"Nutrition and Ageing: Eating Habits for Healthy Elderly Life" an international conference sponsored by ILSI Japan and the ILSI Research Foundation, was held in Tokyo, Japan, on 21-22 September 1999, to provide an international forum to discuss the latest trends and developments regarding the role of sound nutrition in healthy ageing. Welcoming remarks by Dr Shuichi Kimura, President, ILSI Japan, and Dr Alex Malaspina, President, ILSI, highlighted the need for close collaboration with organizations such as WHO and FAO to review the global pattern of undernutrition and underactivity in older populations. Keynote lecturer Dr Jun-ichi Nishizawa, Iwate Prefectural University, suggested that the growth of the global population, and the benefits of technological advances will mean only strong, healthy humans can expect to be functional and independent as they become older.
Approximately 300 participants from Asia and around the globe heard the latest scientific information from an international group of experts including Dr Junshi Chen, Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine (China); Dr Yang Lee-Kim, Yonsei University (Korea); Dr Klaas Westerterp, Maastricht University (The Netherlands); Dr John Morley, St. Louis University (USA); and Dr Takeshi Hoshi, (Shizuoka Foundation for Health and Longevity, (Japan). Issues presented included: eating habits and appropriate intake in the elderly diet; the impact of food labeling on eating habits; nutrition and physical activity programs to reduce the risk of chronic disease in the elderly; and changes in physiological function and food preferences.
Country representatives from Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Europe, and the United States highlighted the changing trends in dietary habits and physiological function throughout the ageing process. Specific topics addressed were: the sharp decline in activity levels in older males and females, and the need to overcome misperceptions about exercise in senior populations; the optimal level of vitamin E intake for immune enhancement and disease reduction; and the nutritional related benefits of physical activity in seniors, including increased basal metabolic rate, increased appetite, and correction of constipation. Various approaches by the governments to approve product health claims were also discussed; methods ranged from the development of detailed guidelines in the UK, to an historical perspective of food as part of unregulated traditional medicine in China. Closing remarks by Dr, Kimura focused strongly on the need for partnerships between the public and private sectors in an effort to promote healthy diets and physical activity. Proceedings from the conference will be published in Japanese and English in mid-2000.
Submitted by Debra Kibbe, MS, PHR, Program Manager, ILSI Center for Health Promotion, Physical Activity and Nutrition (PAN) Program, 2900 Chamblee Tucker Road, Bldg 2, Atlanta GA 30341-4128 USA; tel 770-455-9435; fax 770-455-1826; email dkibbe@ilsi.org website at www.ilsi.org
Contact: ILSI Japan, Koike Bldg, 2-9-11-403, Umezato, Suginami-ku, Tokyo 166-0011 Japan; tel 81-3-3318-9663; fax 81-3-3318-9554.
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The 2nd World Congress on the Ageing
Male The 2nd World Congress on the Ageing Male is sponsored by the International Society of the Study of the Ageing Male, WHO, and the European Association of Urology (EAU). This Congress is intended for practitioners, experts and researchers of medical behavioural and social sciences as well as for providers of services and technologies for the ageing population. Topics will cover the areas of: health services research and the national policies towards the ageing male; quality of life; endocrinology of men (hormone levels, androgen therapy); uro-genital problems (prostate cancer, prostate hypertropy, incontinence); erectile dysfunction; the ageing male in the developing world; sleep disturbance; growth hormone; obesity, and diabetes. For further information contact: Secretariat, 2nd
World Congress on the Ageing Male, Juoni Congress, PO Box 1731, 7 Rue de Berne,
CH-121 Geneva 1, Switzerland; tel +41 22 908 1855; fax +41 22 908 1835; email:
agingmale@kuoni.ch website http://www.kenes.com/aging |
