Can we change how we age? ST launches year-long series The New Age on living long, and living well

The New Age explores what it really means to grow older, and how daily lifestyle choices, medicine and social support can redefine ageing from an inescapable descent into a realm of opportunity.

Published Sep 05, 2026, 05:00 AM

Updated Sep 05, 2026, 05:00 AM

Singaporeans live longer but spend over a decade in poor health, with an 11-year gap between life expectancy and healthy life expectancy.

The Straits Times launches The New Age series to explore how lifestyle, medicine, and social support can redefine ageing and promote healthier lives.

Singapore invests in longevity science while some clinics are measuring biological age, but some anti-ageing treatments lack solid evidence and can be costly.

SINGAPORE – Ageing is one of the biggest health stories of our time. Singaporeans are living longer than ever, but extended life comes at a cost: Over a decade is spent in poor health.

While Singapore ranks first in the world for both life expectancy (85.4 years in 2023) and healthy life expectancy (74.1 years), the gap between the two has widened to 11 years, from nearly nine years in 1990, according to a global study published in The Lancet Public Health.

Women live longer than men, but they also spend more years burdened by ill health.

This comes as the nation joined the ranks of the super-aged in 2026 – more than one in five people here are aged 65 and older , and this will progress to one in four by 2030.

To examine how we can close the gap between growing old and living well, The Straits Times is launching The New Age, a year-long series exploring what it really means to grow older, and how daily lifestyle choices, medicine and social support can redefine ageing from an inescapable descent into a realm of opportunity.

Starting on Sept 5, our first package tackles a question that has emerged as the country gets older: Can we change how we age?

We look at Singapore’s latest investments in longevity science, and what researchers here are working on to help us live longer, healthier lives, as well as the country’s emerging longevity economy, the science behind biological age, and the people actively changing their ageing trajectory.

Public health initiatives are already promoting exercise, preventive health and ageing-in-place, but ageing cannot wait.

It is not just the researchers, but also policymakers, doctors and a growing number of longevity clinics that are interested in measuring how quickly we age and how to rewind the clock.

New tools are being harnessed in an attempt to estimate a person’s biological age, which, unlike your chronological age, refers to the state of your body, right down to the health of your cells. (This is the best predictor of your lifespan as well as the number of years you can expect to enjoy in good health.)

Meanwhile, clinics are assessing various aspects of health, from handgrip strength to cardiorespiratory fitness to insulin resistance, and more.

Alexandra Hospital is the only public sector institution operating a healthy longevity research clinic , something it has been doing since 2023.

But in the private sector, some hospitals have launched longevity services while longevity clinics offer personalised programmes, supplements and wellness services like infrared treatments that have anti-ageing claims.

The science, however, is moving unevenly. Some approaches are backed by evidence, while high-tech anti-ageing treatments often remain ahead of evidence and can be relatively expensive.

The New Age, which will run monthly, will cover a range of topics related to ageing to help you live a longer, healthier and happier life. Here is what to expect.

Holistic ageing topics: Discover insights on everything from housing and social spaces to muscle, hormonal and sexual health, as well as critical issues like loneliness and caregiving.

Practical lifestyle advice: Find actionable exercise tips and advice on how to live well, adapt to ageing and make better choices to lead fulfilling, vibrant lives.

By Seniors For Seniors column: Learn about ground-up initiatives by role-model seniors to lead active lives and support their peers.

Expert commentaries and podcasts: Gain practical tips for your longevity journey through close examinations of key topics and interviews with doctors and scientists.

If you are interested in extending the number of years you can spend in good health, whatever your age, this is the healthy longevity guide for you.

After all, everyone wants to enjoy the journey of life. It is an achievable goal, and we now have more power than ever to make our later years as rewarding as possible.

Joyce Teo is senior health correspondent at The Straits Times and the host of ST podcast series Health Check.

