Towards a Dignified Sunset: The Resilient Shift from Lifespan to Healthspan in East Asia’s Longevity Era
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61173/m7w1ys39Keywords:
Healthspan, Life course perspective, Ageing society, Active agingAbstract
East Asia is one of the most densely populated regions on earth. According to new UN Population Fund data, the average life expectancy is 73.16 years worldwide. Interestingly, the majority of East Asian countries greatly surpass this frequency. However, this puts up enduring sight soaring shipping costs and the world's best rapid demographic aging. A long lifespan, on the other hand, does not translate to an increased healthspan. Using a life-course perspective, this research examines the various aging issues that Japan, South Korea, and China experience across biological, social, economic, and policy regions. According to an empirical study of Healthy Life Expectancy data from 2000 to 2021, considerable native improvements have been made, perhaps at various levels. The report contends that using technology in elder care to prioritize healthspan over only longevity requires popular transformation, including embedding primary prevention of age-related diseases, generally redefining aging beyond standard xiao, and reallocating financial resources toward promotion of life-course health. It involves more activists, including institutional changes, in East Asia's cultural environment to reduce old-age bankruptcy and longevity risk. Due to shared issues, which are made worse by social resemblance and accelerated aging, cross-national cooperation is required.
References
[1] Information on: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/ detail/ageing-and-health
[2] A.H. Toomey, Empowerment and disempowerment in community development practice: eight roles practitioners play, Community Dev. J. 46(2) (2011) 181–195.
[3] Q.F. Chen, Q.Q. Liu, Exploring the Life-Cycle Health and Elderly Care Policy System, China Popul. News (2025).
[4] S. Lacagnina, The Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD), Am. J. Lifestyle Med. 14 (2019) 47–50.
[5] F. Campbell, G. Conti, J.J. Heckman, et al., Early childhood investments substantially boost adult health, Science 343 (2014) 1478–1485.
[6] L. Zwar, H.H. König, A. Hajek, Views of aging and mental health - The role of informal care provision: Longitudinal findings of the health and retirement study in the US, J. Affect. Disord. 361 (2024) 472–479.
[7] Information on: https://www.mhlw.go.jp/search.html
[8] Information on: https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/ zhengceku/202501/content_6995747.htm
[9] Information on: https://www.wanqulawyer.com/ aomenfagui/1265.html
[10] OECD, Health at a Glance 2017: OECD Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, 2017.
[11] Y. Shimizu, M. Akiyama, Integrated community care systems for aging populations: Lessons from Japan, Int. J. Integr. Care 21 (2021) 15.
[12] T. Tsutsui, N. Muramatsu, Japan’s universal long-term care system reform of 2005: containing costs and realizing a vision, J. Am. Geriatr. Soc. 55(9) (2007) 1458–1463.
[13] M.X. Yang, Z.H. Kuang, Development and Implications of Hospice Care in Taiwan, China, Med. Philos. 45(3) (2024) 50–54.
[14] S.S. Wang, T.Y. Chiu, W.Y. Hu, et al., The evolution of advance directives in Taiwan: From cultural resistance to legal framework, J. Palliat. Med. 21(5) (2018) 616–620.
[15] F.H. Hsiao, P.J. Chen, F.L. Huang, et al., Advance care planning in Asian cultures: The Taiwan model, J. Pain Symptom Manage. 60(1) (2020) e1–e4.
[16] NHK Special Reporting Team, Old Age Bankruptcy: The Nightmare Called Longevity (J. Wang, Trans.), Shanghai Yiwen Press, Shanghai, 2018 (Original work published 2014).
[17] A. Sen, Development as Freedom, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1999
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
