Dying of old age?

[Graham47]

From 1837 a cause of death was probably entered but there was no legal requirement  to do so.

Stan

A poisoners paradise then Stan.   

[stanmapstone]

The prescribed form had a space for the cause of death, but completion of this was based on information supplied by the informant,  

Stan

[jan57]

  In 1991 My grandfathers doctor   said to  my  Mum     he'd   clearly   loved to  have  put  'Old  age' on the  cert  , (Grandpa  was  91, and  had not  been  ill)  but   had to enter  another  cause also,   renal  failure   was put  down as  cause,    due to   old   age.

 By   1993    when   Grandma  died  ( the widow)   the law had  been amended  and the   words 'Old Age'  alone    was acceptable   

[a-l]

I am surprised to read that old age is written as cause of death today . I have it on ancestor's death certificates and presumed the people were worn out /gave up or the doctor wasn't  exactly sure but death wasn't unexpected due to age. So this phrase has  been in continuous use ?

[Graham47]

I am surprised to read that old age is written as cause of death today . I have it on ancestor's death certificates and presumed the people were worn out /gave up or the doctor wasn't  exactly sure but death wasn't unexpected due to age. So this phrase has  been in continuous use ?

So was I Sue, and from what I had read where it was used the deceased had to be over 70 years old and a supplementary cause given, but according to Jan posted above, the rules changed again in 1993 so I'm none the wiser and still puzzled.

Is there a doctor in the house! (medical, not academic please... although medics are not always entitled to use the term "Doctor")    

[a-l]

May I join the puzzled club? he he

[jan57]

 An   excerpt    from  an  article   re  Queen Mother      from  a   book  by   her   niece  Margaret Rhodes 

Queen Elizabeth died at 3.15 in the afternoon on March 30, 2002. She just slipped away and her death certificate said that the cause of death was ‘extreme old age’.She was 101

 

[cati]

An   excerpt    from  an  article   re  Queen Mother      from  a   book  by   her   niece  Margaret Rhodes 

Queen Elizabeth died at 3.15 in the afternoon on March 30, 2002. She just slipped away and her death certificate said that the cause of death was ‘extreme old age’.She was 101

 

My Nan was almost exactly the same age as the Queen Mum, and was 101 when she died.

Her doctor said that she was was going to put the cause of death down as (1) broncho-pnuemonia and (2) extreme old age.  We queried the broncho-pnuemonia, and the doctor told us that, as there was nothing else wrong at all with Gran, if she said broncho-pnuemonia , no-one would query it, and it would save us the upset of there being a post-mortem - apparently even at 102 our local registar would be likely to query the fact that, at 101, Gran was just extremely old, worn out and - basically - had just failed to wake up.

[Treetotal]

I have one that says age related decay 1902 
The mind boggles.
Carol