A Population Where Men Live As Long As Women: Villagrande Strisaili, Sardinia

Usually women live longer than men and female centenarians largely outnumber male centenarians. The findings of previous studies identifying a population with a femininity ratio close to 1.0 among centenarians in the mountainous region of Sardinia was the starting point of an in-depth investigation in order to compare mortality trajectories between men and women in that population. The exceptional survival of men compared to women emerges from the comparison with similar Italian data. Age exaggeration for men has been strictly excluded as a result of the age validation procedure. The discussion suggests that besides biological/genetic factors, the behavioral factors including life style, demographic behavior, family support, and community characteristics may play an important role. No single explanation is likely to account for such an exceptional situation and a fully integrated multidisciplinary approach is urgently needed

Fluoride glasses : synthesis and properties

The discovery of heavy metal fluoride glasses has opened new prospects for fiber optics operating beyond 2 µm with expected losses less than 10(-2) dB/Km. The main interest of fluoride glasses lies in their infrared transmission up to 8 µm in the bulk form and 4.5 µm for optical fibers. We have reported here the preparation, the glass forming systems and properties of heavy metal fluoride glasses

Economic Crisis and International Migration. What the EU Data Reveal?

What was the impact of the recent economic crisis on the international migration flows for the European Union? Such crisis may have strengthened the difficulties for non-EU citizens to enter the territory of the EU while the propensity for return migration could have increased. Concerning EU citizens, the impact could be a decreased intra-European mobility and, possibly an increase of extra-European emigration flows. In this contribution we check if data accessible in international and national databases for the year 2007 up to 2009 allow confirming these assumptions. Such analysis has to be carried out very carefully as international migration data are not harmonised despite of efforts done and, they are far to be reliable. Moreover new rules of data collection enforced by the EU since 2008 may have an impact of the newly provided data. Consequently changes in trends observed in 2008 and 2009 in the context of the economic crisis must be dealt with caution as the possible impact of simultaneous changes in data collection may hamper real trends and available data could not be always useful to enlighten the effect of the economic crisis on international migration flows.Quel a été l’impact de la récente crise économique sur les courants de migration internationale pour l’UE ? Une telle crise pourrait avoir intensifié les difficultés d’immigrer pour les ressortissants des pays tiers alors que la propension au retour de ceux résidant sur le territoire de l’UE pourrait s’être accrue. En ce qui concerne les citoyens européens, l’impact pourrait s’être traduit par une diminution de la mobilité intra-UE et un accroissement de l’émigration hors UE. Dans cette contribution, nous analysons les données accessibles dans les bases de données internationales et nationales afin de vérifier ces hypothèses. Une telle analyse doit être menée avec prudence, car les données de migration internationales ne sont pas encore harmonisées et sont loin d’être fiables. De plus, les nouvelles règles de collecte des données imposées par l’UE depuis 2008 pourraient avoir un effet perturbateur puisque les changements intervenus pourraient cacher les tendances réelles. Ce faisant, on constate que les données disponibles ne sont pas toujours adéquates pour mettre en évidence l’effet de la crise économique sur les migrations internationales.¿Cual ha sido el impacto de la crisis económica reciente sobre los flujos de la migración internacional en la Unión Europea? Una crisis como ésta podría haber intensificado las dificultades de inmigrar para los ciudadanos no pertenecientes a la Unión Europea, así como haber recrudecido la propensión al retorno de los residentes europeos. En relación a los ciudadanos europeos, el impacto podría haber dado lugar a una disminución de la movilidad intra-EU y a un crecimiento de los flujos de emigración extra-EU. En esta contribución, analizamos los datos disponibles en las bases de datos internacionales y nacionales con el fin de verificar estas hipótesis. Este tipo de análisis debe desarrollarse con prudencia ya que los datos de migraciones internacionales no están aún armonizados y están lejos de ser fiables. Además, las nuevas reglas de recolección de datos impuesta por la UE desde 2008 podrían tener un efecto perturbador ya que los cambios introducidos pueden ocultar las tendencias reales. De hecho, se constata que los datos disponibles no son siempre adecuados para poner en evidencia el efecto de la crisis económica sobre las migraciones internacionales

Trends in Living Arrangements for Older Persons in Estonia Compared to Belgium

The proportion of older people is increasing. During the years lived with disease and functional mobility loss, ensuring their well-being becomes a challenge for society. In addition to health, well-being in old age depends on various circumstances of an individual’s personal life. While contact with family members from a distance or irregular contact may be sufficient for satisfying the need for communication and may alleviate loneliness, it cannot replace the assistance that being present can provide. The difficulties or disadvantages are associated with some types of living arrangements. Therefore, patterns of living arrangements for older people are of key importance in studies of their well-being. The demographic characteristics vary by country but differences are expected to be less between societies experiencing a similar path in development. Since the last decade of the 20th century, rapid changes have brought Eastern Europe closer to the more developed areas of Europe, both in economic and social terms. The patterns of living arrangements for older people in Estonia compared to people of similar age in Belgium show some signs of convergence, the latter being considered representative of Western Europe. The studied period for Estonia includes the transition period from the Soviet regime to the current situation. Accordingly, we address the question of whether this transition accounts for some specific features in Estonia, compared with Belgian trends. We find rather different patterns in the distribution of older people’s living arrangements in the two countries but similar trends in the changes indicating convergence between the two countries

