“It is around the age of 50 that the first signs of fragility should be detected and measures taken to avoid the fragility most often observed after 65 years” announces the Academy of Medicine in a dependency report preventable in aging.
32% over 60 in 2060
In 2060, France should have more than 73 million inhabitants, 32% of whom will be in their sixties and over. “This aging of the population is associated with a pandemic of chronic diseases and functional disabilities. The costs of age-related dependency, already very high, will be even higher. Urgent measures are needed to reduce the “avoidable” addictions during aging” insist the experts of the Academy.
To reduce these dependencies, they therefore suggest setting up a special medical consultation, “mid-life”, that is to say around the age of 50. This consultation would be fully paid for by the Primary Health Insurance Fund, and would make it possible to detect weaknesses early on, well before retirement age. Taking care of people deemed potentially fragile would reverse the trend that leads to dependence often observed after 65 years.
Act at an early stage, as in oncology
“90% of the treatment possibilities offered by geriatrics are used at a too late stage. We must act at an earlier stage as we do in oncology or vascular medicine” insists the Academy of Medicine, referring in particular to current research on certain essential amino acids (leucine, lisine, arginine…) which, combined with physical exercises, would make it possible to fight against aging.
This medical visit would also make it possible to insist on lifestyle advice (stopping smoking, healthy eating, maintaining regular physical activity, etc.) which makes it possible to fight against sarcopenia, a disease which is characterized by gradual decrease in muscle mass, muscle strength and performance, which sometimes appears as early as 50 years old.
