International Longevity Centre Global Alliance - Designing the Future of Ageing

20th December 2017

The third edition of the Oxford Textbook of Geriatric Medicine, published online in December 2017, includes a chapter co-authored by Ina Voelcker and Alexandre Kalache, both of ILC-BR.

The Textbook, edited by by Jean-Pierre Michel, B. Lynn Beattie, Finbarr C. Martin, and Jeremy D. Walston, is the result of three years of work, includes over 150 chapters and for the first time includes a whole section exclusively devoted to “healthy ageing”. In this section the reader can find a chapter on “Empowerment of the ageing population: a contribution to active ageing”, authored by the Technical Director of ILC-BR, Ina Voelcker and the President of ILC-BR, Alexandre Kalache. This section also includes chapters on diet, sports and prevention as well as gerontechnology.

To access the Textbook and the full chapter go to: http://oxfordmedicine.com/view/10.1093/med/9780198701590.001.0001/med-9780198701590-chapter-162

The abstract reads as follows:

Empowerment is fundamental to release the potential generated by the longevity revolution and to actualize the concept of active ageing. It is a key component in the promotion and maintenance of health, the fostering of lifelong learning and social participation, as well as in the safeguarding of protection until the end of life. The definition of empowerment becomes more complex in the context of increasing numbers of the very old, with its frequent association with dementia and limited functional capacity. Active ageing highlights that ageing is a lifelong process firmly rooted in the ideas of health prevention and health promotion. Implicit to it, is the view that actions at both the personal and the public policy level are essential to optimize opportunities for people as they age.

Further information: Ina Voelcker, ILC-BR