
For example, the "Suwen·Shanggu Tianzhen Lun" says, "They live out their natural lifespan, reaching a hundred years before passing away," and the "Shangshu·Hongfan Pian" says, "The lifespan is one hundred and twenty years."
Ji Kang, a health expert during the Three Kingdoms period, said in his "Treatise on Nourishing Life": "The maximum lifespan is 120 years, which is the same in ancient and modern times." In 1971, the famous German scholar H. Franke proposed: "If a person has neither suffered from illness nor been affected by adverse external factors, then simple senile aging will not result in physiological death until the age of 120."
(ii) Life expectancy
Life expectancy, also known as average life expectancy, is a concept commonly used when comparing human life expectancy in a certain period, region, or society. It refers to the average number of years that people who have already reached a certain age can live. If no age is specifically specified, average life expectancy refers to the average life expectancy of newborns.
Life expectancy is mainly influenced by factors such as socioeconomic development and medical standards, reflecting the level of socioeconomic development and medical standards, and varies greatly in different societies and periods.
Life expectancy in my country has been gradually increasing with the development of the country's social economy, the improvement of people's living standards, and the progress of medical and health services.
According to data from the fifth and sixth national population censuses conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics in 2000 and 2010, the average life expectancy in my country was 71.40 years and 74.83 years, respectively. For men, it was 69.63 years and 72.38 years, and for women, it was 73.33 years and 77.37 years.
On June 14, 2016, the State Council Information Office released the "Evaluation Report on the Implementation of the National Human Rights Action Plan (2012-2015)": "In 2015, the average life expectancy in my country reached 76.34 years."
In 2000 and 2010, the average life expectancy of the world's population was 66 years and 69.6 years, respectively. In high-income countries and regions, it was 76 years and 79.8 years, while in middle-income countries and regions it was 64 years and 69.1 years.
It is evident that in 2000 and 2010, the average life expectancy of China's population was 5 years and 5.23 years higher than the world average, respectively, and 7 years and 5.73 years higher than that of middle-income countries and regions, respectively. However, it was about 5 years and 4.97 years lower than that of high-income countries and regions.
The above data shows that my country's average life expectancy is gradually increasing, but there is still a gap compared with developed countries and regions, and there is also a gap between the urban and rural populations.
This reflects that my country's socio-economic development and medical standards still lag behind those of developed countries and regions in the world, and that there is an imbalance in development.
In the future, with the rapid development of my country's social economy, the continuous improvement of people's living standards, and the continuous improvement of the medical and health security system, including the effective implementation of health preservation, the mortality rate will be further reduced, the health level of the people will be guaranteed, and the average life expectancy of my country's population is expected to increase further.
On October 25, 2016, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council issued the "Outline of the 'Healthy China 2030' Plan," which proposed that by 2030, my country's average life expectancy will continue to increase from the current (2015) 76.34 years to reach 79 years.
II. Factors Affecting Lifespan
Human lifespan is relatively fixed, but there are significant differences in lifespan among individuals.
The factors that influence human lifespan, i.e., premature death, are as follows:
(I) The strength of one's innate endowment is the main factor determining human lifespan.
Innate endowment refers to the comprehensive and relatively stable characteristics of an individual in terms of morphological structure, physiological function, psychological state, and metabolism, which are based on prenatal inheritance and heredity and influenced by the internal and external environment during pregnancy. Since endowment originates from the parents' innate constitution, it is called innate endowment.