## Why do blood vessels get older? Can you believe that just 1 square inch of your body includes 19.6 feet of blood vessels? When blood vessels are healthy, their walls are resilient and elastic, and the blood moves around them freely and easily, delivering oxygen and nutrients to all cells in your body. Healthy blood vessels are the prerequisite for looking good, resilient skin, flexible joints, and strong bones. Metabolic, enzymatic, and cellular damage to the walls of blood vessels makes them less elastic. These changes can start as early as in the teenage years and lead to catastrophic vascular disorders when you are in the prime of your life. In most cases, the issues with blood vessels affect your feeling of well-being. If you have had cold hands and feet, unexplained headaches, or problems concentrating, it is time to see a cardiologist. ## What to expect To make a diagnosis, your doctor will send you for an ultrasound examination to check the walls of blood vessels. The test can also ===reveal: - Increased rigidity of arteries (arteriosclerosis) - Inability of blood vessels to expand, which leads to capillary circulatory disorder (endothelial dysfunction) - Buildup of plagues in the walls of your arteries ([atherosclerosis](https://ul.orna.me/KOge/librarydisease?id=112)) - Damage to arteries walls because of excess blood glucose (carbohydrate metabolic disorder) - General or local inflammation ## Is it possible to rejuvenate blood vessels? Scientists are looking for methods to achieve such effects. It is already clear that the way of life plays an important role in recovery. Fortunately, the premature aging of blood vessels is not permanent. Most importantly, you should seek timely medical help and not try to discover the causes of your own symptoms. Your doctor will help you select the optimal therapy. Keep in mind that no medicine will produce the desired effect unless you fulfill all medical recommendations related to changing your lifestyle, such as: - Controlling your blood pressure and keeping it at an optimal level. - Controlling blood [glucose](https://ul.orna.me/KOge/librarybiomarker?id=168) and [cholesterol](https://ul.orna.me/KOge/librarybiomarker?id=57) levels over a period of time. Remember that the Ornament app can help with this. - Trying to be more active. The popular saying that "movement is life and life is movement" is more true in this case than almost any other time. - Changing your eating habits. A high level of fats and sugar in your diet impacts your gut microbiome, leading to premature aging of blood vessels. Meanwhile, green tea, dark chocolate, and garlic help them get healthier. Also, make sure you get enough vegetables and fish — especially sea fish such as cod, herring, salmon, and pink salmon — more often as they are a great source of [Omega-3](https://ul.orna.me/KOge/librarybiomarker?id=179) fatty acids. And avoid salt when possible. - Quit smoking. - Finally, you should control the level of stress since it has a serious impact on the state of your blood vessels as well.