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KUALA LUMPUR, Thurs.-Health expectancy, and not life expectancy, is the new indicator of the health of a country's population, International Society for the Study of the Ageing Male president Prof Dr Bruno Lunenfeld said.
The role of medicine now should also be to improve the ageing process, to let people ``age in health and dignity'' instead of increasing longevity ``regardless of the consequences''.
Lunenfeld was delivering his lecture on Medical and Social Challenges for the Ageing World at the First Asian ISSAM Meeting on the Ageing Male at the Shangri-La Hotel here today.
Life expectancy had increased worldwide in the 20th century by more than 30 years, he said.
But this had been the result of cleaner water, better sanitation and hygiene, and the use of antibiotics and vaccination.
The medical challenge now was to ensure that the world's 580 million elderly people (those aged 60 and above) were able to live healthy lives.
Lunenfeld said a holistic approach to health and social management for the elderly was needed now or health care systems would be burdened in the future.
To promote healthy ageing, the elderly should participate actively in social life by fostering community integration and inter-generational understanding. They should also be allowed to prolong their working life.
Medical intervention, including hormonal treatments, would be necessary to enchance their quality of life.
Lunenfeld said the prime lifestyle factors that prevented healthy ageing were excessive eating, physical inactivity and smoking.
Within the next 25 years, the number of people over 65 years of age would increase by 82 per cent, while newborns would increase by only three per cent.
The conference, which is being attended by international medical and health industry experts, will be discussing topics ranging from health care financing to hormonal treatments for men.
It will end on Sunday with a public forum on the ageing male.
The sessions are free. For reservations, call Zaini Alias at
03-26937150, Wahid Wahab at 03-26937555 or Monica at 03-7306022.
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