<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr"><p class="MsoNormal">Dear colleagues,<br></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Please support the recognition by the World Health
Organization (WHO) of the importance of biological and biomedical research of
aging for the development of effective health care for the global aging
population! Now is a wonderful opportunity to do so, <b>by sending an opinion
survey to the WHO’s consultation on the Global Strategy and Action Plan on
Ageing and Health</b> that takes place in Geneva right now. <b>The last time
this can be done is today, October 30.</b> Here is the participation page: <a href="http://www.who.int/ageing/consultation/en/" target="_blank">http://www.who.int/ageing/consultation/en/</a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It is possible to download the full questionnaire as a Word file
and send to <span style="font-size:14pt"><a href="mailto:HealthyAgeing@who.int" target="_blank">HealthyAgeing@who.int</a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Or there is a choice to relate online to several or one strategic
objective out of the five, for example “Strategic Objective 5: Improving
measuring, monitoring and understanding” [of healthy aging]</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.who.int/ageing/consultation-strategic-objective5/en/" target="_blank">http://www.who.int/ageing/consultation-strategic-objective5/en/</a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Action plan draft is available here: “WHO DRAFT 0:
GLOBAL STRATEGY AND ACTION PLAN ON AGEING AND HEALTH”. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.who.int/ageing/global-strategy/GSAP-ageing-health-draft.pdf?ua=1" target="_blank">http://www.who.int/ageing/global-strategy/GSAP-ageing-health-draft.pdf?ua=1</a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.who.int/ageing/global-strategy/en/" target="_blank">http://www.who.int/ageing/global-strategy/en/</a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">There may be several quite encouraging elements in the
existing draft of the Action Plan, that can be interpreted as supportive of
biomedical research of aging to improve healthy longevity. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Thus the Strategic Objective 5: “Improving measuring,
monitoring and understanding”, speaks of the need for “biomarkers for key
concepts related to healthy ageing” AND "testing of clinical interventions” [!]
(Action 1). It also requests countries to develop “evidence informed national
Healthy Ageing strategies or plans that are part of overall national plans
through a process that involves all stakeholders” (“Strategic Objective 1:
Fostering healthy ageing in every country” Action 1) [presumably these national
plans should include programs for biomedical research] AND “including core
geriatric and gerontological competencies in all health curriculums” (Strategic
Objective 2: Aligning health systems to the needs of the older populations.
Action 3) [presumably these competencies should include education on biological
aging processes].</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">All these elements can be interpreted as supportive of
biomedical research of aging and could already be used in advocacy! Yet, it is
still necessary to infuse, emphasize and make more explicit the
biomedical/biological interpretation. Otherwise, the text may be given to
various interpretations, not necessarily supportive of biomedical approaches
aimed at therapy.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This emphasis can be made in several ways. For example, the
International Longevity Alliance proposes to emphasize the following messages
(please find attached their filled in WHO questionnaire that can be used as a
template and suggestion): </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">“The need to address aging challenges by first increasing
the *healthy* life expectancy, not the unhealthy one (!), with therefore a
strong emphasis on *biomedical aging research*, both fundamental and translated
to populations, and for both preventative and curative solutions” and
furthermore encouraging a shift of terms from “healthy aging” to “healthy
longevity” (as the latter term is more logically and scientifically correct,
and more encouraging and proactive)</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Israeli Longevity Alliance (on behalf of which I
personally submitted the questionnaire) advocates along very similar lines and
proposes to bulk up the Strategic Objective 5: “Improving measuring, monitoring
and understanding”, with a stronger and more explicit emphasis on biological
and biomedical research of aging (also please find attached the survey, that
addresses specifically this Objective).</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Thus, to the question of the consultation: “For Strategic
Objective 5, do you think another first-level priority action should be added
to this list?” it is proposed to add the fourth action: “4) Elucidating basic
mechanisms and processes of aging, their relation to disease, and mechanisms of
their amelioration for the development of therapies to achieve healthy
longevity.”</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And of course the critical need for biomedical research of aging to
improve healthy longevity can be expressed in many other ways. Please dedicate
a few minutes to filling in this survey and sending it to WHO at <a href="mailto:HealthyAgeing@who.int" target="_blank">HealthyAgeing@who.int</a>. You may consider
writing in the subject line “<b>In support of biomedical research of aging at
the WHO Consultation</b>” to stress the main message. Please also consider
forwarding this appeal to colleagues. Currently the consultation received about 350 survey
responses, very few of which address biomedical research of aging, of which
none apparently included in the WHO consultation summaries. A few dozen more
responses in support of biomedical research, especially on behalf of respected
organizations and institutes, may produce a critical shift of opinion balance
at WHO. And a shift of attitude in favor of biomedical research of aging at WHO
may produce a corresponding shift of attitude in the global public health
system<b>. Please express your support
for biomedical research of aging at WHO today!</b> (And let us already prepare
for the Action Plan implementation.)</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Thank you!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Ilia Stambler, PhD</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Chair. Israeli Longevity Alliance.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Outreach Coordinator. International Society on Aging and
Disease (ISOAD)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.longevityforall.org/who-consultation-on-the-global-strategy-and-action-plan-on-ageing-and-health/" target="_blank">http://www.longevityforall.org/who-consultation-on-the-global-strategy-and-action-plan-on-ageing-and-health/</a><br></p><div><br></div></div></div></div></div><div><br></div></div></div></div></div><div><br></div></div></div><br><br clear="all"><div><br></div>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><span style="font-family:Arial"><font size="1">Ilia Stambler, PhD</font></span></p><p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><span style="font-family:Arial"><font size="1"><br></font></span></p>
<p><font size="1"><span style="font-family:Arial">Outreach
Coordinator. International Society on Aging and Disease - ISOAD </span><a href="http://isoad.org/" target="_blank">http://isoad.org</a></font></p>
<p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><span style="font-family:Arial"><font size="1">Chair. Israeli
Longevity Alliance / International Longevity Alliance (Israel) - ILA<span> </span></font></span><font color="#0000ee" face="Arial" size="1"><u><a href="http://www.longevityisrael.org/" target="_blank">http://www.longevityisrael.org/</a></u></font></p>
<p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><span style="font-family:Arial"><font size="1">Coordinator. Longevity
for All<span> </span><a href="http://www.longevityforall.org/" target="_blank">http://www.longevityforall.org</a></font></span></p>
<p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><font size="1"><span style="font-family:Arial">Author. Longevity
History.<span> </span><i>A History of
Life-Extensionism in the Twentieth Century</i> </span><span style="font-family:Arial;color:blue"><a href="http://longevityhistory.com/" target="_blank"><span lang="DE">http://longevityhistory.com</span></a></span></font></p>
<p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><span lang="DE" style="font-family:Arial"><font size="1"> </font></span></p>
<p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><font size="1"><span lang="DE" style="font-family:Arial">Email:<span> </span></span><span style="font-family:Arial"><a href="mailto:ilia.stambler@gmail.com" target="_blank"><span lang="DE" style="color:#1155cc">ilia.stambler@gmail.com</span></a></span><span lang="DE" style="font-family:Arial"></span></font></p>
<p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><span lang="DE" style="font-family:Arial"><font size="1">Tel: 972-3-961-4296 / 0522-283-578</font></span></p>
<p style="margin:0in 0in 0.0001pt;background-image:initial;background-repeat:initial"><span lang="DE" style="font-family:Arial"><font size="1">Rishon Lezion. Israel</font><span style="font-size:10pt"></span></span></p></div></div></div></div></div></div>
</div>