Revolutionary Concept on Aging and Functional Longevity

ABSTRACT

The rapid increase of the elderly population has generated unprecedented social and cultural conflicts. One of the fundamental factors underlying these turbulences would be the traditional concept on aging and the elderly, which has been prevailed by the negative view as an irreversible and inevitable process. However, the recent researches have revealed that aging is a biological process not for death but for survival, suggesting a responsive and adaptive aspect of being aging. This revolutionary change in the concept on aging may provoke aconfident aspect of aging, leading to a more productive and active participation of the elderly in the community. Therefore, the traditional view on aging, as a functionally deteriorated and morphologically altered state of the organism, should be corrected. Based on this new concept, the policy and strategy for the future society should be replanned. Moreover, the elderly individuals should try to maintain the best condition toward the functional longevity without despair or discourage. In this article, I briefly introduce the novel hypothesis on aging, that is, "The Gate Theory of Aging", and discuss the replace vs restore principles for aging control.