Health and well-being

《新时代》探讨了变老的真正含义，以及日常生活方式的选择、药物和社会支持如何将衰老从不可避免的衰落重新定义为充满机遇的领域。

发布于 2026 年 9 月 5 日上午 5:00

更新于2026年9月5日上午5:00

新加坡人寿命更长，但健康状况不佳的时间超过十年，预期寿命与健康预期寿命之间相差 11 年。

《海峡时报》推出“新时代”系列报道，探讨生活方式、医学和社会支持如何重新定义老龄化，并促进更健康的生活。

新加坡投资于长寿科学，一些诊所也在测量生物年龄，但一些抗衰老疗法缺乏可靠的证据，而且价格昂贵。

新加坡——老龄化是当今时代最受关注的健康问题之一。新加坡人的寿命比以往任何时候都长，但寿命延长也带来了代价：超过十年的时间里，人们的健康状况都不佳。

虽然新加坡在预期寿命（2023 年为 85.4 岁）和健康预期寿命（74.1 岁）方面均位居世界第一，但根据《柳叶刀公共卫生》杂志发表的一项全球研究，两者之间的差距已从 1990 年的近 9 岁扩大到 11 岁。

女性比男性寿命更长，但她们也更容易受到疾病的困扰。

2026年，该国将步入超级老龄化社会——届时，超过五分之一的人口年龄在65岁及以上，到2030年，这一比例将上升至四分之一。

为了探讨如何缩小衰老与美好生活之间的差距，《海峡时报》推出了“新时代”系列报道，该系列报道将持续一年，探讨衰老的真正含义，以及日常生活方式的选择、医疗和社会支持如何将衰老从不可避免的衰落重新定义为充满机遇的领域。

从 9 月 5 日开始，我们的第一个专题报道将探讨随着国家老龄化而出现的一个问题：我们能否改变衰老的方式？

我们将探讨新加坡在长寿科学领域的最新投资，以及这里的研究人员正在努力帮助我们活得更长久、更健康，同时还将关注该国新兴的长寿经济、生物年龄背后的科学原理，以及那些积极改变自身衰老轨迹的人们。

公共卫生举措已经开始提倡锻炼、预防保健和居家养老，但老龄化问题刻不容缓。

不仅是研究人员，政策制定者、医生以及越来越多的长寿诊所也对测量我们衰老的速度以及如何逆转时光感兴趣。

人们正在利用新的工具来尝试估算一个人的生物年龄。生物年龄与实际年龄不同，它指的是你身体的状态，细致到细胞的健康状况。（这是预测寿命以及预期健康生活年限的最佳指标。）

与此同时，诊所正在评估健康的各个方面，从握力到心肺功能，再到胰岛素抵抗等等。

亚历山德拉医院是唯一一家运营健康长寿研究诊所的公共部门机构，该诊所自 2023 年以来一直在运营。

但在私营部门，一些医院推出了长寿服务，而长寿诊所则提供个性化方案、补充剂和健康服务，例如具有抗衰老功效的红外线疗法。

然而，科学发展并不均衡。一些方法有证据支持，而高科技抗衰老疗法往往领先于证据，而且价格相对昂贵。

《新时代》杂志每月出版一期，内容涵盖与衰老相关的各种话题，旨在帮助您拥有更长寿、更健康、更幸福的生活。以下是杂志内容简介。

全面老龄化主题：探索从住房和社会空间到肌肉、激素和性健康等各个方面的见解，以及孤独和照护等关键问题。

实用生活方式建议：寻找切实可行的运动技巧和建议，了解如何健康生活、适应衰老以及做出更好的选择，从而过上充实、充满活力的生活。

来自“长者互助”专栏：了解榜样长者们自发发起的各项倡议，旨在积极生活并支持同龄人。

专家评论和播客：通过对关键主题的深入探讨以及对医生和科学家的采访，获得长寿之旅的实用技巧。

如果您有兴趣延长健康寿命，无论您的年龄多大，这本健康长寿指南都适合您。

毕竟，每个人都想享受人生旅程。这是一个可以实现的目标，而且我们现在比以往任何时候都更有能力让我们的晚年生活尽可能充实而有意义。

Joyce Teo 是《海峡时报》的高级健康记者，也是《海峡时报》播客系列节目“健康检查”的主持人。

健康与福祉