Jun 24 2014 : The Economic Times (Delhi)
PUBLIC HEALTH - The Ageing Imperative: India Needs to Act Now
Jack Watters
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An Indian born in 1950 could expect to live for a mere 37 years. Today, India's life expectancy at birth has risen to 65 years and is projected to be 74 years by 2050. Indians are living longer -that's the good news. The bad news is the number of older Indians who will be affected by long-term, chronic conditions will increase, leading to serious economic, social and healthcare policy consequences.By 2030, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) will account for almost three-quarters of deaths in India and the years of life lost due to coronary heart disease will be greater than in China, Russia and the US combined.
In a study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, the economic burden of NCDs in India will be close to $6.2 trillion during 2012-30.
Rapid urbanisation in India, associated with unhealthy nutrition and physical inactivity , may also contribute to the increase of age-related, infectious diseases such as pneumonia and influenza, as well as non-infectious chronic diseases such as stroke, cardiovascular ailments, diabetes, mental illnesses, cancers and respiratory infections, adding to healthcare costs and impacting productivity and the need for support. The disquieting feature of population ageing in a place such as India is that ageing is taking place at lower levels of socioeconomic status, and the gap in health-related outcomes between the rich and the poor is widening.
This will result in greater demand for healthcare, but older Indians may not be generating as much income as before to support it, leading to greater pressure on the working-age population to support senior members of the family financially and through care. This phenomenon puts added pressure on India's healthcare systems. So, how do we ensure the healthcare system can cope with the extra burden an older society poses?
Much is being done through civil society and institutions but more is needed. India as a nation needs to find ways to approach healthy and active ageing by promoting a healthy life course. With Indians living longer lives and India being the secondmost-populous nation in the world, the future of the country depends on healthy , active and productive ageing of its people. First, there is a greater need to educate citizens about preventive measures such as optimal nutrition, regular exercise, screenings and vaccinations.
A public health imperative to focus on preventive care and managing lifestyle factors should be the need of the hour for the new government. This will address some of the psychosocial factors and the productivity of ageing societies. For example, in the US, strategies to reduce salt intake to help address obesity and to control tobacco use cost as little as $1-2 per person and avert millions of deaths and billions of dollars of loss in economic output. Second, preventive care programmes must be supported by all stakeholders and integrated into national healthcare systems to be successful. The work by institutions such as the Public Health Foundation of India, among others, is key .
There needs to be an industry-wide coalition of governments, care providers and businesses to create methods to promote wellness and enable healthy living. India should encourage research to translate knowledge into innovative and effective products, strategies, interventions and services that help prevent disease and improve well-being while being cost-effective. For example, this could include tackling communicable diseases through new prevention frameworks, including immunisation programmes for children and adults.
If the needs of older people are properly recognised, this newly-burgeoning population need not be a demographic catastrophe, but can become a demographic dividend. Everyone should collaborate to ensure that barriers to the healthy ageing of society are eliminated. The clock is ticking.
Western and developed nations are preparing for the demographic transformation; and India, as one of the world's fastest-growing economies, can't afford to fall behind.
Ageing and prosperity can go hand in hand and a life-course approach to healthy ageing is the most reliable way to ensure that India takes its rightful place in the world.
The writer is vice-president for external medical affairs, Pfizer
In a study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, the economic burden of NCDs in India will be close to $6.2 trillion during 2012-30.
Rapid urbanisation in India, associated with unhealthy nutrition and physical inactivity , may also contribute to the increase of age-related, infectious diseases such as pneumonia and influenza, as well as non-infectious chronic diseases such as stroke, cardiovascular ailments, diabetes, mental illnesses, cancers and respiratory infections, adding to healthcare costs and impacting productivity and the need for support. The disquieting feature of population ageing in a place such as India is that ageing is taking place at lower levels of socioeconomic status, and the gap in health-related outcomes between the rich and the poor is widening.
This will result in greater demand for healthcare, but older Indians may not be generating as much income as before to support it, leading to greater pressure on the working-age population to support senior members of the family financially and through care. This phenomenon puts added pressure on India's healthcare systems. So, how do we ensure the healthcare system can cope with the extra burden an older society poses?
Much is being done through civil society and institutions but more is needed. India as a nation needs to find ways to approach healthy and active ageing by promoting a healthy life course. With Indians living longer lives and India being the secondmost-populous nation in the world, the future of the country depends on healthy , active and productive ageing of its people. First, there is a greater need to educate citizens about preventive measures such as optimal nutrition, regular exercise, screenings and vaccinations.
A public health imperative to focus on preventive care and managing lifestyle factors should be the need of the hour for the new government. This will address some of the psychosocial factors and the productivity of ageing societies. For example, in the US, strategies to reduce salt intake to help address obesity and to control tobacco use cost as little as $1-2 per person and avert millions of deaths and billions of dollars of loss in economic output. Second, preventive care programmes must be supported by all stakeholders and integrated into national healthcare systems to be successful. The work by institutions such as the Public Health Foundation of India, among others, is key .
There needs to be an industry-wide coalition of governments, care providers and businesses to create methods to promote wellness and enable healthy living. India should encourage research to translate knowledge into innovative and effective products, strategies, interventions and services that help prevent disease and improve well-being while being cost-effective. For example, this could include tackling communicable diseases through new prevention frameworks, including immunisation programmes for children and adults.
If the needs of older people are properly recognised, this newly-burgeoning population need not be a demographic catastrophe, but can become a demographic dividend. Everyone should collaborate to ensure that barriers to the healthy ageing of society are eliminated. The clock is ticking.
Western and developed nations are preparing for the demographic transformation; and India, as one of the world's fastest-growing economies, can't afford to fall behind.
Ageing and prosperity can go hand in hand and a life-course approach to healthy ageing is the most reliable way to ensure that India takes its rightful place in the world.
The writer is vice-president for external medical affairs, Pfizer
