Older populations, aging individuals and health for all

Family planning and reduced infant mortality have led to an explosion in the number of elderly people. There are already 300 million people aged 65 and over and by the year 2000 there will be over 400 million, two-thirds or more of them in the developing countries. Great gaps still exist in our knowledge of health and disease in the elderly, of how best to prevent or treat illness among them, and of how to care for those who become dependent. Although the precise impact of aging on societies awaits clarification, governments will undoubtedly have to develop social and health policies so as to adapt equitably to the forces of change.