Newswise — With global aging trends accelerating, policymakers and researchers are increasingly focused on not just extending lifespan, but ensuring those extra years are lived in good health.
Dr. Anshu Banerjee, Director for the Department of Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health and Ageing at the World Health Organization, emphasizes the widening gap between lifespan and healthspan and the pressing need for data-driven solutions.
"The number of older people above 60 is going to double by 2050, from 1.1 billion to 2.1 billion, and soon we’ll have more people above 60 than under 10.
"Life expectancy is increasing, but healthspan is actually worsening. The increase in healthy life expectancy is not keeping pace with overall life expectancy.
"Women, on average, live longer than men but also spend more years in poor health than men. Between 2002 and 2019, this healthspan gap has increased.
"Around 45% of dementia cases could be prevented by addressing 14 modifiable risk factors, including early education, hearing loss, high LDL cholesterol, and social isolation later in life.
"Evidence is showing that intrinsic capacity is a better predictor of survival and care dependency than just looking at disease alone.
"It’s important for us to address healthy aging, especially with 80% of older people living in low- and middle-income countries. We need the right data and the right research in these regions."
RSS