The aging of humanity is about to experience a radical change as the demographic transformation to an older world is approaching its final stage. In recent decades, scientists have learned enough about the biological aging processes that many believe it will become possible to slow aging in humans. We contend that the social, economic, and health benefits that would result from such advances ma...

Aging alters brain structure and function. Personal health markers and modifiable lifestyle factors are related to individual brain aging as well as to the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study used a novel magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based biomarker to assess the effects of 17 health markers on individual brain aging in cognitively unimpaired elderly subjects. By employi...

The lenses with which we view aging are formed by many things: the maturing of gerontology as a discipline, the development of our theoretical and methodological tools for examining age and aging, and population aging itself. ‘‘Healthy aging’’ has become one of those lenses. For many years our attention has been drawn to the frailties associated with aging as we attempt to alleviate the sufferi...

Sexual orientation and gender identity are not commonly addressed in health and human service delivery, or in educational degree programs. Based on findings from Caring and Aging with Pride: The National Health, Aging and Sexuality Study (CAP), the first national federally-funded research project on LGBT health and aging, this article outlines 10 core competencies and aligns them with specific ...

This article aims to identify the main determinants of self-rated health and well-being in the elderly Portuguese population, using a set of dimensions including demographic and socioeconomic indicators, characteristics of interpersonal networks and social activities, health, sexual activity, representations of aging, and feeling of happiness. Taking socioeconomic, behavioral, and attitudinal p...

The United States population is aging rapidly, and understanding the potential impact and feasibility of lifestyle interventions on the aging process is of central importance for addressing future population health and health care costs. This symposium addressed the question of whether caloric restriction may be a feasible strategy to improve human health by reductions in rates of primary and s...

The Mental Healthiness and Aging Initiative was created to develop resources addressing the mental health needs of older adults, particularly those in rural areas. Community members participated in focus groups discussing mental health and aging. Themes that emerged included the desire to maintain independence, the importance of emotional health and intergenerational activities, the value of sh...

In the next decades the elderly population will increase dramatically, demanding appropriate solutions in health care and aging research focusing on healthy aging to prevent high burdens and costs in health care. For this, research targeting tissue-specific and individual aging is paramount to make the necessary progression in aging research. In a recently published study we have attempted to m...

OBJECTIVE The authors investigated the associations of medical and lifestyle factors with the mental health of men in their 80s. METHODS This was a prospective study of a community-representative cohort of older men. Successful mental health aging was defined as reaching age 80 years with Mini-Mental State Examination score (MMSE) of 24 or more and Geriatric Depression Scale-15 items (GDS-15)...