European Countries Prioritise Healthy Ageing

As the world population goes grey, destinations specialising in ageing well are scaling up.

Europe v Ageing

With the median age of the global population rising faster than any time in history, attempts to tackle the elder generation’s disparity between lifespan and healthspan – the number of years spent in good health – are under the microscope, especially in Europe.

• By 2030, one in six people will be 60+, with 30% of the EU population 65 or older by 2100.
• 73% of Europeans aged 85 or older have a long-standing illness or health problem.
• The total cost of ageing in Europe will account for ~26% of GDP by 2070.

Population health. On a societal scale, Healthy Ageing through Innovation in Rural Europe (HAIRE) is an institution-led £4.5M project designed to improve health and care quality across eight rural communities.

Elsewhere, in the private sector, holistic longevity clinics are developing preventative solutions like IV drips, personalised nutrition and sleep coaching to increase healthspans.

But, for the most part, the reach to the greater population has been limited.

Destination Portugal. Citing low cost of living and the country’s pleasant climate as contributing factors, Portugal has quickly risen as a prime retirement destination for both Europeans and those abroad.

Tracking the health-minded (largely wealthy) elderly migration, operators are investing in new-age clinics and biohacking hotels as well as reimagined senior care developments.

• Life Plan Resorts announced a comprehensive retirement resort for healthy ageing and optimal well-being in Benavente, Portugal with planning for a second site underway.
• Longevity Health & Wellness Hotel, Portugal’s first age-hacking resort, offers tailored meal plans, infusions and integrative medicine consultations for “smart ageing”.
• Italian biohacking clinic The Longevity Suite has stated plans to bring its diagnostics + treatment concept to Portugal.

Punchline: Despite life expectancy increasing globally, more people are living the later years of their lives in decline. For Portugal and beyond, from aged care to bespoke wellness programmes, increasing quality of life through community, nutrition and an active lifestyle has never been more in demand.