The term degraded refers to something that has lost its original quality, value or condition. It can be used in various contexts such as environmental degradation which means the decline of natural environment due to human activities like deforestation and pollution; degenerative diseases which are characterized by progressive loss of structure or function in an organism; and signal degradation, where a transmitted signal loses strength or quality over distance. In essence, something that is degraded has lost its integrity, purity or potency.