Sustainable Aging: What are the challenges for a sustainable world in the rise of ever aging societies?
by Michael Devoy, Chief Medical Officer, Bayer Pharmaceuticals
Aging populations are a looming challenge for humanity.
The WHO predicts 1 in 6 globally will be aged 60 or over by 2030, a total of 1.4 billion.[1] By 2050, this will grow to 2.1 billion, 22% of the world’s population.[2] At this time, more than ¼ of the Asia-Pacific will be over 60,[3] and in the USA, the number of over 65s will have doubled.[4]
With such drastic growth, it is critical societies adapt. We need ‘sustainable aging’, which I define as societies responding to the imminent aging crisis by enacting long-term economic, social, and healthcare policy changes to prepare for people growing older and living longer.
Sustainable aging within the SDGs
The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) already recognize the need to drive sustainable aging, specifically through:
- SDG 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages
- SDG 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries
These goals rightfully highlight the importance of sustainable aging, and we must continue to prominently support their implementation. However, there is a strong need for an even more intense discourse on essential challenges of aging societies, globally and locally, if we want to tackle them in a sustainable way, because often these are considered only marginally in the discussion of the SDGs.
Challenges for sustainable aging
The need to ensure sustainable aging becomes even more apparent when we examine the primary challenges of aging societies, namely:
- The economic impacts of a decline in the working-age population
- The pressure of increasing social security commitments, driven by more retirees
- Increases in healthcare costs and pressures upon clinical capacity
If left unsolved, these challenges could devastate the ability of states to properly care for older people. Countries are already experiencing social care crises: older people in the UK, for example, are often waiting far too long for the social care they need already today[5] — and there is a major risk these conditions will only get worse.
Fortunately, the UN has created the Decade of Healthy Aging (2021–2030), which not only acknowledges the need for healthy and sustainable aging, but also identifies four specific areas of action to tackle related challenges such as delivering integrated care and providing long-term social support. This already led to the launch of a worldwide framework, supporting the creation of age-friendly programs in communities by 1,400 member organizations across 51 countries.[6]
Delivering sustainable aging for a healthy future
Change to ensure healthy, sustainable aging can only succeed if well supported by all those supporting and managing healthcare systems. Otherwise, change will fail before it begins.
To address the primary challenges of aging societies, technology is and will become increasingly essential. The use of remote monitoring, telehealth and personalized interventions may seem like micro interventions in a macro landscape, yet they can have a major impact. Similarly, policy changes such as adjusting reimbursement, creating longevity care strategies, and focusing on prevention play an equally important part. Combined, they help address declines in working-age populations, support rising social security commitments, and alleviate pressures on healthcare systems.
The moment is upon us, and we cannot waste a second. Together, industry, government and healthcare providers must make a renewed, powerful effort to prevent an aging crisis in the future by acting to deliver sustainable aging today.
[1] World Health Organisation (WHO). Ageing and Health. WHO Website. 2022. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ageing-and-health
[2] Hariharan K and Kothari A. Aging Sustainably: Six Considerations for a Healthier, Longer Living Population. Oliver Wyman. 2022. Available at: https://www.oliverwyman.com/our-expertise/insights/2022/jan/health-innovation-journal/aging-sustainably.html
[3] United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). Ageing in Asia and the Pacific. UNESCAP. 2017. Available at:https://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/SDD%20Ageing%20Fact%20Sheet%20Overview.pdf
[4] Mather M, et al. Aging in the United States. Population Reference Bureau. 2015. Available at: https://www.prb.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/population-bulletin-2015-70-2-aging-us.pdf
[5] Age UK. ‘Older people are often waiting far too long for the social care they need’. Age UK. 2023. Available at: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/latest-press/older-people-are-often-waiting-far-too-long-for-the-social-care-they-need/
[6] WHO. National programmes for age-friendly cities and communities: toolkit and framework. 2023. Available at: https://www.who.int/teams/social-determinants-of-health/demographic-change-and-healthy-ageing/age-friendly-environments/national-programmes-afcc
