75 mn Indians over 60 have a chronic disease
NEW DELHI: About 55% Indians over the age of 60, or roughly 75 million people, suffer from a chronic disease, according to the first part of the world’s largest study on the elderly, The Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI), released on Wednesday.
About 40% have some form of disability, and 20% suffer from mental health issues, the study showed. Also, 27% of this population group, which translates to 35 million people, has multi-morbidities.
“About 45 million have cardiovascular disease and hypertension and about 20 million suffer from diabetes, and 24% of the elderly have difficulty in performing daily functions such as walking, eating, toileting, etc, according to this survey,” said KS James, director, The International Institute of Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai, which is the nodal institution for implementing the survey.
The study was commissioned by the Union ministry of health and family welfare in 2016 to track ageing patterns and diseases affecting India’s 103 million people who are over 60 years of age.The other institutes
that collaborated for the survey include the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, and the University of Southern California.
“Even if we assume 90% of these people are taken care of at home, there is still 10% that would require professional help. Imagine the employment opportunities that will be generated in future and the number of people who would require training to take care of the elderly in our country,” said James.
With people living longer, the global share of people aged 60 years and above increased from 9.2% in 1990 to 11.7% in 2013, and the number is expected to reach 21.1% by 2050.
About 65% of India’s population was under 35 years when the study was commissioned, and there are expected to be 350 million people above 60 years of age by 2050, prompting the government to focus on documenting the problems faced by the elderly in the country.
The field survey was conducted across 35 states and Union territories from April 2017 to December 2018. It is a fullscale national survey of scientific investigation of the health, economic, and social determinants and consequences of population ageing in India.
“From 9% in 2011, the 60-plus population in the country is likely to go up to 20% in 2050. A common plan will be created for the care of the elderly in the country using the findings of the LASI study for implementation in future,” said Vandana Gurnani, mission director, National Health Mission.
The first wave of LASI covered a panel sample of 72,250 individuals aged 45 years and above, including 31,464 people above 60 and 6,749 people aged 75 and above.
“It is not one of your routine surveys. It is one of the largest surveys in the world and the technology that has been used is state of the art, that has resulted in high-quality data which will help in policy building for the elderly population,” said Union health minister Harsh Vardhan, while releasing the report.