Men's sexual daydreams all but vanish after age 65. Researchers don't know why. Reaction to loud noises and other stimuli is delayed as the brain's ability to send messages to the extremities slows. Short-term memory and the ability to learn spoken material, like a new language, decline with changes in brain function. More than half of men show signs of coronary-artery disease.
Women become particularly susceptible to falling and to disabling hip fractures.
They are generally weaker than men and by now have lost over half the bone mass in the hips and upper legs. Almost half of those over 85 show signs of Alzheimer's disease. The stereotype notwithstanding, personality doesn't change with age. Inc. All rights reserved.