The living machines we call our bodies deteriorate because they were not designed for extended operation and because we now push them to function long past their warranty period. As we plunge further into our postreproductive years, our joints and other anatomical features that serve us well or cause no problems at younger ages reveal their imperfections. In evolutionary terms, we harbor flaws because natural selection, the force that molds our genetically controlled traits, does not aim for perfection or endless good health. If a body plan allows individuals to survive long enough to reproduce (and, in humans and various other organisms, to raise their young), then that plan will be selected. It is grossly unfair to blame people for the health consequences of inheriting a body that lacks perfect maintenance and repair systems and was not built for extended use or perpetual health. This reality means that aging and many of its accompanying disorders are neither unnatural nor avoidable. INSETS: WALK THIS WAY;PLAN A HEAD;CALL A PLUMBER.
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