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Ageing societies--new priority for public health research?

Population ageing, caused by longer life spans and low fertility rates, has changed the demographics in Europe and around the world. Older people not only are becoming a larger portion of the population, but also face a prolonged period of life in which a majority is relatively healthy, especially so in the ‘third age’ that ranges typically from the mid-50s to the early 80s. Nevertheless, ageing is associated with increased risks of chronic disease and impaired functioning. This fact results in challenges to health-care systems, prevention activities and social policy regulations. In this context, fresh evidence derived from public health research on the maintenance and promotion of health in older populations is clearly needed. But why should this research be given special priority? At least three reasons deserve attention.

The first reason concerns early retirement and its major determinants. Although large variations in workforce participation rates are observed …