Make sure you are still heard as you get older

Ageing can even affect your voice, so here's how to keep it taut and clear.

- Tanith Carey

As we get older, we tend to concentrate on how to fight grey hair, ward off wrinkles, and stay fit to feel youthful. But we often forget to care for another age giveaway - our voices.

Changes can start in midlife - the muscles controlling the voice box start to thin and become laxer and more wobbly.

It means that over time we can struggle to be heard in social situations, making us feel more isolated - and more vulnerable to cold callers on the phone.

The good news is that just as we can build muscle with exercise, we can increase the strength in our voices to sound more youthful.

Last year, before her tour, Scottish singer Lulu, 76, revealed how she takes steps to keep her voice strong, saying: "I take care of my instrument... I exercise my voice, I watch my diet. All that stuff."

In a recent interview, singer Tom Jones, now 84, also told how he keeps his voice fit, so he can continue performing, saying: "My voice is lower now. The older you get, the less control you have over your vocal chords. All you have got to do is push it harder... and I can still do that. I can still sing and I can prove it, so here it is."

But you don't need to be a singer to take steps to keep your voice sounding strong and confident. Here, one of the UK's top voice experts, ear, nose and throat surgeon, Declan Costello, also known as The Voice Doctor, tells you how.

How does your voice work?

As you breathe out through your windpipe, the air passes through your voice box. This is a ring of muscle which controls two flaps in the middle connected in a V shape - called the vocal chords or folds - which open and close like curtains and vibrate.

At the same time, the surrounding muscles also adjust the length and tension of these chords, adjusting the pitch. Finally, the tongue, teeth and lips help refine this sound into noises we recognise as words.

Why does it age?