AGE members discuss old age definition for ATHLOS project

At one of AGE Task Force meetings on Healthy Ageing, the ATHLOS project was presented also through the projection of a video explaining the objectives and aims of the project. The discussion with the Task Force members was focused on what “old age” exactly means nowadays, given the demographic challenges. What factors should be taken into account when defining a person as being “old”? The meeting was the opportunity to start thinking about it, which would enable AGE to properly contribute to the ATHLOS research and better voice older people’s concerns.

Finally, AGE task force members were also given an article written by one of the researchers working on the ATHLOS project, Sergei Scherbov. The article qualifies the current age-dependency ratio, which calculates the impact of ageing on society, as “old” and suggests using a new one that takes into account life expectancy, labour participation and health. According to Scherbov, the new measures depict something brighter than currently expected. All these considerations are relevant for the debate around healthy ageing, and suitable to inform the policy debates also at European level.

Should you have an opinion on what should determine “old age” nowadays, please contact Ilenia Gheno Ilenia.Gheno@age-platform.eu or Nhu Tram nhu.tram@age-platform.eu