Health and Healthy Ageing
Improvements in living standards and healthcare have resulted in increased life expectancy is increasing across the globe.
However, despite many older people being far healthier than previous generations, there is still a gap between life expectancy and healthy life expectancy – that is years lived in good health.
This is particularly important given that pension age is rising in many countries and in some there is a gap between current predicted healthy life expectancy and future pension age. For example, in the UK, the state pension age will rise to 68, but a 2010 report on health inequalities in England suggested that nearly 75% of the population will not be in good enough health to work until the age of 68.
One of ILC’s main goals is to further the concept and implementation of “Healthy Ageing”. What exactly is “Healthy Ageing”? The European Union funded healthy ageing project defined healthy ageing as:
“the process of optimising equal opportunities for health in order to enable older people to take an active part in society and to enjoy an independent and good quality of life.
ILC sees healthy ageing as a holistic and all encompassing concept, which includes health related interventions as well as action in other areas which can impact health.
Activities to further healthy ageing could include:
*Access to healthcare services
*Health promotion
*Preventative healthcare
*Physical exercise and nutrition strategies
*Reducing age discrimination in health, employment and education policy
*Adequate pensions
Preventative interventions and health promotion are particularly important because of their potential impact on chronic diseases. While we hear every day that healthcare costs are increasing because of an ageing population, much of the increased demand on healthcare resources is related to chronic disease and not age per se. If chronic diseases can be prevented, their onset delayed or even just managed well, this can have a positive impact on the lives of older people as well as a potential cost savings for healthcare systems.
The European fight against malnutrition
An insight of Fight Against Malnutrition campaign
21 September 2009
Integrating health and social care from an international perspective
An ILC-UK report examining the ideas, issues and challenges of the integration of health and social care services.
17 January 2012
Productive Aging – Robert Butler Memorial Issue
ILC-Japan published this report as a tribute to Dr. Robert Butler, the father of gerontology and the founder of ILC Global Alliance.
05 August 2011
Non-Communicable Diseases in an Ageing World
This report highlights the omission of ageing and of Alzheimer’s disease and other related dementias from the current focus of the UN High-Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases, taking
07 July 2011
Ageing, Health and Innovation in OECD countries
A background paper on innovative policy reforms to facilitate active and healthy ageing in OECD countries.
13 June 2011
Narrowing World Health Disparities and Longevity
A report from a dinner debate with the International Longevity Centre Global Alliance, Cape Town
12 May 2011
Older People and Functional Foods
Functional foods can play a role in supporting older people’s health says ILC-UK report.
10 November 2010
ILC-South Africa Activity Report 2009-2010
ILCSA was admitted to the ILC Global Alliance in June 2005. It is operated within The Albertina and Walter Sisulu Institute of Ageing in Africa (IAA) in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the
01 January 2010
The International Handbook on Aging. Current research and developments
The International Handbook on Aging. Current research and developments.
30 September 2009
Life Course Vaccination. Impact of Life Course Vaccination on an Ageing Population
Older Europeans are not well vaccinated and therefore not well protected against vaccine preventable diseases. Identifying and developing strategies for overcoming barriers to vaccination is
31 August 2009
Living Longer, Working Longer: A French Challenge
This ILC-France report describes demographic data and examines the causes of the increase in longevity and implications on working lives.
31 January 2009
Patterns of coping with health losses and successful aging: A longitudinal study of elderly
An ILC-Israel executive summary of the longitudinal study on on the effects of coping patterns with deterioration in health on successful aging.
31 January 2009
A Continued Survey on a Daily Life of Older People
In a super-aging society Japan it is predicted that people aged 75 or older living alone and elderly couple-only households will go on increasing.
30 December 2008
Françoise Forette, CEO of ILC-France, explores the concept of functional dependency and its link with the increase of longevity.
31 August 2008
A Life Course Approach to Tackling Obesity
This ILC-UK policy brief is the third and final publication of a series focusing on policies addressing obesity in the UK.
30 June 2008
Longevity-21st Century Revolution
the international Longevity Centre- India has come out with this book to understand this global phenomenon of 'ageing' and its implications in the right spirit and perspective.
30 June 2008
Obesity in the UK: A Review and Comparative Analysis of Policies within the Devolved Regions
Obesity is a major public health problem in the UK. This report provides a comprehensive review of innovations and problems in tackling this challenge in light of devolution.
28 February 2008
SUFFICE Report on Older South Africans’ Functioning and Contributions
A report on a pilot study towards a health intervention under the Study to Understand and Foster the Functioning and Involvement of Contributive Elders (SUFFICE) project has been released.
30 November 2007
Immunisation. Not Just for Kids
The mistaken belief persists that, except for the flu vaccine, children should be the primary recipients of this important area of primary disease prevention.
30 November 2007
