First-of-its-kind study covered 195 nations
- People living in India experience the health problems associated with ageing at an early stage than those living in Japan or Switzerland, according to a first-of-its-kind study published in The Lancet Public Health.
- Researchers at the University of Washington in the U.S. and colleagues found that a 30-year gap separates countries with the highest and lowest ages at which people experience the health problems of a 65-year-old.
- They found that 76-year-olds in Japan and Switzerland, and 46-year-olds in Papua New Guinea have the same level of age-related health problems as an “average” person aged 65.
- The analysis also found that people living in India experience the similar health problems well before they turn 60.
- The study is the first of its kind where traditional metrics of ageing examine increased longevity, this study explores both chronological age and the pace at which ageing contributes to health deterioration.
- The study uses estimates from the Global Burden of Disease study (GBD).
- The findings cover 1990 to 2017 in 195 countries and territories.
Health rankings
- The researchers measured “age-related disease burden” by aggregating all disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), a measurement of loss of healthy life, related to the 92 diseases.
- Although most countries have similar rankings between age-standardised, age related and all-burden rates, countries such as Ethiopia, Nigeria, and South Africa perform better in age-related disease burden relative to all burden.
- Countries such as China and India are performing better in all-burden rankings, researchers said.
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