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October 2002 Developing Health Policies for the Elderly in Asia The better-educated your children, the greater your chances for a healthy old age—at least if you live in Taiwan—according to a recent study by Zachary Zimmer, a Population Council research associate whose work examines the health and well-being of older adults in developing countries. Zimmer, the principal investigator on a grant from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), and Population Council president Linda Martin, a co-investigator on the project, are exploring changes in and determinants of health among older adults in a number of Asian countries. Zimmer said that the “graying” of a population is no longer an issue facing only the United States and Europe. Declining fertility and mortality in many Asian countries are reshaping demographic profiles in the region to such a degree that the population pyramid is losing its familiar form. The pyramid’s base, which represents the proportion of the population at young ages, is shrinking, while the 70-year-plus group at the pyramid’s peak is expanding. A comparison of two graphs representing population pyramids for Asia, one for 2000 and another based on projections for 2040, shows the gradual widening of the top of the “pyramid” that will occur in the next few decades.
The NIA-funded study focuses on Taiwan, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, and China. Zimmer notes that China’s one-child policy will bring many new and unexpected challenges associated with an aging population. “Family sizes declined in a single generation from seven or eight children per family to just one, and the cohort of children from the 1950s is now in its 40s and 50s,” he said. “In the past, parents could have counted on several children to care for them in their old age, but now there is often just one. When they retire, what policies and health resources will be there for them?” At this point, no one can predict the sort of experiences the elderly will face when there are fewer children to care for them than in previous generations. Findings from the study in Taiwan, however, showed that high education levels of children are a positive factor in an old age, but now there is often just one. When they retire, what policies and health resources will be there for them?” At this point, no one can predict the sort of experiences the elderly will face when there are fewer children to care for them than in previous generations. Findings from the study in Taiwan, however, showed that high education levels of children are a positive factor in an elderly parent’s health status. In Taiwan, and probably in other societies where multigenerational households are the norm, the study found that children who can negotiate the health care system, supervise medication, and watch over the nutrition of their parents contribute to the good health of the aged. By identifying such determinants of well-being, researchers hope to play a part in encouraging the adoption of policies that will assist the growing proportion of the elderly in societies across Asia. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
