Comprehensive Study of 50,000 Canadians as They Age
Kicked Off by Three Universities
The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging:
hopes to improve not just the number of years lived, but how those years
are lived
May 26, 2009 Three universities in Canada are
joining forces to lead a new study of 50,000 Canadians over two decades
to increase the understanding of common health problems affecting senior
citizens.
Researchers from Dalhousie, McMaster, and McGill
universities will guide one of the most comprehensive studies on aging
ever undertaken, the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA).
Our population is rapidly aging, and the better we
are able to understand the factors that allow people to maintain their
health through mid life and into their older years, as well as adjust to
declines in health, the better we will be able to inform interventions,
programs and policies that promote healthy aging, says Susan Kirkland,
associate professor with the Departments of Community Health and
Epidemiology and Medicine at Dalhousie University.
Ultimately, we hope to improve not just the number
of years lived, she adds, but how those years are lived.
The CLSA will follow 50,000 Canadians, aged 45-85
years at the time of recruitment, over the next 20 years. Its estimated
that study organizers will be hiring as many as 160 researchers and
research co-ordinators, laboratory staff and IT systems personnel over
the next year at 10 centres across the country.
As well as Dr. Kirkland, principal investigators
for the study are Parminder Raina, from McMaster University, and
Christina Wolfson, McGill University and Research Institute of the
McGill University Health Centre. Theyll lead the multi-disciplinary
research team comprised of researchers from 26 universities across
Canada.
Those researchers will collect information on the
changing biological, medical, psychological, social and economic aspects
of the participants lives.
The design and extended follow-up of the CLSA will
enable the study team to look at more than a brief snapshot of the adult
Canadian population and to critically examine health transitions and
trajectories over a longer-term period. Statistics Canada has committed
important and invaluable in-kind contributions to the design of the
survey and the recruitment of participants.
CLSA participants will be randomly selected from
across Canada and, as such, Canadians will not be able to proactively
volunteer to be part of the study. Once enrolled, participants will be
studied at three-year intervals and will be followed for at least 20
years.
Some people age in a healthy fashion despite many
physical health challenges, while others who are in good physical health
age less optimally. What explains this phenomenon? The study will answer
questions that are relevant to decision-makers to improve the health of
Canadians, said Dr. Raina, the studys lead principal investigator.
In addition to starting at mid-life, the CLSA is
the first study of its kind to collect social and economical retirement
factors, as well as clinical and biological measures. More than 70
longitudinal studies have taken place worldwide and most focused on only
one condition or on people over 65 years of age.
The Canadian government is investing $30 million to
support the study, launched Thursday, May 21 at McMaster University in
Hamilton, Ont.
