January 2026

Pension Schemes, Healthcare Use, and Health: Evidence from China

By Zeen He Using a non-parametric fuzzy regression discontinuity design and leveraging data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), this paper explores the impact of public and private pension schemes on health service utilization and health outcomes among urban and rural individuals in China. Our estimates show that receipt of public pensions, particularly the Urban Employee Pension Scheme (UEPS) and Public Employee Pension Scheme (PEPS), significantly improves selfreported health, mental health (CES-D scores), and physical health (ADL...

Aging populations are redefining the value of a healthy life year

Efficient, evidence-based resource allocation using quality-adjusted life years (QALY) is essential, especially as global life expectancy rises. A recent study published in Scientific Reports examines how considering age and country-specific demographic factors in QALY estimates can improve healthcare policy decisions and resource allocation. Concerns over increased healthcare costs due to the aging population Advances in medical technology and public health have led to rapidly aging populations worldwide, which contributes to rising healthcare costs and social burdens. By 2040, healthcare spending in Japan is...

November 2025

China. Health initiative promotes co-prevention of diabetes and shingles for healthy aging

A nationwide health campaign was launched to address the growing challenge of chronic diseases among aging adults in China to raise awareness and promote early intervention against chronic diseases, with a focus on shingles—a painful infection that poses serious risks to people with diabetes. The program, led by China CDC, CCTV.com, and the National Open University for the Elderly, offers free health education targeting adults aged 50 and above. It urged to tackle shingles, a frequently overlooked but debilitating disease,...

October 2025

Adapting health, economic and social policies to address population aging in China

By Evandro F. Fang, Yuan Fang, Guobing Chen, He-Ling Wang, Jianying Zhang, Chenkai Wu, Jing Liao, Chenglong Xie, Xiaoting Liu, Kan Wang, Yang Liu, Guang Yang, Qian Wang, Long-Tao He, Jun Li, Hou-Zao Chen, Lin Kang, Yawen Jiang, Huanxing Su, Hong Jiang, Na He, Jun Tao, Sean Xiao Leng, Richard C. Siow, Chunrong Liu, Hafiz T. A. Khan, Yuanli Liu, Hisaya Kato, Takashi Sasaki, Jong In Kim, Andrea Britta Maier, Lin Zhang, Lene Juel Rasmussen, Jean Woo, Jing Wu...

Personal and General Views on Aging, Non-Communicable Diseases, and Their Interaction as Cross-Sectional Correlates of Vigorous Physical Activity in UK Individuals Aged 50+

By Fabrizio Mezza, Daniela Lemmo, Maria Francesca Freda, Victoria Tischler, Blossom C. M. Stephan, Maria Mataró & Serena Sabatini Having more positive and less negative views on aging may prompt vigorous physical activity engagement. Moreover, positive general views of aging may be particularly important for physical activity among those who have one or more non-communicable diseases. Although we cannot infer causality, promoting positive views on aging and decreasing negative views on aging could help fostering active aging, especially among those...

2025 Global Retirement Index

By Dave Goodsell Norway has regained the top position in the 2025 Natixis Global Retirement Index, driven by its strong performance in health outcomes, low unemployment and high-income equality. Ireland surges to second place, thanks to improvements in inflation and an economic environment that supports retirement security. Since its launch in 2012, the Natixis Global Retirement Index has offered a comparative assessment of retirement security in 44 developed countries. The index evaluated 18 key indicators grouped into four subindexes: Finances in...

Bad Sleep Makes Your Brain Age Faster, Study Finds

People who struggle with poor sleep tend to have brains that look older than their actual age, according to an extensive brain imaging study conducted by Karolinska Institutet and published in eBioMedicine. The researchers suggest that increased inflammation in the body could help explain this connection. Although poor sleep has long been associated with dementia, scientists still debate whether unhealthy sleep patterns contribute to cognitive decline or if they are early signs of the disease. In this new investigation, the Karolinska...

The impacts of different dietary restriction regimens on aging and longevity: from yeast to humans

By Tsui-Ting Ching & Ao-Lin Hsu Dietary restriction (DR) refers to a broad set of interventions that limit the intake of specific nutrients or overall food consumption, either in quantity or timing, without causing malnutrition. DR has long been considered the most robust intervention for increasing healthspan and lifespan. This includes, not exhaustively, caloric restriction (CR), protein restriction (PR), amino acid restriction (AAR), intermittent fasting (IF), and time-restricted fasting (TRF), each with overlapping but distinct metabolic and physiological effects. This...

A systematic review and meta-analysis of air pollution and increased risk of frailty

By Zahra Jafari, Melissa Andrew & Kenneth Rockwood Background Environmental air pollution is increasingly recognised as a potential contributor to frailty. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthesise existing evidence on the associations between environmental air pollution and frailty in middle-aged and older adults, providing insights into the impact of air pollution on public health. Methods The systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Statement 2020. Four electronic databases were searched without...

Frailty in ageing populations worsened by air pollution, global review finds

Air pollution increases the likelihood of people becoming frail in middle and old age, according to an international review of studies. People are living longer and, while this is often painted as a challenge to healthcare systems, it is also something to celebrate. There are many opportunities to increase the quality of life in old age, maximise independence and minimise the amount time spent being ill. Dr Zahra Jafari, from Dalhousie University and coauthor of the review, said: “Frailty is a critical health outcome...