Can people actually die from old age, or is there always some underlying condition at their old age that causes each death?
In: Biology
“Old Age” is a euphemism, that is a mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing. Since death is a pretty uncomfortable topic for most folks, saying that grandpa died of “old age” is a comfortable way to express it.
In reality, no. People do not die of old age. They die from something that might be *related* to their age, but being old does not kill you directly. Instead, death comes from organ failure (usually the heart) or an infection that the body could not fight off (often pneumonia). So from a medical perspective saying someone died of old age is more like saying “they died from one of the common ways that old people die, there is no sign of foul play, and the death was not unexpected *(edit:) so we’re not going to bother to do an autopsy or otherwise worry to much about this beyond following proper procedure to take the body to a morgue*.”
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