Longevity hotspot in Sicily. The exploration of a new possible blu zone

We are conducting a survey in some mountainous Sicilian populations, particularly in villages sited in the Palermo province, part of the Madonie Park. To ascertain the true longevity rate, we checked the born and death registers, analyzing about 37,000 newborns between 1881 and 1917 in a sample of five small municipalities located in Madonie. About 1,700 individuals died at the age of 90 years and over, and about one hundred were centenarians. Therefore, the probability to reach 90 and 100 years old was of 4.6% and 0.22% respectively. Accordingly, we observed significant lower mortality rates for all causes of death when compared to those measured in Palermo town. Therefore, the population of these municipalities is experiencing a higher longevity as compared to other places in Sicily and in Italy. Considering the healthy conditions of the population and the low rate of mortality, a total of 42 (14 males and 28 females) long-living individuals (LLIs) (≥ 90 years, mean age 97) were recruited between Madonie municipalities and Palermo city. A group of trained nutritionists administered a questionnaire to collect demographic data, cognitive and health status, clinical anamnesis, eating habits, and drug use, and the history of major age-related diseases were accurately reported. Regarding the social and psychological aspects, 35 of 42 analysed subjects lived with their offspring or with spouse. Only 4 lived in retirement home and 3 with in-home nurse. The Geriatric Depression Scale was administered to 27/42 subjects with medium score of 5.44 (not depressed). The Mini Mental State was administered to 33/39 LLIs with medium score of 19.26 (cognitive impairment from moderate to mild). Most of LLIs attended few years of primary school and 6 had a high school (and University) education. About the life-style, the ex-smokers were 9/42 and the alcohol consumption was limited, in few cases, to red/white wine. Concerning the eating habits, nobody consumed red meat more than once a week, whereas almost all consumed plant foods several times a week. This study represents a picture of longevity in Sicily with the limitation of the small sample size. So, further recruitment and demographic studies are needed to validate the Blue Zone and the possible explanation of the extreme longevity

Mortality risk by living arrangements for the elderly Belgian population

Résumé Objectifs : Le risque de décéder aux âges élevés est associé avec l’état matrimonial, mais également avec la situation de ménage de la personne considérée (avec qui une personne vit). Cette étude analyse comment l’association entre situation de ménage et risque de décéder varie en fonction de l’âge et du sexe. Données et méthodes : Nous utilisons des données extraites du Registre national belge concernant la situation de ménage de plus de 3 millions de personnes âgées de 60 ans et plus, ob-servées du 1er janvier 1991 au 31 décembre 2010. Tout d’abord nous calculons et comparons les probabilités annuelles de décéder pour les personnes selon les différentes situations de ménage. Ensuite nous construisons des tables de mortalité mul-ti-états en utilisant les probabilités annuelles de transition entre différentes situations de ménage et ce, afin de reconstituer les trajectoires de situation de ménage. Résultats : Nos résultats confirment l’effet protectif associé au fait de vivre en couple marié, mais ils montrent également que vivre seul aux âges plus élevés devient favo-rable à la survie. Un croisement apparaît entre les risques de décéder de ceux vivant seuls et ceux vivant avec d’autres personnes, mais pas avec leur conjoint. Toutefois de fortes différences ressortent selon le sexe. Enfin vivre en ménage collectif est largement défavorable pour la survie par comparaison à tous les types de ménages privés et ce, pour les deux sexes. Discussion : La façon dont le risque de décéder varie selon la situation de ménage est différente selon le sexe et diminue avec l’âge de fa-çon relative. Parmi d’autres explications, le rôle sélectif de l’état de santé est majeur, tout comme le soutien du conjoint qui est, dans la plupart des cas, le premier donneur de soin. Selon cette perspective, la différence d’espérance de vie en santé entre hommes et femmes et la différence d’âges entre conjoints pourraient contribuer à expliquer les différences du risque de décéder selon la situation de ménage entre les hommes et les femmes. Nos résultats sont importants dans le cadre des politiques sociales relatives aux personnes âgées et plus particulièrement pour l’évaluation des besoins futurs de nos populations vieillissantes. Abstract Objectives: Mortality risk in old age is associated with both marital status and living arrangements (with whom a person is living). This study analyses how the association between living arrangements and mortality risk varies by age and gender. Data and methods: We use a dataset extracted from the Belgian national register for the population aged 60 years and over, from 1 January 1991 to 31 December 2010, that includes more than three million persons and describes their living arrangements. First we compute and compare single-year probabilities of death for each living arrangement. Then, in order to recompose the living arrangement trajectories, we construct multistate life tables using annual probabilities of the transitions between successive living arrangements. Results: Our results confirm the protective effect of living with a spouse, and also show that at older ages living alone becomes advantageous. A crossover occurs in the mortality risks of those living alone and those living with others (not with a spouse), but large differences appear between the genders. Institutional living arrangements are largely detrimental for survival compared with private living arrangements for both genders. Discussion: The variation of mortality risk by living arrangements is gender-specific and decreases by age in relative terms. Among possible explanations, the selective role of health is paramount, as well as the presence of a spouse, who is the primary caregiver in most cases. According to this perspective, the gender gap in healthy life expectancy and the age difference between spouses contribute to explaining the gender differences. Our findings are highly relevant to social policies and the social discourse pertaining to the future needs of the elderly within the context of population ageing